The Impact of Different Polyols on the

Properties of Coatings, Adhesives, Sealants

and Elastomers
published on March 29, 2019

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We have written in this space about different performance polyols used to

achieve the desired performance of elastomers in various applications. In
addition to the disocianate type, polyols offer formulators an ability to achieve a
variety of processing and performance advantages.
In this article, we are bringing it all together through a direct comparison of the
key attributes of each polyol family, for the purpose of helping users with a
quick guide for polyol selection when formulating coatings, adhesives, sealants,
and elastomers.
 

Critical Properties for Specific

Applications
A very important step for proper polyol selection is to determine the key
properties for a given application and the environment in which the parts are
required to perform. Urethane parts, for example, are used for their toughness,
versatility, and durability. It’s critically important to ensure that the initial
properties will not significantly deteriorate over time, due to adverse
environmental exposure. Selecting the best polyol for a specific formula can be
the difference between making a high-quality product or one that’s low
performance.  
Common examples of negative impacts the environment can have on urethane
parts, which can accelerate their deterioration, include hydrolysis of ester-based
urethane in hot and humid conditions, as well as the loss of properties that
ether-based materials normally exhibit when exposed to either a hot
environment or to direct sunlight.
A good understanding of the inherent characteristics of each polyol chemistry is
key for making a proper material selection for any particular application and
avoid loss of modulus, tensile, and tear strength due to environmental exposure. 
Next, we’ll cover the basic chemistry of each polyol group, the key attributes of
their physical properties, their environmental/chemical resistance, and the
typical applications we see for these types of polyols.
 
Polyether Polyols
The two major families of polyether polyols are polytetramethylene ether
glycols (PTMEG) and polypropylene glycols (PPG).
PTMEG is the premier polyol used in high-performance polyurethane
elastomers. PTMEG-based polyurethanes exhibit superior resistance to
hydrolytic cleavage, good mechanical properties retention at low temperature,
high resiliency, good processing characteristics, and excellent mechanical and
dynamic properties. Strain-induced crystallization of the PTMEG soft segments,
exact difunctionality, and low acid values are all contributing factors to the
good mechanical properties of the associated polyurethane elastomers.
PPG polyols have excellent hydrolysis resistance and low temperature
properties as well. However, when compared to PTMEG polyols, the PPG
polyols have inferior mechanical properties and are more prone to thermo-
oxidative degradation.
Being in a liquid state at room temperature, PPG polyols make an excellent
choice for room temperature systems. 
Polyethers have low glass transition temperature (Tg), which imparts good
retention of physical properties and impact resistance at low temperatures. They
are the proper choice for applications where urethane parts are expected to
perform in very cold environments.
Although polyether polyols exhibit excellent hydrolytic stability, they have poor
resistance to non-polar, hydrocarbon-based solvents and should not be used in
applications where the parts will be exposed to mineral oils. In these
environments, their properties will deteriorate relatively quickly. 
PTMEG-based urethanes are the material of choice for applications where the
following properties are important: 

 Good impingement abrasion (high resiliency)

 Hydrolytic stability in humid/wet conditions
 Good dynamic properties (wheels, rollers, roll covers)
 Low temperature applications

Furthermore, PTMEGs have relatively low viscosities, making them easy to

process and achieve good mixing.
 
Polyester Polyols
 
Adipate and phthalate-based polyesters
Conventional polyester polyols are produced through condensation reaction of
dicarboxylic acids and diols. Polyester segments can be crystalline or
amorphous.
Compared to polyethers, polyesters offer higher tensile strength, cut and tear
resistance, better sliding abrasion and flex fatigue resistance. They also exhibit
very good resistance to oil, grease, nonpolar solvents and oxidation. 
Most adipate glycol polyesters are FDA-compliant, which makes them a good
option for prepolymers and urethane articles safe to use in food contact
applications.
Polyester polyols generally have higher melting temperature and higher
viscosities, compared to polyethers and polycaprolactones, which can present
some processing challenges. They have higher Tg than polycaprolactones and
ethers, which may limit their use at low temperatures due to stiffening and
modulus increase in such conditions.   
Polyesters exhibit broader molecular weight distribution and have higher
degrees of acidity, which may affect catalyst reactivity. Carboxylic acid
monomers, such as adipic acid, leave residual organic acid moieties, which
adversely affect hydrolytic stability. 
The inherent properties of polyester polyols make them an excellent choice for
the following industries and applications:
 Mining applications: screens, conveyor belt scraper blades
 Roll covers
 Pipeline pigs
 Food contact (FDA compliant)
 
