How paint is made Formulating paint Paint contains three main classes of material: 1) A resin or mixture of resins, which

forms the paint film. This is known as the binder and on its own gives a clear film. The type of resin used can be varied to enable the paint to have whatever final properties are required. 2) Pigments to give color to the paint film and also to enable the coat of paint to hide what is underneath. 3) Solvents to dissolve or suspend the binder and give the paint the correct consistency (viscosity) for easy application. They must also evaporate after application to allow the paint to dry. A mixture of resin and solvent is called the vehicle for the pigment. Most paints also contain small quantities of various additives e.g. driers to speed up the drying process, substances to adjust pH of the paint, etc. This section describes the way the paint chemist blends the vehicle and pigment together to make paint. Why disperse pigments? Pigments are supplied industry in the form of dry powders. These consist of primary particles which are sized to give the best results in paint films. For example, white pigments (Titanium dioxide TiO2) scatters light most efficiently (whiteness and opacity) when the particle size is 0.22 microns. Some pigments are much smaller, some larger. The small primary particles of pigment clump together when the powder is dried and stored to form relatively large clumps (A clump of Titanium oxide may contain 5,000,000 primary particles) These clumps are known as aggregates and it is in this aggregated form that the pigments are supplied. To produce good paints, it is necessary that the pigment should be at its primary particle size when mixed with the vehicle. Otherwise most of the expensive colored pigment could not be used efficiently, and the dry film will not be smooth, glossy, opaque or have the correct color. Pigment dispersion It is therefore necessary to break down the aggregates of pigment particles in the presence of the vehicle and to prevent them from re-aggregating. For this reason, it is not normally possible simply to stir the pigment into the vehicle: rather, work has to be done on the mixture in order to break down the aggregates and ensure that the resin coats the small particle surfaces. This process is known as pigment dispersion, and the following processes must occur: 1) Wetting of the pigment surface by the vehicle. 2) De-aggregation of the pigment aggregates to small primary particles. 3) Stabilization of these small particles by the resin to prevent re-aggregation. A resin which is to perform well as a pigment dispersant must therefore be composed of molecules consisting of two parts: 1) An anchor group, which wets the pigment surface and becomes associated with it. 2) A stabilizing chain which is soluble in the solvent used and therefore stretches out into it. As mentioned previously, pigment particle surfaces contain areas of electrical charge. The anchor group in a dispersing resin is chosen for its ability to be attracted to some of these charged areas. In this way, during dispersion, the original surface of the aggregate, and the new surfaces exposed during grinding are covered by molecules of the dispersing resin. This process is known as wetting. The dispersion process Many different types of dispersion machinery have been developed but they all use one or both of two mechanisms to break up aggregates. The machinery falls into two groups: 1) Those that use dispersion media, usually ceramic balls 9 to 12mm in diameter or glass beads 1 to 3mm (like marbles) in diameter. Dispersion occurs where the balls touch each other by a combination of impact and shear depending on the conditions. 2) Those that do not use media - these disperse entirely by shear. Converting pigment (millbases) into finished paints

Pigments are always dispersed at the highest concentration possible for technical and economic reasons. Finished paints contain only enough pigment to give the desired properties for the same reasons. Millbases are therefore converted to paint by mixing with film forming resins, with solvents and any necessary additives. This must be done carefully, mixing the ingredients in the right order to get the best results. Obviously the resins and solvents must be compatible but problems may arise if components with large differences in resin solids, viscosity or temperature are mixed - pigment shock - reaggregation of the pigment particles may occur. For these reasons pigment dispension are usually second staged when dispersion is complete - they are diluted with resin and solvent to give a recipe which is still more concentrated than the final paint but much easier to use than the dispersion recipe. Waterborne millbases and paints must have the pH adjusted at this stage. Conclusion To be converted to paint, dry pigment powder must be dispersed in resin solution. During this process, aggregates must be broken up into primary pigment particles, the surfaces of which must be coated with resin. This resin stabilizes the pigment dispersion and prevents the particles from reaggregating. A lot of mechanical energy is needed to carry out this process. Various machines (or mills) are used. After pigment dispersion, the millbase is mixed with further resin, solvent and additives to give the final paint composition

