EUROPEAN

C OATINGS
www.european-coatings.com journal 09 — 2020

10
WOOD
COATINGS
This issue comes with a full package on wood
coatings: a technical paper on the durability
of exterior coatings, a market report, a product
over view and exclusive expert voices.

24 BIO-BASED COATINGS 32 PIGMENTS

Nail polish made of wood. A modular concept for pigment concentrates.
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 EDI T OR IAL 3

Join our Group

“European Coatings Industry”

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EVERGREEN
Wood is one of the oldest materials but one that has been able to maintain
its popularity until today. Therefore, market researchers give a promising
outlook for the wood coatings market. However, our market report from
page 10 shows that some industry players have a more cautious outlook.
Vanessa Bauersachs
Editor One key issue is the usage of biocides in wood coatings. In our expert voices
T +49 511 9910-217
section from page 12, one coatings manufacturer and a researcher share their
vanessa.bauersachs@vincentz.net
opinions if increased pressure on the use of biocides could affect the quality
of wood coatings. Plus, our experts give their views on technical trends.

In our focus paper from page16 Gerhard Grüll and his team at Holzforschung
Austria give a summary of their last two decades of research into the durability
and service life of wood coatings and the conclusions for practice. The au-
thor will also present their findings in more details at the European Coatings
Live on 22 September at 15:00 CET. The web event is free of charge, you can
register at www.european-coatings.com/live.

Enjoy reading! 

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

 4 C ON T E N T S

Source: Michael - stock.adobe.com

MARKET REPORT
Challenging market
environment

10
Source: Ilshat - stock.adobe.com

EXPERT
VOICES
Additives
modifying the
gloss level

12 16
WOOD COATINGS
Durability of exterior wood coatings

EUROPEAN COATINGS JOURNAL 09 – 2020

WOOD COATINGS
6 INDUSTRY NEWS 10 MARKET REPORT
The most important moves wiithin the coatings industry. Challenging market environment

12 EXPERT VOICES
Jos Kemp, PPG, and Claudia Schirp, Fraunhofer WKI

14 PRODUCT OVERVIEW
Additives modifying the gloss level

16 TECHNICAL PAPER
Two decades of research into the durability of exterior wood
coatings. Dr Gerhard Grüll, Dr Boris Forsthuber, Florian
Tscherne, Holzforschung Austria

EUROPEAN COATINGS LIVE

Learn more about
Wood coatings
at European Coatings Live on 22 September 2020,
15.00 CET at www.european-coatings.com/live

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
 C O NT E N T S 5

Source: ronstik - stock.adobe.com

Source: xangai - stock.adobe.com

Source: aga7ta - stock-adobe.com

BIO-BASED
COATINGS
Nail polish
made from
resorcinol, tan-
nic acid, lignin

24
Source: Grispb - stock.adobe.com

LEGISLATION
Meeting the PIGMENT CONCENTRATES
reporting Colour pastes from the
requirement construction kit

30 32

23 CEPE CORNER 40 SUPPLIERS INDEX

Green Deal will impact us all, Christel Davidson,
Managing Director CEPE 41 MASTHEAD

24 BIO-BASED COATINGS 42 ADVERTISERS INDEX

New application concept makes nail polish made fom
resorcinol, tannic acid and lignin possible. Anna Becker-Staines
and Daniel Appel, University of Paderborn

30 LEGISLATION
Meeting the reporting requirement. Dr Dieter Reiml and Rupert
Scherer, TÜV Süd Industrie Service

32 PIGMENT CONCENTRATES
Colour pastes from the construction kit. Dr Jörg Horakh,
Heubach

Source cover: JeDo - stock.adobe.com

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

6 I ND U S T R Y N E W S

MARKET MOVES
A short over view on the most important moves within the European
coatings industry. You can find more news on markets and companies,
raw materials and technologies at www.european-coatings.com.