Polycaprolactone Polyols
Polycaprolactone polyols are a special class of polyester polyols, produced
using an exclusive addition polymerization process in which a low molecular
weight diol or triol (initiator) is reacted with a six-carbon cyclic-ester (lactone)
monomer. A wide variety of glycol initiators are used to allow customization of
the performance profiles of the caprolactone polyols and their polyurethane
elastomers.
The lower reaction temperatures required, as well as the absence of an organic
acid reaction intermediate, affords PCL polyols with very low acid values
(contributes to hydrolytic stability), low polydispersity (contributes to low
viscosities), and perfect primary hydroxy end-functionalities (good
stoichiometry control with reactivities that can be adjusted to meet specific
application requirements).
Polycaprolactone polyols are used in polyurethane elastomer applications where
high durability, performance in broad temperature range, good hydrolysis
resistance, and excellent elastomeric properties are required. They are generally
selected for urethane applications where high tensile strength, excellent cut,
tear, and flex fatigue resistance, good sliding abrasion, good chemical resistance
to oil, grease, and nonpolar solvents and high temperature and oxidative
stability are needed.
Compared to adipate-based polyester polyols, caprolactone polyols demonstrate
the following performance advantages in polyurethane elastomers:
 Enhanced resistance to hydrolysis
 Greater weatherability and UV stability
 Better low temperature properties (low Tg) and high temperature
performance
 Higher chemical resistance to oils, fuels, and solvents
 Cut, chip, and tear strength
 Lower viscosities and low polydispersity
Formulators can further enhance these general property sets by the proper
selection of the “initiator” diol used to produce the various grades of
polycaprolactone polyols. Hence, the polycaprolactone polyols exhibit a great
versatility in the targeted design of polyurethanes requiring demanding
performance attributes and service life.  In addition to the initiator type used,
polycaprolactone polyols are offered in a wide range of molecular weights,
functionalities (diols, triols, and tetraols), with low acidity values and narrow
molecular weight distribution.
 
Polycarbonate Diols
Structurally, polycarbonate diols are linear, aliphatic polyols with the carbonate
linkages. Polycarbonate diols exhibit higher hydrolytic stability than polyester
polyols because they absorb only low levels of moisture and generate CO2 on
hydrolysis at higher temperatures, without producing an acidic moiety.  
Acid moieties, generated through hydrolysis of conventional polyesters,
autocatalyze the hydrolysis in the soft-block of the polyester-based
polyurethane. Polycarbonate diols represent the next generation of ultimate
performance diols for polyurethane elastomers.  Their combination of good
resistance to heat, hydrolysis, weather, and abrasion, aging stability, consistent
performance, and extreme durability is unattainable by other polyols.
We see the following attributes of polycarbonate diols in their use for
polyurethane development:

 Excellent hydrolytic stability (except in base) & low water absorption

 Excellent high temperature stability
 Good chemical resistance
 Weatherability & UV resistance
  Superior environmental stress crack resistance
 Low yellowing and high gloss retention
 Superior durability, impact and abrasion resistance
 High mechanical properties
 Long-term retention of designed properties in aggressive environments

 
In addition, we see many marketplace applications for polycarbonate diols,
including these:

 Waterborne polyurethane dispersions

 Oil field and mining polyurethane cast parts
 Pipe linings and exterior coatings
 Electrical/electronic encapsulation
 Artificial leather coatings
 Optical devices
 Medical devices
 Elastomeric rollers
 Thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPUs)

Better CASE Products with

Performance Polyols from
Gantrade
We hope that this article will help you in your consideration of different polyols
for your CASE products. This content is meant to help with polyol selection for
optimizing your coatings, adhesives, sealants, and elastomers for higher
performance and ease of processing. However, the professional staff at
Gantrade is ready to assist you in your selection, ensuring that you match the
right performance polyol to your exact needs. 
Specific information about each of these polyols can be found in other articles
on our blog. Contact Gantrade today to get started.
Topics: Polyols, Urethane Intermediates
Wetting Agents for Coating Formulations
 The additive market propose many variations of each
chemistry. But there is no miracle product. Many parameters must be taken in consideration
when selecting the right Wetting Agent.

Each chemistry, each product has its own benefits, and the formulator must of course consider
the most important point to solve but also all the positive and negative properties of the
product after validation tests in order to achieve the best compromise.