PAINT OPERATION SYSTEM AUDIT NA Paint offers a low cost yet extremely powerful tool for paint shop engineers and management both to evaluate the operational efficiency of an existing paint application process and to improve it. Audits are tailored to your needs and are completely impartial to existing paint application spray methods, equipment manufacturers, and paint suppliers. Audits can focus on addressing current issues, evaluating operational efficiency, and improvements. They can include,

Paint Application System Audit Assess the efficiency and method of paint application. Examine the sequence of painting for optimal performance and quality. Estimate actual paint to part transfer efficiency. Record the level of paint and solvent waste generated. Assess the pre-finished parts quality and paintability. Assess quality control issues. Estimate the level and types of finish defects and probable causes. Examine the uniformity of film builds. Assessment of overspray patterns on booth equipment contamination. Assess robot paint program efficiency. Assess conveyor utilization, including speed and part density. Assess production cycles and job sequencing efficiency. Assess paint and solvent supply and distribution system efficiency. Assess compressed air supply and distribution system efficiency. Assess operator and labor efficiency. Assess equipment utilization. Assess process layout. Optional Audits For a comprehensive analysis of the entire paint shop, we offer these additional audits. Not only can they identify potential areas for improvement in each system, when viewed collectively, they can

often identify the best and most economical methods for increasing paint shop productivity, quality, and operational efficiency. These audits are: Pre-treatment system performance evaluation. Booth air velocity distribution and quality. Supply and exhaust air unit performances. Oven performance evaluation.

Paint Operations System Audit Our audits will also make use of relevant historical data, if available, such as defect and reject rates, maintenance records, and other such information that is useful to the audit process. Once this data set is recorded, it will be analyzed and will provide the foundation for a comprehensive report on the operational efficiency of the system. This report can include, but is not limited to, the following information. 1. Estimation of actual paint to part transfer efficiency. 2. Quantify levels of waste generated by respective processes. 3. Identify finish defects, calculate defect rates, and examine probable causes. 4. Establish part film build distribution profiles. 5. Estimate existing system capacity, unit by unit. 6. Estimate existing system utilization, unit by unit. 7. Discuss existing system operational efficiency, unit by unit. 8. Estimate operating costs. 9. Estimate the cost of rework. 10. Estimate the cost of scrap. 11. Comprehensive discussion of all items listed above, under Paint Application System Audit. Although different types of paint application systems often have similar processes, not all audit categories are applicable for every system. For example, in manual spray applications, a part film build distribution model in most cases is meaningless. Each audit must necessarily be tailored to an individual system and/or specific owner requests. The results of this audit will be presented in strict confidentiality. Addendum to the audit, and based on our extensive knowledge of efficient and modern painting processes and technologies, NA Paint will identify those areas of your existing system where productivity, ecological, quality, or other economic improvements are possible and project the net gain in each area. In this, our track record speaks for itself. Most paint process we have optimized have realized 30 to 50% increases in operational efficiency.

DOES YOUR PAINT SHOP MEASURE UP ? Our audits identify and quantify specific areas for efficiency, productivity, or process control gains. They support continuous improvement and Six Sigma. Major opportunities can be identified in one day. Depending on the system and scope, some audits can be quite comprehensive and require several days of on-site assessment. Most data is acquired during production although further assessment during downtime is often necessary. Our auditor requests the support of facility staff and management for the timely provision of information and assistance.

This service offers enormous potential value to North American businesses and their communities. We also recognize that a healthy, efficient paint shop is good for your business and ours, and therefore make every effort to keep audit costs low. If you value such an audit, contact us. For even small paintshops, payback for our audits are generally measured in hours or days. While on site, we can also document as-built system installation and provide for a very reasonable fee, quick turn-a-round on as-built pneumatic, affluent, or electrical drawings and flow schematics.