“Penetrate markets
across the globe.“
Hubergroup bundles chemical expertise in a separate division
Lauren Pagano, Business Director Latex Binders
Strategy The printing ink manufacturer Huber-

CASE at Trinseo
Trinseo has been strengthening the CASE
unit. Please explain why? Trinseo is a global
supplier of latex binders and a solutions provider
to the CASE market. It is important for us to con-
tinue to focus on our CASE business unit as it is
part of our strategy, to continue the diversifica-
tion of our portfolio, especially regarding sus-
tainability, and to continue to incorporate and
introduce new technologies. The CASE segment is
a high growth market and therefore, highly at-
tractive. We continue to leverage ourselves, our
products, and chemistries into the market as it
supports our mission towards a specialty solu-
tions provider. CASE is an area of tremendous
opportunity, and that is why we are feeling confi-
Source: Saklakova - Fotolia
Source: Hubergroup
group repositions itself: The production and mar-
keting of raw materials for printing inks and coat-
ings is now handled by the Chemicals Division. To
diversify and divide the business into two divisions
- Print Solutions and Chemicals - is a strategic cor-
porate decision. Hubergroup is thus pursuing the
goal of making its technological expertise available
to a wider range of customers.
www.hubergroup.com
Biesterfeld and Evonik expand cooperation
Distribution Biesterfeld is expanding its long-

dent about growing in this market. term partnership with Evonik in the field of paint
and varnishes. With immediate effect, Biesterfeld
You acquired the vinyl pyridine (VP) latex will distribute matting agents, fumed silicas used
business from Synthomer. Why? This was a for rheology control in various applications, and
step to complement our portfolio and to grow special fillers from Evonik used as titanium dioxide
in the CASE business. This transaction helps us extenders in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia,
to diversify ourselves into new markets and new Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia.
technologies by being able to offer VP latex for With this expansion, Biesterfeld intends to expand
coating tire cord fabrics, ensuring a strong bond its portfolio in a targeted manner.
between the tire cord and rubber during the tire
manufacturing process. We have gained exper- www.biesterfeld.com/en
tise in-house that we can integrate into our cur-
rent setup. This gives us strong technical leverage,
which we could bring to the tire industry. We will
continue to develop this business and penetrate
markets across the globe. “Quantum computing will enable us
You invested in an increased facility at the to take research and development to
Rheinmünster/Germany site. Will you shift
production to this site? Both acquisitions of
a completely new level.“
the Rheinmünster site and the VP latex business CEO Dr. Markus Steilemann, Covestro
align with our strategy to grow our latex binders
business in CASE, but they are not connected. The
Rheinmünster site helps us to support our growth
initiatives that we have in CASE and allows us to Epple: Aqcuisition of PCO Europe and new subsidiary
be more flexible and agile. It helps us as we con-
tinue our journey to diversify our chemistry base BeNeLux Epple Druckfarben increases ben Benelux has started its operations in
outside the core technologies. And the acquisition its shares in the Dutch printing chemi- Turnhout, Belgium. With the new subsidi-
of the VP latex business reinforces our position as cals manufacturer PCO Europe to 100 ary, Epple, manufacturer of sheet-fed off-
a solutions provider to the high-performance tire percent. As a manufacturer of sheet-fed set printing inks, wants to maintain more
segment. As part of the transaction, Trinseo has offset inks and varnishes, the company direct contact with printers and end cus-
established agreements with Synthomer for con- thus takes over a leading producer and tomers in Belgium, the Netherlands and
tract manufacturing the products at Synthomer’s supplier of printing chemicals for the Luxembourg.
production facility at Marl, Germany, where the offset printing industry. Additionally, the
products will continue to be produced.  newly founded company Epple Druckfar- www.epple-druckfarben.com/en/

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
BYK Additives
Everything that wood needs

ANZEIGE

Sophisticated graining, a pleasant feel – elegant furniture or high-grade parquet flooring reveals wood in
its finest form. At the same time, these objects must withstand the tough everyday stresses and strains.
This demands the highest standards of the processing and protective properties of coatings. Whether
it’s waterborne or UV systems, BYK additives optimize important properties such as gloss, scratch
resistance, UV protection or durability. And consequently ensure that wood is not only good-looking
but remains that way.

www.byk.com
 PRA’s 12th International

Woodcoatings 20 – 21 October 2020

Congress Amsterdam City, The Netherlands
www.european-coatings.com/woodcoatings

Addressing the challenges

of modern wood coatings

Save the Date:

20 – 21 October 2020
Amsterdam City, The Netherlands
www.european-coatings.com/woodcoatings
Contact us for sponsorship opportunities

The Congress is sponsored by: In collaboration:

Source: styleuneed - stock.adobe.com C O NT EN T S W O O D C O AT I N G S 9

WOOD COATINGS
10 MARKET REPORT
Challenging market environment

12 EXPERT VOICES
Jos Kemp, PPG, and Claudia Schirp, Fraunhofer WKI

14 PRODUCT OVERVIEW
Additives modifying the gloss level

16 TECHNICAL PAPER
Two decades of research into the durability of exterior wood coatings.
Dr Gerhard Grüll, Dr Boris Forsthuber, Florian Tscherne. Holzforschung
Austria

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

 10 W OOD C O AT I NG S MARKE T REP O R T
Source: Michael - stock.adobe.com
CHALLENGING MARKET ENVIRONMENT
A closer look at the wood coatings market. By Damir Gagro.
As wood remains a popular building material, the forecasts
of the market research institute Markets and Markets for the
further development of the wood coatings market sound posi-
tive. The global volume should increase by 2024. Yet, the out-
look of industry players sounds more cautious than that of the
market researchers, as the wood coatings manufacturers tend
to assume stagnation.
T he global market for wood coatings is expected to grow from
3.3 million tons in 2019 to 3.9 million tons by 2024, at a compound
annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.7 %. Market researchers from Markets
and Markets (MaM) also expect demand for wood coatings to be strong-
ly influenced by environmental legislation and economic constraints in
the construction industry.
ASIA-PACIFIC STRONGEST REGION
With the increase in the residential sector, the market for wood coat-
ings has experienced significant growth. The growth of the residen-
tial sector has led to the emergence of Do-It-Yourself (DIY) coat-
ings, which protect a wooden surface or make an existing wooden
surface waterproof. These coatings are easy to apply with the help
of instructions often found on the packaging, MaM explains. By the
end of the next decade, the market researchers expect the mar-
ket for wood coatings to continue to grow as do-it-yourselfers
look for unique projects that include wood stains and surfaces.
The global market for wood coatings has experienced an upswing since
2009. This is due to the large number of new buildings following the
economic downturn. There is a considerable amount of renovation and
conversion work going on worldwide. In 2019, the Asia-Pacific region
had a volume share of around 46 % of the total market, followed by
North America and Europe with 27 % and 17 % respectively. However,
E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
the wood coatings market in the industrialised countries is saturated,
so that it will probably grow more slowly. The market in the emerging
countries, such as China and India, is expected to grow more strongly in
the next five years.
WOOD COATINGS MANUFACTURERS EXPECT STAGNATION
The development forecasts of the industry players are more cautious.
For Dr Arne Deußen from the company Oskar Nolte, the market is
basically relatively stable, although developments in individual appli-
cation and customer segments are quite different. Steffen Rüdiger of
Rütgers Organics classifies the current situation as follows: “There is
stagnation in wood coatings and glazes. It can be assumed that the
demand among existing customers will decrease. Window renova-
tions are tending to become less.” For Alexander Eisenacher of Alfred
Clouth Lackfabrik, the market for wood coatings also continues to be
difficult. “According to our estimates, the sales volume in the overall
market for wood coatings will be around 3 % below the previous year’s
level - without the additional economic effects of the Corona virus.
Jens Hesse from Hesse Lignal is quite satisfied with the cur-
rent development, but limits the statement: “This is by no means
due to a dynamic market development. It is rather stagnating,
partly declining. In the craft trade sector, for example, declin-
ing demand is the order of the day, replacement surfaces are of-
ten a welcome uncomplicated alternative to painted surfaces”.
The wood coatings manufacturers still see potential in the market.
“Wood construction seems to be becoming more popular overall,” sum-
marises Rüdiger briefly. He sees further potential in wood facades with
greying glazes. For Deußen the substrate wood is attractive as a renew-
able raw material and could win in favour of other substrates due to the
sustainability issue. “We mainly coat wood-based materials, which often
have an even better ecological balance sheet. Here we are in a position
 MA R KE T R EP O R T 11

Figure 1: Wood coatings market size, by region, in terms COMPETITION INTENSIFIES

of volume (2019). 
The increasing and intensifying competition will also have an impact on the