As an evidence, the perfect wetting of the liquid coating on the substrate during the application
phase is needed and required to offer the best final paint properties. Incorrect substrate wetting
may result in premature coating film degradation as well as substrate degradation.

A liquid coating with a poor substrate wetting can provoke various defects, such as:

 Apparition of craters
 Ghosting
 Bubbling due to air entrapped during the application, and
 Weak adhesion and crawling / de-wetting

These issues not only degrade the aesthetic of the film, but also its physical properties by
creating many weakness points source of corrosion and peeling. Understanding this wetting
concept and selecting the correct raw materials, especially wetting agents, will improve
drastically your paint quality.

The substrate wetting of a liquid on a solid substrate is defined by the surface tension, function
of the contact angle. The contact angle θ is the angle between the intersection of the liquid-
solid interface and the liquid-vapor interface at the three phase contact line.

Substrate wetting is a surface tension theory. Hence, it is ideal to have good knowledge on
surface tension before moving further.

 » Brief Yourself on Surface Tention & Function of Contact Angle in Here!  

Measuring Surface Tension

Static surface tension

Du Noüy Ring Method tensiometer is one of the easiest technique for measuring the surface
tension of liquids. A platinum-iridium ring is dipped into the liquid, and then slowly pulled out,
so that a lamella is formed at the air interface. The force needed to pull this lamella is a direct
measure of the surface tension of the liquid. The Wilhelmy Plate method is similar, using a plate.

Du Noüy Ring Method Tensiometer

When this method works perfectly to compare the surface tensions of surfactants in
waterborne, or of clear solventborne coatings, it is not suitable for pigmented systems due to
the presence of pigment hinders lamella stability.

Dynamic surface tension

When using dynamic application process, such as printing, the wetting must be fast enough to
obtain the required film quality.

Some surfactants can offer required results using the Du Noüy Ring method, but fail during the
application.

Under the static conditions, the surfactant has time to equilibrate at the interfaces, but during
the dynamic process, the surfactant becomes mobile and must orientate rapidly to be efficient.

The “Maximum Bubble Pressure Method” measures the ability of the surfactant to adsorb
rapidly at the air / liquid interface. Pressurized air flows continuously through the capillary.
When the radius of the capillary tip and the radius of curvature of the bubble are equal, the
pressure becomes maximum. At that point, the surface tension is calculated. After the
maximum pressure, the pressure decrease rapidly by expansion of the bubble until the bubble is
detached from the capillary.

Influence of surfactants on the dynamic surface tension

Using these tests, we have dressed a summary table regrouping the surface tension of different
materials.

Surface tension of various materials (mN/m at 20°C)

Liquids - Solvents

Hexamethyl disiloxane 16
 Isopropanol 22

n-Butyl Acetate 28

Butyl Glycol 30

Xylene 32

Ethylene Glycol 48

Water 72

Resins

Long Oil Alkyd 26

Polyacrylate 35

Polyester 41

Epoxy 47

Melamine (HMMM) 58

Substrates

PTFE 19

Paraffin wax 27

Polypropylene 30

Polyethylene 36

PVC 40

Steel, pre-treated 45

Glass 70

Solventborne coatings have surface tensions similar or lower than the common substrates.
They are less exposed to the substrate wetting problem. Nevertheless, oil contamination, not
homogenous substrate with strong differences in the surface tension, can provoke some severe
application defects such as ghosting, cratering or crawling. A correct Wetting Agent can
overcome these issues.

Waterborne coatings have quite high surface tensions. The surface tension of the water itself
(72 mN/m) is even higher than most of the substrates. Here, a Wetting Agent is a real need. But
selecting the right one can also have some positive side effect such as leveling
improvement or craters prevention.

 » Improve Leveling of Your Coating Further! 

Improving Substrate Wetting of Coatings

The substrate wetting topic is a crucial point in the waterborne coatings. Indeed, the surface
tension of the water is higher than other substrates. As a consequence, a wetting agent
becomes an obligation. In solventborne coatings, surface tensions of paints / solvents are closer
to the one of the substrate, so the phenomena is not so strong, but here the wetting agent can
overcome many other problems, like craters caused by oil contaminated areas for instance.

In order to improve the substrate wetting, there are 2 solutions :

1. Increase the surface tension of the substrate through (cleaning, removal of dust, oils
and contaminants, surface treatment (corona pre-treatment, flaming, acid or basic
treatment…). Sometimes hard and complex.

