Metallic Pigments Market
June 2015 www.coatingsworld.com Coatings World | 37
and the necessity for multiple coating steps to achieve the optimum effect,” she said.
Sun Chemical’s Hollman said that the automotive segment is
benefiting from strong vehicle sales in the North American Free
Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and a modest sales increase in Europe.
“As a result, Sun Chemical has seen strong demand for Benda-Lutz SPLENDAL vacuum metallized pigments and new high performance stain resistant metallics for wheel coatings. SPLENDAL
is also playing a significant role in creating premium automotive
interior finishes in the luxury segments because of its high end
look and excellent performance properties,” he said.
In addition to the automotive market, Eckart’s Hughes said
that the electronics market has shown increased demand for metallic pigments. Despite silver metallic being on a decline over
the last few years, Hughes said that the use of aluminum is starting to change that.
“We also see an increase in metallic pigments with specialized functional performance capabilities built into the chemistry
of the surface treatment of the pigment,” he said.
Schaller, of Schlenk, said that his company has seen an increase in powder coatings as well. “New, extra-durable, coated
aluminum pigments allow powder coatings users to meet industry standards for chemical and outdoor resistance that could not
be met in the past,” Schaller said.
Raw Material Costs
Though raw material costs are a major concern for many markets,
metallic pigments do not seem to be as affected by fluctuations.
Eckart’s Hughes said that his company has not been too im-
pacted by the cost of raw materials as “they are not the main
drivers of the high-end metallic pigments Eckart offers.”
Hollman, of Sun Chemical, noted that the first part of 2015
has seen dramatic changes in global currencies in relation to the
U.S. dollar.
“In addition to raw material and process productivity, our global
manufacturing team has invested in designing production processes
with a high degree of flexibility. This flexibility allows us to utilize
our global manufacturing footprint to consistently deliver quality,
service and innovation in this highly volatile period,” he said.
Aluminum costs are an input factor, said Earnst of BASF, but
the value added manufacturing costs required to produce a superior product is the primary driver.
“The ability to enter new color spaces with high chroma and opacity tends to create a compelling value in use for Paliocrom,” she said.
New Technologies and Products
In order to meet the needs of their customers, suppliers have
come up with innovative technologies and products. Here is a
sample of what customers can expect to see in the metallic pigments market:
• BASF
BASF says it has continued to expand the available hue range ob-
tainable with Paliocrom based on aluminum flakes. Additionally,
the company has added two Paliocrom Brilliant pigments based
on silver dollar aluminum flakes that offer enhanced brilliance,
unique sparkling behavior and extreme saturation. Both types
are available in passivated versions. Paliocrom Sparkling Red, a
unique bluish red pigment, became available just a few months
ago. Like other Paliocrom products, it is a highly chromatic effect
pigment with metallic luster and high opacity. BASF has already
seen quick adoption of it in both automotive and industrial styl-
ings. The company is developing additional grades and expand-
ing our production capacity to further support the market.
• Eckart Americas Corp.
Eckart Americas Corp. has introduced a very dark chromium
based PVD pigment, which it calls “Liquid Black,” and Luxan B
Fraction (B characterize the particle size), which has particle size
distribution suitable for automotive basecoats.
Eckart’s chromium oxide based Metalure Liquid Black is described as a captivating midnight black shade in combination
with a fascinating reflective effect. The pigment is designed to be
a unique PVD product that stands out by its specific dark metallic
appearance. Metalure Liquid Black has unique optical effects as
well as extremely high chemical resistance withstanding any possible chemical testing. Metalure Liquid Black is chemically inert
and free of any chrome VI compounds – thus, it is toxically safe.
• Schlenk
Schlenk has recently introduced a new line of pigments, Powdal
SDT’s for the powder coating industry. They are designed to offer
outstanding weatherability, chemical resistance and color while
giving excellent chargeability and compatibility in a high weathering polymer systems. The company also continues to expand its
Decomet range of metallic pigments to offer solutions to customers that want to achieve these metallized or chrome-like effects.
Schlenk has recently launched its AluMotion line of non-leaf-ing aluminum pigments specifically designed for the automotive
OEM industry. In April of this year at the European Coatings
Show, Schlenk introduced Multi-Flect Wave, a polychromatic
pigment. The company has been working with many new technologies, both in its core product line and outside to meet the
ever changing color needs of today’s market.
• Sun Chemical
Sun Chemical has made some recent developments associated
with its Benda-Lutz Maxal EC product line. In addition to premium metallic brilliance and sparkle, the company says this
range “has become synonymous with the highest level of chemical resistance for single coat, architectural powder coatings.”
The line has recently been expanded to include finer particle
sizes, which allows for smooth metallic finishes combined with
the durability of Maxal EC.
In addition to two new fine particle size Maxal EC grades,
Sun Chemical has introduced a new high performance stain resistant grade for industrial applications (Metallic HP 6814/78).
It has found immediate application for automotive wheel coatings because of the stringent appearance and performance requirements of that application. CW
