Coatings World - April 2016

Radiation Curing Technologies

equal or greater challenges in proving that small molecules and frag-
ments cannot leach from coatings and contaminate food or sensi-
tive products, such as medical devices. Finding an effective balance
among ‘verifiable low migration’ performance, cost, labeling and all
other physical performance requirements is daunting.”
Although radiation-curable products represent a relatively small
percent of the overall coatings market, there are a number of areas
for potential growth. “Perspective on the UV/EB market is that 3D
printing/rapid prototyping and digital inkjet printing are the two
biggest areas of growth in the near term,” said Gould. “While we
see significant interest in the automotive sector, traditional coating
technologies are entrenched as qualified incumbents and very diffi-
cult to displace. Performance and/or cost benefits must be realized
in order to achieve significant growth in this sector. Electronics is a
high value market space, but the rapid and constant metamorpho-
sis of devices and applications makes product development diffi-
cult in this area where material cost and performance requirements
change almost daily. Across market segments, the growth of UV/
EB adhesives appears to be robust, though labeling issues with raw
materials complicates growth here.”
According to Gerin, the radcure coatings grows faster than the
coating industry in general, around four percent per year. Growth ar-
eas depend on the region but two fast growing applications Allnex sees
double digit growth in inkjet and automotive interior applications.

Suppliers to the radcure coatings market must stay ahead of
impending legislation by developing more sustainable products.
“As global supplier of radiation curable resins, Allnex con-
tinuously improves its product offerings to the coatings mar-
ket. “The existing product portfolio is being adapted ahead of
legislation limiting chemicals of concern, by improving sustain-
ability (increasing use of biobased raw materials), by reducing
potential migration species in packaging ink resins,” said Gerin.
“Furthermore, several R&D projects are targeting new curing
and new application technologies requiring lower viscous resins.”

“New applications emerge when the value proposition of the UV/EB coatings (productivity, superior properties, low VOC content) versus the other technologies (mainly solventborne and waterborne coatings) becomes interesting and profitable for our clients or the end user,” Gerin continued. “As an example, a few years ago, UV gel nails took a sizeable share of the market, mainly because of the rapidity of the process – reduced number of layers and quicker drying time. The question every coating user should ask him/herself is always the same: what is the gain provided by a superior coating / quicker process versus the limited investment needed to cure UV/ EB coatings? In some cases, the gain comes from the quality of the coating, which allows our clients or the clients of our clients to sell their products with a premium. In other cases, the gain comes from the productivity, the capacity to produce on demand, the reduced inventory level, the capacity to replace the current substrate by a less expensive one. The opportunities are infinite.” CW

OPTIMIZATION OF COATING DEVELOPMENT THROUGH

THE USE OF NOVEL NON-DESTRUCTIVE TESTING

JOIN US FOR OUR NEXT WEBINAR

Date: Tuesday, April 19

Session 1: 6:00 am PDT / 9:00 am EDT / 2.00 pm BST / 3.00 pm CEST Session 2: 8:00 am PDT / 11:00 am EDT / 4.00 pm BST / 5.00pm CEST Development of a new coating system can be a complex process. Formulations are optimized to provide the required environmental performance as well as the desired physical appearance at a cost point suitable for the target market. Additionally, existing products may need to be reformulated for green product initiatives, cost reduction or new environmental regulations. With all of these demands on the development of coating systems, optimization of the development process is crucial for a coating manufacture’s success. New measurement technologies improve product development by providing greater information about a coating’s performance early in the development process.

This webinar will focus on the use of non-destructive, hand held FTIR instruments to monitor weathering and cure performance in coatings. Infrared spectroscopy has been used for many years to monitor UV degradation, hydrolysis and cure of multi-part coating systems. Conducting these measurements using novel non-destructive instruments allows for nearly continuous measurements throughout the performance evaluation. This allows for finer resolution and increased efficiency. Additionally, this portable technology can evaluate coating performance in real life situations, providing immediate, meaningful results. The presentation will contain both technical details demonstrating application to weathering and cure studies as well as case studies demonstrating the use of these measurements within the coating development process.