2. Decrease the surface tension of the coating. The most common method is to add a
component, a substrate wetting agents, into the liquid paint.

Role of Wetting Agents

A wetting agent is a surfactant, having both a hydrophilic and a hydrophobic part. This specific
structure self-orientates the additive at the surface, reducing the surface tension of the liquid
paint, the polar parts stay in the aqueous phase when the non-polar parts orientates at the
interface. Hydrophobic parts are often based on hydrocarbon. Usually, polar molecules are
based on polyether chains. Specific properties can be achieved by polymer surfactants based on
a fluorinated or polisiloxane backbone.
 Surfactant molecules can be polymerized to form polymers surfactants (case of polisiloxanes surfactants)

Chemical model of a silicone based substrate wetting agent (Rx are hydrophilic Polyether chains)

Wetting Agent Chemistries

 Simple organic based agents (mainly hydrocarbon based): Acceptable surface tension

reduction, not as efficient as Silicone or Fluor based agents.
 Silicone based agents: Good static and dynamic surface tension reduction. Broad range
of use, excellent wetting penetration on wood substrates, very efficient on difficult
substrates. The silicone chemistry is well known and very flexible.
 Silicone Free agents (Acetylenic and alkoxylates derivatives): Excellent dynamic surface
tension reduction, usually no foam tendency, good alternative to formulations where silicone
structures are not accepted. Green products and environ mental friendly are emerging in this
category.
 Polymeric Silicone Free agents (mainly acrylates or maleates derivatives): This chemistry
offer a good alternative to silicone based products, but their surface tension reduction is not
as high as silicones or fluoro surfactants. Can also be used to fine tune the formulation.
 Fluor based agents: Excellent static surface tension reduction, but poor spreading
performances. Very good to prevent craters on contaminated substrates. Generally, more
expensive than Silicone based agents.

Defects Cured by the Right Wetting Agent

 Crawling due to oil contamination in a waterborne acrylic coating

 Craters in 2K Epoxy

Like many coatings additives, the wetting agent must be effective at the lowest dosage, without
any negative side effects. As a working at the interface, such an additive must not increase the
foam or trouble the intercoat adhesion.

 » Improve Adhesion in your Coating System by Choosing Right Adhesion Promoter  

Waterborne coatings require the use of wetting agents in particular than the solventborne
coatings. As each coatings market uses specific evaluations and focus on different properties, it
is necessary to lead some pre-tests in laboratory to select the correct substrate wetting agent :

 Compatibility of the wetting agent with the liquid coating

 Wetting of the substrate
 Foam formation during the coating manufacturing process
 Foam formation during the application
 Haze and turbidity of the applied film
 Substrate adhesion of the dry film
 Coatings film defects : craters, leveling, intercoat adhesion

Select the Right Wetting Agent for your Coating System

Table below lists the types of wetting agents available in market; let's have a look at their
properties:

Static Dynamic
Type of Surface Surface Compatibilit Tendency to Crater
Agent Tension Tension y Foaming Prevention
Reduction Reduction
                       
Organic    
Silicone-        
         
free
Polymeri
c
               
Silicone-
free
Low
Molecula
                     
r Weight
Silicone
High
Molecula
    X          
r Weight
Silicone
Fluoro-
       
surfactan X     X        
t

         - Excellent

       - Very Good
     - Good
   - Acceptable
 - Low
X - Poor

The formulator has a large choice in the selection of the correct wetting agent. He can test
various chemistry and, in some cases, combine a silicone base agent with a silicone-free one,
and proceed with all the tests to select the right one.

Some examples :

 When dynamic surface tension reduction is required, like in printing field, silicone-free
agents would be the first choice.
 Due to their strong surface tension reduction effects, silicone based agents may be the
first approach in wood coatings or industrial field.
 Where strong cratering is an issue, fluro-surfactants should be tested

Over the substrate wetting improvement, these agents can have various benefits:

1. Prevent surface defects (such as craters)

2. Improve the flow and leveling
3. Improve the droplets spreading in spray application
4. Have defoaming ability
5. Reduce the bubbling in backing application
6. Improve the polymer film formation
Overcoming Paint Film Defects: Causes and
Remedies
Posted on June 16, 2017 by Ron Lewarchik — 4 comments

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Paint film defects can appear during or immediately after application or become more apparent
after the coating is cured. While there is no standard convention for the nomenclature of film
defects, this article will separate film defects into the two categories mentioned above.