Source: Markets and Markets

market and lead to further challenges. “The conflicts in a globalised world
make the issue of internationalisation complex, not to mention the current
10% effects of the Corona pandemic. A permanent challenge is and remains the
issue of a shortage of skilled workers, which we can only counteract by inten-
sive internal training,” emphasises Hesse. From the point of view of Deußen,
the industrial wood coatings market can only be successfully developed if
17% you have top employees at all levels and functions. For him, establishing
46% contacts and inspiring new and future employees is therefore a real priority.
3.3 Million
“The price increases for raw materials in recent years, which have hardly
Tons
been passed on to the necessary extent, have led to the problem that many
companies have found it difficult to make long-term investments in the nec-
essary infrastructure and the increasingly important skilled personnel. We
therefore believe that focusing the companies with their product range is
27% becoming increasingly important in order to have a clear position on the
market”, says Deußen. This means that wood coatings manufacturers are
also being forced by the strong competition to ask themselves strategic
 APAC  Europe questions - which in the end could also lead to cooperation, mergers or
 North America  Rest of the world restructuring, as Deußen explains. This applies to both medium-sized and
large companies.  

to provide high-quality consulting and development services in

the coordination of substrate surfaces with machine require-
ments and our coatings,” explains Deußen.

TREND TOWARDS LESS AND SMALLER FURNITURE

103
6
For Deußen, the furnishing trend is towards less and less or 14 Lr 52
smaller furniture - which is more than compensated for by the C 1
strong interest rate trend in construction and renovation. “For Si (262) Te
12.011
years now, customers have been shifting their markets to East- 28.085 127.60 H
ern Europe. We expect this to continue. On the market side, 1.008
medium-sized industrial customers are losing out to small, flex-
ible manufacturers and joineries or to efficient large-scale pro-
ducers,” says Deußen. The kitchen segment is consistently doing
slightly better than the furniture segment. This is also resulting
Heisenberg is Certain for Once:
in changes to the manufacturers who cover these in terms of
products and services.
Siltech Specialty Silicones Help
According to Hesse, natural-looking surfaces are still in vogue,
whether oiled or lacquered. Dull matt and scratch-resistant sur-
You Break Today’s Tougher
faces, achieved with classic paint systems or with eximer technol-
ogy, underpin this trend. “And apparently, the wave of oak and
Problems
white lacquer is over, things are getting more colourful - these
are our impressions of the Cologne furniture fair,” says Hesse.
For Rüdiger, there is a trend towards oils, waxes and mineral
paints - in other words, products with a biological background.
“Greying glazes with and without a metallic effect are still popu-
lar. There is also a trend away from thick-film products towards
thin and medium-film products. Products with a matt surface are
also becoming more popular,” Rüdiger describes.
Jens Hesse says that potential in a declining market can only be
developed with solutions that have a high market relevance. For
example, solutions that increase customer efficiency. “We are Your Technology
able to paint even deep 3D profiles with efficient rolling appli-
cations and thus avoid spray applications. Solutions that enable
- Our Chemistry
previously unattained qualities, such as brushed oak parquet
with completely protected pores,” explains Hesse. But innovative
solutions alone are not enough, new service concepts such as European Contacts: Siltech Corporation
partner programs are essential components, Hesse adds. North: dave.wilson@siltech.com Toronto, ON, Canada
Central: markus.tuerk@siltech.com +1 416-424-4567
South: frederic.lamande@siltech.com www.siltech.com
12 W OOD C O AT I NG S
Two questions, two answers:
1 Do you expect that increased pressure
on the use of biocides will affect the
quality of wood coatings?
2 What technical trends will shape the
wood coatings market in the coming
years?
1 If you look at the industry now, you can
already see how the move away from bio-
cides is acting as a catalyst for innovation. As
we tackle the question of what a biocide-free
wood coatings sector looks like, I think we can
expect to see some interesting sector develop-
ments.
We have already turned our attention to devel-
oping alternative, biocide-free products for the
future. We want to find the best possible so-
lutions that work for our customers, and that
is why we are working with suppliers now to
determine how we can innovate products that
address the needs of the future.
Biocides provide an essential source of protec-
tion for wood against bacteria, fungi, rot, de-
cay and insects. But in recent years biocides
have come under increased scrutiny and face
changing regulations.
Although biocides are still in use across
Europe, both increasing biocide regulations
(BPR) and labelling restrictions mean this is a
landscape that will be regularly evolving in the
coming years. Together, these two factors will
cause an ever-decreasing range of biocide op-
tions and therefore, without a high-quality al-
ternative, this would leave a gap in the coatings
offering. And that is what we are committed to
avoiding.
The end goal is to create a clean product with
a lengthy shelf life by using our innovative ca-
pacity at PPG to discover alternative solutions
as to what we can do with different paint for-
mulations.
2 The removal of biocides is just one of the
trends that’s driving innovation in the
sector currently. With an unending list of in-
novation catalysts, from customer demand,
to regulation, to environmental footprint –
trends are constantly evolving and reforming.
Below are the four key trends I foresee hav-
ing the largest impact in the coming years:
E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
E X P E R T V OICE S
Source: Ilshat - stock.adobe.com
1. Transformation from solvent-based to
water-based.
“A bio-based One of the biggest challenges in the sector
has been how to move to water-based from
accreditation solvent-based. We have seen great progress
in this area, but the industry is yet to achieve
is one of our a water-based product that provides all the
same qualities as solvent-based. That is why
bigger selling we have been working on increasing the
open time and mirror gloss of water-based
points, but we paints. These are properties that are impor-
tant to our customers and therefore facili-
will not accept tates a shift in consumer preference.
2. Efficiency for the painter.
any reduced For professional painters, working well and
working fast are essential to their business.
By increasing product performance in less
performance in than ideal weather conditions, we are ena-
bling painters to work year round and still
exchange.“ achieve the same end performance. Similarly,
paints need to be adapted to offer excellent
consistency and colour without the need for
multiple coats when being sprayed, in order
to save time for the painter.
3. Extended durability
For us the journey to being more environ-
mentally friendly is not just focused on the
products we make, but creating something
that lasts longer to allow for green savings
across its lifecycle.
With interiors, durability is being prioritised
in water-based products that are being de-
signed to offer scratch and chemical resistant
properties. In exterior products, the focus is
on gloss retention and general durability.
4. Finally, the transition to bio-based.
A bio-based accreditation on a product is one
of our bigger selling points right now, but we
and our customers will not accept any re-
Jos Kemp duced performance in exchange. This is why
R&D Wood Coatings R&D Manager we have been innovating in this area for a few
PPG years now – working to create a range of bio-
Jos.kemp@ppg.com based solutions that offer the same high level
of technical performance. 
 E XP ER T V OIC E S 13

