DuPont teams up to invent wonder system
01 June 2011
EXPERTS in the coating industry – including systems, chemicals and powder coatings manufacturers – recently put their head together to produce a high-performance coating system designed to offer excellent anti-corrosion properties while being economical and environment friendly.
The system, developed in 2009, has helped the client – a leading manufacturer of transformer stations – to improve the quality and environmental properties of its products while boosting its capacity by up to four times and saving costs.
DuPont CoatingSolutions teamed up with industry specialists Rippert Anlagentechnik and Company and Haug Chemie to come up with the new coating system based on the requirements of the transformer stations manufacturer.
Germany-based Elbag Energietechnik required a new cost-effective coating system with improved performance, excellent anti-corrosion (class C5) and environment properties. The company’s existing liquid coating system was no longer able to cope with the number of housing parts to be processed.
“After an intensive period of choosing between different systems, the company decided in favour of a powder coating system from Rippert Anlagentechnik and Company, pre-treatment chemicals from Haug Chemie, and the Alesta powder coating system from DuPont CoatingSolutions,” says a spokesman for Dupont.
Rippert, Haug Chemie and DuPont CoatingSolutions carried out a comprehensive series of tests together to bring the process up to Elbag’s required anti-corrosion standards. The result showed that a combination product with multi-metal capabilities provides an optimised pretreatment process for galvanised steel, aluminium and black steel substrates.
Adhesion and anti-corrosion properties as well as the outdoor properties of the used liquid paints formed the basis for the choice of the new powder coating system.
DuPont CoatingSolutions developed two different powder coating layered structures based on the results:
• Parts that are being used outdoors under normal conditions are chemically degreased and coated in iron phosphate, undergo a two-step rinsing process with deionised water, then receive one coat of the weather-proof polyester structure powder lacquer Alesta IP, series IE 0501; and
• Components that need to meet the toughest anti-corrosion requirements (C5) are pretreated, then receive a base coat of the epoxy powder lacquer Alesta E, series EE 7002. The complete top coat is lacquered with the polyester structure powder lacquer Alesta IP.
Both layered structures were tested to see if they met the customer’s criteria. The two-layer coating did not show any signs of creep corrosion even after being sprayed with salt water for 2,160 hours, the spokesman says.
By using the powder coating, Elbag has managed to improve the quality and environmental properties of its products while also increasing its capacities considerably. Throughput times for one and two-layer coatings are 51 minutes and 78 minutes respectively, compared to throughput times for liquid coatings, ranging from 210 to 300 minutes, says the spokesman.
