Coloured Polymer Coatings via Dye-Polymer Bonding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing coating compositions using pigments are expensive, labor-intensive, and prone to chalking and insufficient scrub resistance due to the need for pigment dispersion, which can lead to instability and increased viscosity over time, affecting the color consistency of the final paint.
Innovation Solution
A coating composition that derives its color from chemically bonded colored polymers and black and/or white particulate solids, eliminating the need for pigments and reducing the weight fraction of chromophores, thereby decreasing production costs and equipment demands for dispersion, while maintaining or exceeding hiding power and appearance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If pigments are used to achieve color in coating compositions, then color generation is possible, but the coating becomes expensive and labor-intensive due to the need for pigment dispersion
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the fundamental parameter of color generation from using inorganic pigments to using organic dye-containing polymers. This parameter change eliminates the need for complex pigment dispersion processes while achieving the same color generation function, thereby reducing manufacturing cost and labor intensity
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses composite materials by incorporating organic dyes into polymer structures to create coloured polymers. This composite approach combines the color-generating capability of organic dyes with the film-forming properties of polymers, eliminating the need for separate pigment dispersion steps
2Reliability
If pigments are dispersed in the binder to generate color, then color efficiency is improved, but the pigment dispersion becomes unstable over time with sedimentation and increased viscosity
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the dye and polymer into a single integrated coloured polymer molecule through chemical bonding. This eliminates the separate phase of pigment particles dispersed in binder, preventing sedimentation and viscosity increase while maintaining color consistency throughout the coating's service life
Solution Approach 2:
The coloured polymers provide homogeneous color distribution at the molecular level throughout the coating composition. This molecular-level homogeneity prevents the macroscopic separation and sedimentation issues that occur with traditional pigment dispersions, ensuring stable color consistency over time
3Reliability
If pigments are used to achieve hiding power, then opacity is improved, but the coating becomes prone to chalking and insufficient scrub resistance
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the material parameter from inorganic pigments to organic dye-containing polymers. This parameter change fundamentally alters the coating's interaction with environmental factors, eliminating chalking while maintaining hiding power through the coloured polymer's inherent opacity and color strength
Solution Approach 2:
The coloured polymers replace durable but problematic pigment particles with organic polymer-based colorants that integrate into the coating matrix. This substitution provides adequate hiding power for the coating's service life without the long-term durability issues of chalking and scrub resistance problems associated with traditional pigments
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution results in a cost-effective, labor-efficient coating with improved stability and scrub resistance, achieving high hiding power and color consistency with a contrast ratio greater than 90%, as the colored polymers integrate into the paint film, preventing precipitation and maintaining opacity.
Implementation Method 1
These polymers are made by reacting a starting polymer with a dye to form a chemical bond between the polymer and the dye. Each of the polymer and the dye must have reactive groups that together form the chemical bond. A chemical bond can be covalent or ionic (e.g. a salt). Examples of chemical bonds include amide, ester, urethane, ether, and salts, such as ammonium, carboxylate, and sulfonate
Data Source
AI summary
A hiding coating composition containing a coloured polymer as colourant. The polymer is made by reacting a dye with a polymer having reactive groups.