Source: Gabriel - stock.adobe.com

AMBITION / FLEXIBILITY / PASSION / INNOVATION

1 During the last decades biocides in wood

coatings have been more and more lim-
ited due to regulations like the biocide direc-
This is also true for the awareness of toxic
or harmful substances. In addition, there
are many national and international regu-
tive 528/2012 and 98/8/EG. This leads to the lations to force producers in this direction.
situation that active ingredients need specific Often, there are new limitations for specific
approvals that have to be renewed every five chemicals that have to be replaced. The
years. Talking of exterior wood coatings, the challenge will be to react or even better to
biocide cocktail has almost been reduced to foresee the next regulation and to come up
propiconazol, IPBC and tebuconazol. Neverthe- with a new sustainable product with at least
less, the amount of active ingredients should the same technical performance. 
be as low as possible. More often, we should
think about the effect. Is it only a decorative is-
sue or also structurally relevant? Can we think
of other possibilities like other wood species or “The challenge
other constructions? For sure, it is difficult to
avoid biocides in all applications. But with re- will be to react
spect to toxic and allergic reactions we should
always rethink specific applications. And who or even better to
knows, if one day researchers come up with
new biocides without any negative side effect
for humans and environment.
foresee the next
regulation.“
2 From my point of view, technical challeng-
es in the field of wood coatings are widely
solved, at least scientifically. You can find smart
coatings for different applications, e.g. durable
The
powerful
exterior coatings, scratch-resistant furniture
coatings, fire-retardant coatings. Sometimes
the question is, if the technical solution is eco-

