Electro deposition

Ed is a coating method where ed paint dispersed in water Is electrically deposited on substrate to

form a uniform & water-insoluble hard film
Applied as:

Primers (larger volume)

Single coat

Terminology used are

E- Coat,
Electro-coat
Electro-paint
Ed
Elpo
Anionic and cationic
Anodic and cathodic

Anionic : coating anion attracted towards anode

-ve charged particles of coating, electrophoretically attracted towards anode of an

electrochemical cell in aqueous system.
-paint particles are precipitated by H+ ions generated at anode by electrolysis of water.

Cation : coating cation attracted towards cathode

Paint particles precipitated by OH- (hydroxyl ions) generated at

cathode

In both types the coatings are baked

Generally thermosetting coatings are used

Process of CED

Coating system is designed so that:

 All the coating components get attracted to the electrode at the same rate
otherwise the composition will change with time:
o For this e-coat should have a vehicle in which pigment can be
dispersed and cross linker can be dissolved and form an electrically
stable aggregates when diluted with water. The pigment sould be wet
by the resin so that it will not migrate from the resin. The cross linker
sould not dissolve in water but in resin.
o If resin is soluble in water or dispersible in water separately it can be
coated alone but not with pigment.
Coating is diluted to 10-20% solids in water, because:
Tank size is quite big for automobile and appliances (4,00,000 lt) ;
o If conc. Is high cost of material would also be high
o The coated item on coming out of tank carry layer of bath so rinsing
of diluted material is easy
Coating material should be stable indefinitely as the solid decreases and continuous
solid is fed to maintain solid conc. In the tank. It should not be affected by :
Mechanical stirring and recirculation (coalescing)
Stable to hydrolysis
The cross linker should be stable in the system at ph more than 7 (in anionic)
and less than 7 (in cationic)
Should be stable against o2 as air is continuously passed. If oxidizing type of
vehicle is used it should contain antioxidant wich volatilise on baking.

Aed coating

 Resin -coohav = 50-80 mg koh/gm

Pigments dispersed in resin
-coo group neutralised with amine e.g. 2-(N, N-diamethyl
amino)ethanol diamine
To load tank diluted to 10% solids
Degree of neutralisation is suc that resin is not soluble in water but
forms aggregates on dilution
The aggregates are stabilised as a dispersion in water with salt groups
on the outer surface of the particles.
Though the stoichiometricaly required amine is kept less but ph is
more than 7 due to entrapment of unneutralised cooh groups in the
centre of aggregates
Maleated linseed oils were the early work of ed primer the system was
stable but adhesion was poor hence
o Maleated epoxy esters with cross linker mf resin. The mixed
methyl-ethyl ether mf resin is soluble in water but is not
suitable for top coat as colour stability and chalk resistance are
poor.
For top coat-acrylic copolymers : acrylic/methacrylic + 2 hydroxy ethyl
methacrylate cross linked with MF resin
Primary reaction at anode in aed2H2O
4H+ + O2 + 4eRCOO- + H+
RCOOH
Electrolysis of water
yield H+ ion
-neutralize resin anion
-increases non polarity
-less water dissolution
-remove repulsion
-coalesce the particle
Iron (fe) dissolve as ferrous and convert to ferric on oxidation and change
the colour of coating : primer has no problem but light colour coating
discolour.
Change of colour is reduced in zn phosphate conversion coating.
-anodic top coat is preferred in aluminium as al-salt does not discolour
-an important side reaction in aed:

Dissolution of iron-zinc phosphate layer by h+ion at anode surface

remove conversion coating
ZN3(PO4)2 + 2H+
3ZN2+
+
-this gives 2 potential serious effect
Damage of conversion coating

2(HPO4)2-

poor adhesion of coating

corrosion resistance

poor

O2 evolve at anode causing rupture or blister of coating

The ion deposition in ed coating is less than water borne coatings

Ced
+ve charged aggregate

cathode

Amine group neutralized with low mol. Wt. Water soluble acitic or lactic acid
at ph less than 7

(5.8 6.2

narrow range the tank operate at)

resins-bpa epoxy resins reacted with polyamines

and tertiary groups & -oh groups

resin with secondary

Salts are formed with formic or lactic acid cross linking by alcohol-blocked TDI as
these are stable at low ph but mf is not
The blocked isocyanate react with secondary amine and gives substituted urea link
or with oh giving urethane link
20% solid tank for automotive primer gives better corrosion resistance than aed
amine substituted resin provide good corrosion resistance due to strong
interaction between amine groups and substrate surface increasing wet adhesion.
Bpa epoxy tdi gives poor colour retention & exterior durability. Hence blocked
aliphatic diisocyanate & acrylic resins gives better colour retention and durability
2-(n,n dimethyl amino) ethyl methacrylate and hydroxyethyl methacrylate
co monomer gives amine groups for salt formation and oh group for cross link.

