PAINT

A S M Fahad Hossain
Assistant professor
Dept. of CE, AUST
 WHAT IS PAINT

Paint is a fluid usually of a solid pigment in a liquid vehicle, that dries to form a
continuous solid film when spread over a surface or substrate-an underlying
substance or layer.

Paint is a liquid mixture, usually

of a solid pigment in a liquid
vehicle, used as a decorative or
protective coating.
 OBJECTIVES

To protect the material from the destructive action of the atmosphere, harmful
gases and vapors.
To delay the action of flames in case of fire.
To give a specific treatment to impart the desired appearance to a structure.
To impart the property of corrosive resistance to metals
 CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD PAINT

Good covering power per unit of paint.

Easy and free application on surface.
It should form a thin film of uniform thickness.
Resistant to weathering action.
Should not show any cracks on drying.
It should form a hard and durable surface.
Economical to suit the type of work
 COMPOSITION OF PAINTS
Paints essentially consist of:
i. Base
ii. Vehicle
iii. Pigment
iv. Drier
v. Thinner
 Base
• The principal constituent forming its body or main bulk.
•A base is a solid substance in a fine state of division and it forms the bulk of a paint.
• It also possess the binding property.
• Examples: Zinc white, white lead, red lead are common materials.
• Base forms an opaque layer to obscure the surface of the material to be painted.
• A lead paint is affected by weathering action and is therefore, not suited for final
coats of paints. But it is quite well and acts as a good preservative.
• Zinc white is unaffected by weather., but is costly.
• Aluminium powder is used as a base for all aluminium paints.
 Vehicle
•The function of vehicle is to contain all the materials of paint in liquid suspension, and
then to allow them to be applied in the form of a thin film on the surface to be painted.
•Linseed oil is the most widely used vehicle in the making of paints. It is obtained from
flax-seed.
•Linseed oil contains acid which reacts readily with oxygen and hardens by forming a
thin film.
•Other vehicles are tung oil, cotton seed oil, nut oil and soya bean oil.
 Pigment
•Forms the coloring matter used for giving the required tint or shade to the paints.
•They are solids in a very fine state and usually of colloidal dimensions.
•These fine particles have a reinforcing effect on the thin film of paint.
•The dried film of linseed oil (vehicle) has a tendency to crack on hardening, while
pigment lessens these cracks.
•The best pigments are those that do not change their color when exposed to heat,
sunrays or acid laden atmosphere. Most pigments fail to satisfy this requirement.
•The common pigments are: black magnesia, red lead, chrome for green color,
Prussian blue for blue color, zinc chrome for yellow color etc.
•Powdered metals like aluminium, copper, bronze etc. are also used as metallic
pigments.
 Drier
•These substances accelerate the rate of drying.
•The function of a drier is to absorb oxygen from the air and to supply it to linseed
oil, which reacts with linseed oil and eventually hardens by forming a thin film.
• They are usually compounds of metals like lead, magnesia, cobalt etc. dissolved in
a volatile liquid.
• Drier has a tendency to destroy the elasticity of the paint and therefore, should not
be used in excess, as this would cause the paint to peel off in scales.
 Thinner
The function of a solvent is to make the paint thin so that it can be easily applied on
the surface.
It acts as a solvent for the purpose of thinning the paints and thus imparts them
better covering power.
The paint could thereby be spread uniformly on is rough and porous.
 It also gives proper consistency to paints.
 The common thinning agent are terpentine and neptha.
 The thinner evaporates and dries the oil consequently.
 HOW DOES PAINT DRY

