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Epoxy Chalking

The document discusses different types of paint finishes including liquid, powder, acrylic, epoxy, and polyester paints. It focuses on Holophane's paint process and their standard finish using TGIC polyester powder paint, which provides superior corrosion protection. For customers that require an epoxy finish, Holophane will provide a powder epoxy coating designated as 'Prismatect', but it is only recommended for indoor use due to the chalking of epoxy when exposed to UV light.

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883 views2 pages

Epoxy Chalking

The document discusses different types of paint finishes including liquid, powder, acrylic, epoxy, and polyester paints. It focuses on Holophane's paint process and their standard finish using TGIC polyester powder paint, which provides superior corrosion protection. For customers that require an epoxy finish, Holophane will provide a powder epoxy coating designated as 'Prismatect', but it is only recommended for indoor use due to the chalking of epoxy when exposed to UV light.

Uploaded by

iran1362
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Volume 2 Issue 2

Paint Finishes and Prismatect


General
Paint systems are available in many different forms, two of which are liquid and
powder. Many paint types are available
in both liquid and powder form, but the
application process and resulting surface protection are quite different.
Liquid paint relies on a solvent to carry
the proper materials to the surface of
the item to be coated. These solvents
evaporate and leave a coating on the
object. Powder coatings use no solvents and rely on a static charge during
application to deposit material on the
item to be coated. The powder coating
is fused onto the surface through a
heating process that "melts" the paint to
form a cross-linked, even layer.
Powder coatings offer a superior coating because the cross-linking that
occurs during the heating process
"locks" the paint molecules together
and also binds them to the substrate.
The interlocking of paint molecules to
other paint molecules and to the substrate results in protection from external
elements that would otherwise initiate
corrosion. Liquid paint undergoes a different process as the solvents evaporate that results in much weaker bonds.
The process described above is a simplified view of what happens during the
painting process. Numerous steps
must be followed to ensure a coating
that will adhere to the surface and provide necessary protection. To provide
a final product that will operate properly in a real-world environment, the
base material, the coating material and
the coating application process must
work in harmony. The following steps
and components must be addressed
for a reliable paint protection system:

Environment
Substrate
Cleaning
Pre-treatment
Sealing
Coating
Curing

Although substrates and surface preparation are topics of other discussions,


they are important factors in a coating
system that meets environmental
demands. Of concern here is
Prismatect and its performance relative
to the standard paint offered by
Holophane. To form a better understanding of performance, a brief discussion of some available powder paint
types is useful.

Acrylic Paint
A common coating is acrylic paint.
Acrylic coatings are not susceptible to
damage from ultraviolet light, therefore
chalking is virtually non-existent.
However, the corrosion protection of an
acrylic coating is rather poor due, in
part, to the low adhesion of acrylic to
metallic surfaces. Because one of the
main reasons for applying a coating is
to control corrosion, acrylic alone is a
poor choice for luminaires.
Acrylic paints are not very flexible, so
their coatings are prone to cracking
and peeling when the surface is dented
or bent.

Epoxy Paint
Epoxy-based paints can adhere very
well to a metallic surface if that surface
is prepared correctly. Because of its
bond to a metallic substrate and the
internal bonds in the paint itself, epoxy
is an excellent coating to control corrosion. However, epoxy paint systems
have a major problem dealing with
ultraviolet light - the material decomposes, causing what is known as
chalking. Chalking makes an epoxy
coating look very dull after a very short
exposure to sunlight. Chalking is also
an erosion of the material, which will
eventually cause the paint to lose its
corrosion protection as well.
"Epoxy" has become a term in general
use without specific definition, so a coat-

ing referred to as "epoxy" may contain a very minor proportion of the actual epoxide, and still qualify for the name.
But a coating which has only a small fraction of epoxy will
also have only a small fraction of epoxy's benefits and be
a much poorer performer than the term implies. For this
reason, polyesters often provide better corrosion protection
than some coatings called epoxy.

Polyester Paint
Polyester paints, especially formulations that contain
TGIC (triglycidyl isocyanurate), combine good corrosion
properties, good surface adhesion with durability of
appearance and mechanical strength to provide an excellent coating for luminaire systems. TGIC polyester does
not chalk, bonds to the surface of luminaires so hard that
sandblasting is necessary to remove it, and has flexibility
so it does not fail if the substrate is dented or bent.
TGIC polyester powder paints applied by electrostatic to
surfaces that have been properly pretreated with phosphate have proven their durability in numerous exposure
tests. In outdoor applications, the TGIC polyester normally outperforms epoxy systems. Indoors, there is no
difference in the response of the epoxy and TGIC polyester paint to corrosive environments.
It is because of the superior characteristics of the TGIC
polyester that Holophane originally chose this material
for its finish system, and continues to use it today.