Effect of variable on ed
1. Coating starts after some time after sufficient ions (h+, in aed & oh-in ced )
concentration is achieved
a. Use high voltage for faster deposition (increases driving force for
electrophoretic attraction of the coating aggregates)
b. At commercial level coating in 2-3 mins. With 250-400 v
c. Higher voltage can rupture film by generating o2 in aed and h2 in ced
d. Edge is covered first as current density is high at edge

2.
3.

4.
5.

e. As coating thickness increases electrical resistance increases reducing

rate of deposition and finally stops
Higher the equivalent wt of the coating greater amount of coating would be
deposited as each h+ or oh- ion precipitate the coating
Higher the conductivity the greater is throw power
Conductivity increases by soluble salts
Low equivalent wt of resin (with higher salt groups) gives low rate of
deposition also salts entraps and rupture the film, so the conductivity used
are in the range 1000-1800 microsiemens (i microsiemens = i micromho)
If viscosity is high, poor coalescing is observed which gives porous film
If viscosity is low, film will be soft and rupture will take place due to
electrolysis below surface
Tg and temperature of electrodeposition are important temp. Is around 32-35
c

6. Pvc also affect coalescing

High pvc ie near cpvc and if no adequate solvent no coalescing so
normally pvc = cpvc in ed. This increases gloss in ed primer.

Comparative details aed & ced

CED
AED
RESIN
EPOXY
POLY
NEUTR
ORGANI ORGANI
SYSTE
POLYAM
BUTADI
NATUR
ACIDIC
ALKALI
ALISER
C
ACID
C
SUBSTR
SUBSTR
SUBSTR
M
IDES
ENE
E
NE
BAKIN
160C/10
170C/20
AMINE
ATE
ATE
ATE
Ra(Roug
0.22AS
0.35AS
G
MIN.
MIN
THRO
21
CMS
18
CMS
-VE
+VE
hness
microns
microns
VOLTA
200

350
150
250
CONDI
WING
CORRO
1200VHrs. 600VHrs.
Value)
GE
TION
POWER
SION
Better
Poor
1 Hazardo
Nil
Lead
RESIST
Edge
edge
0 us heavy
1600ppm
ANCE
corrosion corrosion
metal
Chrome
Content than AED 300ppm
(High
ASH)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

Advantages and limitation

Advantages
Provides uniform coating thickness
Highly automated-low labour
More than 95% paint utilization
Recessed and enclosed areas can also be covered
Provides thinner coat as compare to other applications
Improved product appearance as drips and sags are eliminated (severe
sagging is less due to high viscosity of deposit)
Less operator influence leads to increased consistency in appearance and
quality of the parts
Excellent corrosion resistance
Low voc contents
Limitations
Limited to automobile, toys and appliances due to huge capital cost
Suitable for large production line
Adhesion of top coat on ed primer is not as strong as in conventional primer
due to low pvc/cpvc ratio which gives smooth coating (sealer of low
viscosity is applied over primer)
More than one coat is not possible as ist coat become insulation but some
patent speak about 2-coat application by giving 1st coat conductivity
Change of colour

Special features of ced over aed

better corrosion resistance

better smoothness of ed film

higher coulombic yield

better workability

lower temp. /time curability

resistance to cratering

reduced yellowing effect

better edge corrosion resistance

better bath stability

higher throwing power

eco friendly (low voc & lead free)

Applications
Can be used in electrically conductive substrates.
1- Automobiles
2- Toys
Automobiles: area for ed application
2 wheeler , 3 wheeler, 4 wheeler
tractors
frames and long member chassis
spare parts vendors for automotive
electromagnets
wheels
reflectors, wipers

3- appliances