• When paint dries, a thin polymer film is formed that adheres to the surface and
suspends the pigments. Paint dries by a number of different mechanisms:
• Solvent evaporation
• Rust proof paints
• Heating (thermosetting)
• Automotive
• Oxidation
• Drying oils, artistic paints
• Linseed oil
 VARIOUS TYPES OF PAINTS
Oil Paint
Water Paint
Aluminum Paint
Cement Paint
Emulsion Paint
Enamel Paint
Distemper
Whitewash
Anti-corrosive paint
Plastic paint
Varnishes
 Oil Paint
These are not ready-mix paints.
Mostly white lead is used as base in all light-colored oil paints. White lead is ground in
linseed oil to the paste like consistency. The paste is grinded further by adding some
linseed oil and stirring the mixture with wooden stick.
Drier, if to be used, is also ground in little linseed oil at fine state and the third separate
paste is prepared.
Now all the three pastes (i.e. base+vehicle, drier+vehicle and pigment+vehicle) are
mixed together to obtain the required consistency of cream.
If required, the mixture is further thinner by adding terpentine oil (thinner) or linseed oil
(in this case used as thinner) or both just before its actual use
 Water Paint
It includes those paints of which the medium (vehicle) is water, they are prepared
with a medium containing both oil and water to which a certain amount of glue is
added to form the emulsion of oil in water.
Sodium or ammonium soaps are used as emulsifying agents (i.e. glue) in case of
water vehicle, while metallic soaps of magnesia and zinc in case oil-vehicle.
These paints are easy to apply and water dries away within 2 hours.
they are alkali-resistant.
They can be applied on cement plastered surfaces, usually used only for interior
works or for the decoration of exterior surfaces.
 Aluminium Paint
These consists of very finely ground aluminium suspended in a medium of slow
drying oil varnish (drier+ vehicle) or quick drying spirit varnish.
These are expensive white paints, usually used for decorative works.
It protects iron and steel from corrosion far better than any other paints
It can resist heat to a great extent.
 Cement Paint
These paints are prepared by mixing white cement with coloring matter or pigments
hydrated lime and fine sand as inert filler.
Cement paints are available in the form of powder of a particular color. The
dispersion medium may be water or oil, depending upon the purpose of coating.
Cement paints have marked water proofing capacity. This paint proves to be useful
for damp surfaces.
Cement paint is preferable on rough plastered surface. For painting surface of
corrugated iron sheets, cement paint may be mixed with boiled linseed oil. It should
be constantly stirred during use.
 Emulsion Paint
A paint composed of small beads of resin binder which are dispersed, along with
pigments, in water. On evaporation of the water, the resin particles coalesce to form a
film which adheres to the surface and binds the pigment particles.
The surface of the paint is tough and it can be cleaned by washing with water. It has
a strong resistance against action of alkali. It dries very quickly in about 1-2 hours.
 Enamel Paint
This is a superior quality paint and contains a high grade bases like zinc-white or
white lead ground in varnish (vehicle+drier).
An enamel paint is characterized by an ability to form an especially smooth film.
The amount of pigment is usually much less because a much higher degree of
dispersion of the pigment in the vehicle is required (than is generally necessary with
paints).
The enamel paint film presents a glossy surface. They are not affected by
atmosphere and stand well the adverse effects of weather.
 Distemper
It is a form of water paints which contains water and oil as its vehicle and thinning
agent.
Glue, starch or resin are used as base together with a pigment to suit the desired
color.
They are two types mainly: a) oil bound distemper are generally available in the form
of paste (i.e. in oil medium) and they are thinned by water before use b) Ordinary
distempers , contains no oil, but are available in the form of powder, before use, they
are to be mixed with water
Used in all interior surfaces of buildings for decorative process.
 Whitewash
A mixture of lime and water, a type of inexpensive paint made from slaked lime
(calcium hydroxide) and chalk (and glue and other additives), that is used to whiten
walls, fences, or other structures.
 Anti-corrosive paint
These paints are used mainly to protect the surface of metallic steel work against the
negative effects of acids, corrosive chemicals fumes etc.
This paint consist of linseed oil as vehicle and red lead, zinc oxide, iron oxide, zinc
chromate etc. as their base. Drier and inert fillers are sometimes added while required.
These paints are cheap, durable and black in color.
 Plastic paint
The paint contains a variety of plastics in suspension and is available in the market
under different trade names.
This paint is available in very attractive and pleasing shades. It can be applied by
spray or by brush.
 Varnishes
Do not contain any pigments.
They are liquid compositions which may be converted to transparent or solid film after
application in a thin layer.
Usually consist of melted resin (as base) dissolved in hot linseed oil, terpentine or alcohol (as
vehicle), a drier is also used.
Varnishes give brilliance to which they are applied and protected the coated surface from the
atmospheric action.
They are the most commonly used for brightening the plain surfaces of timber in
furniture and other building works.
Two types: oil varnish and spirit varnish.
Oil varnish contains resin (base), oil (vehicle, say, linseed oil), drier (cobalt or manganese powder)
and thinner (say, terpentine oil, naptha etc.)
Spirit varnish contains one or more resins (as base) in volatile liquid (vehicle), usually
methylated spirit is used); this varnish is used commonly in Bangladesh and is prepared
by dissolving gums and resins in methylated spirit; French polish or shellac varnish is
also classified under this category.
 SOME IMPORTANT ACTIVITY
RELATED TO PAINTING

Knotting
It is the process by which knots on the surface of wood-work are killed by
applying certain substances over the knots.
The substances applied over the knots prevent exudation of wood resin from the
knots and thus preventing the wood-knot from destroying the film of paint by way
of cracking or discoloring
 Stopping
This process contains of filling up all the nail holes, cracks, open joints, dents and
other depression on the surface by putty.
Putty is prepared by kneading white chalk powder into linseed oil; it should be given
the same color that will match the shade of the finishing coat by adding suitable
coloring agents.
After putty has dried up, the surface is rubbed by means of sand paper or glass paper
so as to make it smooth with having no irregularities.
Then the surface ready to apply primer.
Primer Coat
This is actually the first coat of the paint, whose function is to fill the pores of
wooden surface by penetrating into the surface.
It also acts as a foundation for subsequent coats of the paint.
In general, the constituents of the priming coat should be kept same as those of
subsequent coats, but their proportion may vary.
Second or Subsequent Coat/ Under-coat
After the primary coat is dry, second or under-coatings are applied. The color of
the undercoat should approximately be of the same shade as that of the desired
finish. Two or more under-coatings are sometimes necessary to achieve the object.
Sufficient time must be allowed for each coat to dry before applying the
succeeding
Finishing Coat
This is the last coat applied on the surface after the under-coat is
properly dried
This coat should be applied very carefully so that the finished surface
can be free from thin patches and brush marks.
Spray Painting
For rapid execution, efficiency, perfection and durability, spray painting is
recommended on metal and woodwork.
The paint is put into a container and forced by air pressure through a hose to a metal
gun. The gun is provided with a spray nozzle and a hose conveying compressed air.
When the trigger of the gun is pulled, both the air and the fluid valves get opened. The
compressed air strikes the paint and forced out in the form of a spray from the nozzle.
 Selection of tools for painting

Roller, brush and spray gun are generally used for painting. The bristle or brushes,
which are elastic and flat shapes, should be firmly fixed and possesses a good paint
holding capacity. After use, the brushes should be cleaned very thoroughly with
kerosene oil.
 Other Topics

To be covered from Dr. Latifee sir’s book: “Construction Materials”

P-401: Functions of paint system components

P-411: The application of paints
P-412: Methods of painting
P-413: Common Paint problems.