Coatings World - March 2016

PVDF Coatings
March 2016 www.coatingsworld.com Coatings World | 101

as well as enhanced application properties and more reliable color consistency.

PVDF Clads The Pavilion with Color and
Protection

PVDF coatings are used on a wide variety of structures, from elementary schools to residential homes, and even The Pavilion, the new $96.5 million basketball arena at Ole Miss.

The University of Mississippi, founded in 1848, recently commissioned the new arena to be utilized as a multi-purpose facility for events such as men’s and women’s basketball games, graduation ceremonies, concerts and other university-wide occasions.

Work on the facility began with a groundbreaking ceremony in July 2014, and opened to great fanfare during a weekend long celebration, January 7-10, 2016. The facility was designed by AECOM Technology, an architecture and engineering ;rm based in Kansas City, Missouri. BL Harbert International located in Birmingham, Alabama was the general contractor with experience building several other SEC arenas.

The facility consists of a three-story structural steel frame supporting steel trusses. From the exterior, it wields an elegant footprint in spite of its scale, one that is enhanced by a curved and colonnaded entrance façade that echoes The Pavilion’s signature curved roof. The roof is clad in metal paneling manufactured by ACI Building Systems LLC and coated with Valspar’s Fluropon in Terra Cotta, a rich earth-tone hue.

Chosen from an extensive list of colors, Valspar’s Fluropon
70 percent PVDF coating in Terra Cotta is a premium, high per-
formance product that offers some of the most advanced du-
rability and aesthetic features. Architects and building owners
alike, can trust that the Fluropon coating used on the roof of
The Pavilion will provide the following properties:
• Film integrity and adhesion quality. One of the de;n-
ing features of PVDF coatings, are their erosion rate, the
amount of time at which a coating degrades. The erosion
rates of PVDF coatings are relatively small, an essential
factor for their advanced color and design longevity. The
quality of PVDF coating adhesion depends on the superior-
ity of the primer that adheres to the substrate. The primer
is meant to create a strong bond with the PVDF topcoat,
• Chalk and fade resistance. In order to ensure protection
against chalking and fading, the correct formulation is
crucial. The carbon-;uorine bond is one of the strongest
chemical bonds and gives PVDF resin-based coatings their
stubborn resistance to chalking and erosion, as well as
harsh airborne industrial and atmospheric pollutants.

• UV resistance.;Of any polymer used within coatings today, PVDF coatings are the leaders when it comes to UV resistance, delivering an eco-friendly way to resist heat absorption from the sun. As exempli;ed by the use of Valspar’s Fluropon coating on The Pavilion, PVDF coatings not only help lower energy cooling costs and keep interior spaces like the arena more comfortable for fans, but do so without sacri;cing durability, performance or beauty.

Valspar’s Fluropon is a leading example of modern PVDF coating formulation, offering exceptional durability properties. In the example of The Pavilion, combined with the ACI panels, its striking roof will endure lustrous beauty for years to come.

How is a Coating Manufactured and
Applied?

To achieve the many durability and environmental bene;ts of PVDF coatings, manufacturers create unique formulations, which include the use of resins, solvents, pigments, and additives.

Resins are the principal component that determines the appearance, durability and performance of a coating and serve as the binder that forms the paint ;lm. Common resin names outside of PVDF coatings are epoxy, silicone modi;ed polyester, polyester and urethane. Furthermore, solvents are used to thin a coating mixture’s consistency in order for it to be properly applied. Solvents steadily evaporate during the curing process as the resin system adheres to the substrate.

Pigments not only add the color and visual features to a coating, but they also in;uence its durability. Additives are used for processing pigments within the ;lm, ;ow and smoothness, regulating the rate of the cure, and enhancing the coating’s hardness, gloss, mar resistance and other performance features.

PVDF resin-based coatings are available in both coil and extrusion forms. The coil-coating process begins with a ;at sheet, coil-coated or pre-painted architectural building product that is then molded into a speci;c shape that includes wall or roof panels as well as gutters.

In contrast to the process of coil coating, which is applied to metal prior to being shaped into an architectural building product, the aluminum extrusion process creates the metal form before a ;nish is applied. The shape of the die determines the shape of the extrusion, and by using an aluminum billet with a powerful hydraulic press, extruders can produce nearly any shape possible. The most common examples of extruded aluminum are fenestration products, which include curtain wall, window framing, storefronts and entrance systems.

Thanks to the advanced ;nishes of PVDF coatings, renovated buildings and those that are new such as The Pavilion at Ole Miss, will remain vibrant and durable for many years to come. CW