Example of crazing.
Copyright: paylessimages / 123RF Stock Photo

Paint film defect causes

The largest number of paint defects is from dirt particles1 embedded in the paint. Most other
paint defects are the results of:

 lack of cleanliness
 surface preparation
 application error
 attention to detail

Surface tension

Many coating defects are related to surface tension issues. Surface tension is the elastic
tendency of liquids that make them acquire the least surface area possible. This occurs when the
 forces at the interface of a liquid differ from those within the liquid, attributed to uneven force
distribution of molecules at the surface. A common unit of surface tension is
dynes/cm2 (force/unit area).

For example, applying a coating with a higher surface tension than the substrate may
cause dewetting, crawling, pinholing, holidays and telegraphing.

Likewise, the difference in surface tension at the paint surface can result
in cratering or fisheyes.

Table 1: Surface tension of paint Solvents

Solvent Surface Tension Dynes/cm

Water 72.8

Toluene 28.4

Isopropanol 23.0

n-Butanol 24.8

Acetone 25.2

Methyl propyl ketone 26.6

Methyl amyl ketone 26.1

PM acetate 28.5

Table 2: Liquid surface tension of Polymers used to reduce surface defects

Polymer mj/m2

Poly(dimethylsiloxane) 22.6

Poly nButyl Acrylate 33.7

Poly nButyl Methacrylate 31.2

Highly polar molecules (e.g. water) have a higher surface tension than less polar materials (see
Tables 1 and 2). Surface defects can often be reduced or eliminated by using small amounts of
additives with low surface tension such as polydimethyl siloxanes (DMS), poly butyl acrylate or
poly 2-ethyl hexyl acrylate. These additives tend to migrate to the surface to help flow and
leveling.

Table 3: Defects that can occur during or soon after application

           Defect Appearance                Causes          Remedy

 High surface tension paints
applied to a substrate with lower  Proper surface cleaning of
Uneven film thickness,
Crawling surface tension. For example, metallic or plastic surfaces
dewetting
paint on steel with oil on the
surface

 Proper spray booth air

Small particles of a low surface filtration and the
tension contaminant (e.g. oil, contaminant elimination.
Craters/fish Small round depressions in the  The addition of surface
grease, silicone oil, wax) on the
eyes surface of the coating wetting agents such as DMS
substrate or that embeds in the
coating and/or polyacrylates with a
low glass transition (Tg).

Application of coatings on  Use solvent that will not crack

Small cracks formed in the or craze the plastic.
plastics where the paint contains
coating. This can occur on  Test spot resistance of
Crazing, cracking recoat or if coating is applied to strong solvent that solvates the
underlying coating layer or substrate with suitable
solvent sensitive plastics solvent.
plastic substrate

 Surface not carefully

cleaned.
 Dirty spray booth and/or
booth filters.  Ensure cleanliness of the
Dirt, Small raised imperfections in  Pressure in the spray environment where the
contamination the surface of the coating booth too low. coatings are applied
 Unsuitable work clothes.
 Inadequate paint
filtration

Humidity condenses on the wet

paint due to the cooling effect of
solvent evaporation when the
substrate temperature is below
the dew point. Causes:  Proper humidity control
Loss of gloss, Areas of low gloss or a white
blush haze
 Unsuitable reducers  
 Poor air circulation in
drying oven
 Film thickness too high
or low

Mottling Uneven appearance of metallic  Dirty spray gun nozzle  Use proper viscosity cup to
paints  Incorrect air pressure obtain spray viscosity.
 Incorrect reducer  Clean and maintain spray
 Faulty spray technique guns on a regular basis.
 Incorrect spray viscosity  During application maintain
spray gun parallel to the
substrate and maintain
correct distance from gun to
 substrate.
 Follow Technical Data Sheets
instructions.

 Nonuniform substrate
surface  Uniform and sufficient paint
· Uneven paint coverage  Uneven or inadequate application to obtain proper
Poor hiding
paint coverage to mask hiding.
the substrate color

 Paint applied too thick

or too wet to a vertical  Adjust low shear viscosity of
surface and the force of paint with appropriate
gravity overcomes the thickener.
forces resisting the  Use proper reducer and
downward flow of paint viscosity adjustment for
Drips and sags (viscosity). environmental conditions.
Runs and sags
 Temperature too low to  Adjust spray gun and apply
enable proper solvent thinner wet coats. If a
evaporation (solvent waterborne paint, apply paint
born paint), or humidity in a lower humidity
too high (waterborne environment.
paint).