Holophane's Paint Process


To construct an outstanding finish system, proper choice
of the coating material is critical. Twenty years ago,
Holophane used liquid paint exclusively. At that time, liquid was the mainstay of the painting industry, and powder
paints were not fully developed and not generally available. To provide the best corrosion system at that time,
Prismatect was introduced. It used a wet epoxy primer
coat and a UV protective overcoat of regular paint.
In the 1980's, Holophane invested significant time and
money to bring a TGIC polyester powder paint facility on
line, providing a significant improvement in paint quality
and corrosion protection. The durability of this powder
system was, and still is, better than the epoxy coating
that was developed to address liquid paint issues. The
Prismatect offering was continued due to customer
demand carried over from liquid paint specifications.
The liquid epoxy material was changed to powder to be
compatible with the application processes in place for
the TGIC polyester. The nature of the epoxy powder
coating makes it quite difficult to apply an overcoat to
this paint; it is so hard and smooth that adherance of an
overcoat is unreliable.
Because an overcoat of the epoxy is not reliable, it has
been eliminated from the Prismatect process. Given the
chalking tendency of epoxy when exposed to UV,

Prismatect is now only suggested for indoor applications


where the customer will not utilize the standard, high
quality TGIC polyester finish.
Holophane's finishing system is outlined below. The first
seven items encompass the pre-treat process and the
last three describe the paint application.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Clean
Rinse
Activate surface
Phosphate application
Rinse
Seal
De-ionized water rinse
Dry
Electrostatic powder coat
Cure (bake)

Specification - Prismatect Finish


The following is suggested for use by customers that still
believe that epoxy paint is necessary for their application:
Finish shall be a pure epoxy powder paint applied by an
electrostatic coating process over a substrate that has
been prepared through a seven stage pretreatment
process. Pretreatment shall include a phosphate application and deionized water rinse to ensure proper coating adhesion and corrosion protection.

Summary
The standard Holophane polyester TGIG paint system
provides superior corrosion protection from environments
encountered by lighting products. In virtually all applications, this finish should meet customer performance
requirements. For those customers that will not accept
anything other than an epoxy coating, Holophane will
provide a powder epoxy coating for those luminaires that
allow a "CR" option. Because of the chalking potential of
epoxy, the coating will be for indoor applications only.
If a customer demands an epoxy finish for an outdoor
application, Holophane TSG will need to be consulted.
Holophane continues to offer the best finishes available
in the industry. This Prismatect change in no way
reduces the performance of our products.

Common questions

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Acrylic paints are resistant to ultraviolet light, which prevents chalking and makes them suitable for outdoor use. However, they have poor adhesion to metallic surfaces, leading to inadequate corrosion protection. On the other hand, epoxy paints adhere well to metallic surfaces, offering good corrosion control. However, they are prone to decomposition under UV light, resulting in chalking and loss of corrosion protection over time .

Customer demand plays a significant role in Holophane's continued production of certain finishes, such as the retention of the Prismatect finish despite the introduction of superior options like TGIC polyester. Holophane maintains offering epoxy finishes to cater to specific customer preferences and applications, even though newer technologies provide improved performance .

Holophane ensures the longevity and performance of its paint finishes by using a comprehensive pre-treatment process, choosing superior materials like TGIC polyester that offer excellent corrosion protection and UV resistance, and continuously investing in technological improvements. Their standardized processes ensure that coatings adhere well and withstand environmental challenges .

Liquid paint systems use solvents to deliver materials to the surface, which then evaporate and leave a coating behind. In contrast, powder paint systems do not use solvents; instead, they rely on a static charge to apply the coating, which is then fused onto the surface with heat. This results in stronger bonds in powder coatings due to cross-linking during the heating process, providing superior protection against external elements and corrosion .

Holophane provides an epoxy coating for customers who specifically demand it, particularly in indoor applications where its chalking due to UV exposure is not a concern. For outdoor applications, the requirement for an epoxy finish necessitates consulting Holophane TSG, as TGIC polyester is generally recommended for superior performance .

Holophane recommends using TGIC polyester finish for most applications because it provides superior corrosion protection, durability, and resistance to UV light compared to the Prismatect finish, which is based on epoxy. The TGIC polyester finish meets customer performance requirements in virtually all applications, and its benefits far exceed those of an epoxy finish .

TGIC polyester paints are preferred for outdoor applications because they provide excellent corrosion protection, do not chalk, and have strong adhesion and flexibility, preventing them from failing when substrates are dented or bent. In contrast, epoxy paints experience chalking under UV exposure, which can erode the material and diminish their protective capabilities .

Applying an overcoat on an epoxy powder coating is challenging because the coating becomes so hard and smooth that adhesion of an additional layer is unreliable. Consequently, the epoxy overcoat has been eliminated from Holophane's Prismatect process to avoid issues with adherence .

Holophane's investment in a TGIC polyester powder paint facility led to significant improvements in paint quality and corrosion protection. The new system enhanced durability, eliminating issues associated with liquid paints and providing better overall performance than the liquid epoxy systems previously used. The superior characteristics of TGIC polyester, including its resistance to UV light and excellent adhesion qualities, prompted Holophane to continue using it for high-quality finishes .

Holophane's pre-treatment process includes the following steps: cleaning the substrate, rinsing, activating the surface, applying phosphate, rinsing again, sealing, performing a de-ionized water rinse, and drying the substrate. These steps ensure proper coating adhesion and corrosion protection before the application of the paint .

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