Aqueous Electrocoat Binder Dispersion with Blocked Polyisocyanate Crosslinker

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Solution Overview

Problem

Cathodic electrocoat materials face challenges with incomplete curing due to nonuniform heating of large substrates, leading to underbaking risks, especially in aqueous binder dispersions, which affects the quality and solvent resistance of the coating systems.

Innovation Solution

An aqueous binder dispersion using amine-modified, hydroxy-functional epoxy resins with fully blocked polyisocyanates, partly blocked with 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxolane-4-methanol, which enhances reactivity and allows complete curing at lower temperatures, improving the risk of underbaking and solvent resistance.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the baking temperature is increased to ensure complete curing, then the curing quality is improved, but the energy consumption increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecuring completenessVSAvoidenergy consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the chemical parameters of the binder dispersion by using amine-modified hydroxy-functional epoxy resins with specific functional groups and ratios. This modification enables the coating to cure completely at lower temperatures (reducing baking temperature from conventional high temperatures to 100-200°C range), thereby reducing energy consumption while maintaining curing completeness through enhanced chemical reactivity of the modified resin system

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The patent creates a composite binder system by combining amine-modified epoxy resins with hydroxy-functional components and blocked polyisocyanate crosslinkers. This composite material formulation achieves synergistic effects where the amine modification enhances reactivity and the crosslinker provides complete curing at lower temperatures, resolving the contradiction between curing quality and energy consumption

Inventive Principle:
Principle #40Composite materials

2Stability of the object's composition

If conventional blocked polyisocyanates are used as crosslinkers, then storage stability is improved, but the risk of underbaking increases due to insufficient reactivity at low temperatures

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestorage stabilityVSAvoidcuring completeness
Core Design Contradiction:
Stability of the object's compositionVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent modifies the chemical parameters of the crosslinking system by using blocked polyisocyanates with specific blocking agents that provide controlled reactivity. The amine modification of the epoxy resin creates highly reactive sites that can activate the blocked polyisocyanate at lower temperatures, ensuring complete curing while the blocking mechanism maintains storage stability by preventing premature reaction

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The amine-modified functional groups act as intermediaries that facilitate the reaction between the blocked polyisocyanate crosslinker and the epoxy resin at lower temperatures. These modified functional groups have enhanced reactivity that can activate the blocked isocyanate groups without requiring high temperatures, thereby ensuring complete curing while maintaining storage stability through the blocking mechanism

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Area of stationary object

If the substrate size is large, then the coating application capability is improved, but uniform heating becomes difficult leading to underbaking in certain areas

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesubstrate coverage areaVSAvoidcuring uniformity
Core Design Contradiction:
Area of stationary objectVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the thermal and chemical parameters of the coating system by using amine-modified epoxy resins with enhanced reactivity and lower curing temperature requirements. This allows large substrates to be cured uniformly at lower temperatures where heat penetration is more effective, avoiding the underbaking problems that occur with conventional high-temperature curing of large areas

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The amine modification of the epoxy resin performs a preliminary chemical enhancement that increases reactivity and lowers the activation energy for curing. This preliminary chemical preparation enables the coating to cure completely and uniformly across large substrate areas at lower temperatures, before thermal gradients can cause underbaking in distant regions

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

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 enables complete curing of electrocoat films at lower temperatures, reducing energy consumption and enhancing the quality and solvent resistance of the coating systems, while maintaining storage stability.

Implementation Method 1

An aqueous binder dispersion for cathodically depositable electrocoat materials, wherein the binder dispersion comprises as binder at least one amine-modified, hydroxy-functional epoxy resin and as crosslinker at least one fully blocked polyisocyanate which is blocked at least partly with 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxolane-4-methanol

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectChemical Bonding: Chemical Bonding

Implementation Method 2

The coating films obtained consequently on the substrate are subsequently cured in an oven

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectCuring:

Data Source

PatentUS10501646B2Aqueous binder dispersions intended for cathodic electrocoat materials and comprising a crosslinker based on 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxolane-4-methanol-blocked polyisocyanates
Publication Date: 2019.12.10 BASF COATINGS GMBH

AI summary

The present invention relates to aqueous binder dispersions for cationic electrocoat materials, comprising as binders amine-modified, hydroxy-functional epoxy resins and comprising as crosslinker at least one fully blocked polyisocyanate blocked at least partly with 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxolane-4-methanol, and also to the use of such cationic electrocoat materials for producing coating systems and to the use of crosslinkers based on polyisocyanates blocked with 2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxolane-4-methanol in aqueous binder dispersions.