 Paint applied too thin

 Minute areas on the
substrate surface of low  Proper paint application and
Skips/holidays Incomplete paint coverage surface tension, causing ensure surface cleanliness.
inadequate film flow and
coverage.

 Use proper viscosity cup to

obtain spray viscosity.
 Clean and maintain spray
Stripes of uneven paint guns on a regular basis.
Striping, Uneven paint application
appearance (e.g. differing color)  During application, maintain
banding
spray gun parallel at the
correct distance to the
substrate and maintain

Highlighting of the surface of

the coated substrate through Coating with high surface
 Ensure that the substrate is
the coating. Such defects as tension applied to a substrate thoroughly clean and absent
Telegraphing fingerprints, sand scratches and with lower surface tension. e.g. of low surface tension oils
water spots on the substrate Fingerprints or silicone oil on a and fingerprints.
become visible on the coating substrate surface.
surface

Wrinkling, Upon applying an overcoat, the Solvents in the new paint swell  Allow sufficient cure times of
lifting, existing paint film shrivels, underlying paint
  Ensure that the new paint is
wrinkles or swells; may also compatible with the
occur during drying. the underlying paint finish. undercoat
aligatoring
 Proper application of the new
  paint (not too wet).

Table 4: Defects that are more apparent after cure

Defect Appearance Causes Remedy

Paint pump sucking air

when paint level is low. In
 Proper attention to paint line conditi
two component  Ensure use of urethane grade solvent
Similar to solvent
Air entrapment urethanes, moisture proper spray gun air filtration throug
popping or bubbles
present reacts with  Addition of moisture scavenger in pa
isocyanate to cause
CO2 generation.

Convection pattern from

Hexagonal pattern in
pigment segregation as a Adjust formulation to overcome flooding and
Barnard Cells the surface of a cured
result of surface tension surface tension at surface
paint film.
differentials

 Proper oven staging to enable slow re

solvent.
 In an acid catalyzed system, use an ac
Bubbles near the slow the cure and enable solvent rele
Viscosity of the surface of  Increase flash time before bake.
surface of a film during
the film increases to a high  Use slower evaporating solvent.
Blisters oven cure that do not
level, trapping the volatile  For spray application, apply additiona
break through the
solvent at a lower level. coats to build film rather than fewer
surface.
 For waterborne coatings, use a dehyd
lower than the boiling point of water
by a second bake to cure.

Paint applied at high  Adjust paint to proper viscosity with

Rough surface that reducer per technical data sheets.
viscosity or under
Orange peel resembles the surface  Apply at proper fluid delivery rate an
conditions deleterious to
profile of an orange air pressure.
proper flow and leveling.

Solvent pop Broken bubbles at the Viscosity of the surface of  Proper oven staging to enable slow re
surface of a film that the film increases to a high solvent.
do not flow out during level, trapping the volatile  In an acid catalyzed system, use an ac
oven cure solvent at a lower level. slow the cure and enable solvent rele
The bubbles break the  Increase flash time before bake.
 Use slower evaporating solvent.
surface when the solvent
 For spray application, apply additiona
volatilizes.
coats to build film rather than fewer
  For waterborne coatings, use a dehyd
lower than the boiling point of water
a second higher bake to cure.
 Lastly, the use of lower Tg resins alon
lower dry film thickness decrease pop

Search Prospector for formulating remedies to overcome paint film defects:

Defect Remedy material

 polyether modified polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)

Crawling and substrate wetting  nonionic surfactant for waterborne paints

 PDMS
Craters and fish eyes  polyalkyl acrylates

 Viscosity modifier to increase low shear paint viscosity

Runs and sags

 polyether modified polymethylalkylsiloxane to increase low shear vis

Telegraphing

 surface tension depressant

 low molecular weight acrylic
Air entrapment
 defoamer (waterborne)

For melamine cure systems:

 blocked acid catalyst

Solvent pop, blisters
 polyalkyl acrylate
 slow evaporating solvent

Further reading:

 Coating Film Defects

 Coating Film Defects – Part 2

Resources
1. Preventing Paint Defects and Failures, Clifford K. Schoff, July 2013, CoatingsTech
2. UL Prospector, Hydrophobic Coatings Explained, Ronald Lewarchik, May 29, 2015
3. Organic Coatings, Science and Technology, Third Addition, wicks et.al., Wiley
Interscience, 2007
 4. UL Prospector raw material search engine

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