shield
nomical enough to reach a high market share.
However, when you ask for renewable raw ma-
terials, recyclability and environment pollution
by micro plastics, there is still plenty of room for
research and development. Therefore, I rather
see needs in recycling systems and technolo-
gies instead of new functions of the material.
The challenge of the future will be to have ex-
cellent technical performance combined with
materials that can be handled in a closed and Claudia Schirp
sustainable circular economy with less energy Project manager
consumption and lower carbon footprint. The Fraunhofer-Institute for Wood Re- www.brb-international.com
group of customers who are interested in search, Wilhelm-Klauditz-Institut, WKI
green and sustainable products is increasing. claudia.schirp@wki.fraunhofer.de

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

 14 W OOD C O AT I NG S P R ODUC T O VER V I E W

MATT IS BEAUTIFUL
Wooden furniture and other wooden surfaces are widely
Source: Polat Alp - stock.adobe.com

used. To protect the wood in the household from water

and other influences, it should be coated. However, this
also changes the look and feel of the surfaces in differ-
ent ways. The look of the grain changes, the colour can
be modified or the gloss level is in- or decreased. In the
over view you will find additives for modifying the gloss
level. By Nina Musche

C oatings mainly consist of binders which are usually quite glossy

on the surface. But if fashion dictates that the surfaces should
only be slightly glossy or even completely matt or “natural”, the coating
formulations have to be modified.
The effect is usually achieved by roughening the surface. This is done
by adding particles to the formulation. These float to the surface and

Active Physical
Company Product name Chemical basis Particle size Application
content properties

Aquamat Modified PE wax 55 % in Melting point 30 µm Water-borne architectural, wood and

Byk
272N dispersion water 125 °C (Hegman) furniture, industrial and leather coatings
Water-borne, solvent-borne and solvent-free
Ceraflour Micronised 100 % Melting point D50 5 µm,
systems, architectural, industrial, wood and
1000 wax-like polymer powder 175 °C D90 11 µm
furniture and leather coatings
UV- solvent and water-borne coatings,
100 % D50 6.3 µm,
Deuteron Deuteron MK Duromeric polymer Oil number 325 exterior and interior applications, printing
powder D90 13.8 µm
inks, coil, wood and furniture coatings
100 % UV systems, printing inks and
Deuteron 100 % as Specific gravity: D50 8 µm,
Wax compound overprint varnishes, solvent-based
UV RMP powder 0.92 D90 17.0 µm
systems for various applications
Acematt Wax treated 100 % Specific surface Universal usage, car OEM, wood,
Evonik D50 6.5 µm
OK 520 precipitated silica powder area 220 m2/g plastic and general industrial coatings
Acematt 100 % Specific surface Water-borne, solvent-borne, high solids,
Untreated thermal silica D50 9.5 µm
TS 100 powder area 250 m2/g car OEM, wood, plastic and leather coatings
Water-borne and solvent-based wood
Syloid Synthetic 100 % Oil absorption Average:
Grace furniture and cabinett coatings, plastic
AQ 800 amorphous silica powder 200 g/100g 6.3-7.7 µm
coatings, artificial and natural leather
Synthetic amorphous 100 % VOC-free radiation cured systems,
Syloid 100 % Oil absorption Average:
silica with novel surface potentially also for solvent- and
RAD 2105 powder 150 g/100g 4.8-5.8 µm
treatment water-borne coatings
Modified polypropylene 100 % Melting point D50 Water- and solvent-borne coatings,
Lubrizol Lanco 1390 F
wax powder 165 °C <12 µm most polymer systems, various coatings
Water- and solvent-borne coatings;
Lanco Matt 100 % Oil absorption D50
Wax-treated silica wood- and plastic coatings,
2000 powder 225-285 g/100g < 6.5 µm
varnishes, stoving enamels
Michel- NatureShield 40 % in
Modified natural wax Proprietary Proprietary Wood coatings
man 50 water
Michem Guard 50 % in
Polyethylene was Proprietary Proprietary Wood coatings
349B water
Ceretan Micronised 100 % Dripping point D50 < 10 µm Powder, wood, industry, architectural
Münzing
MP 2120 polypropylen wax powder 156 °C D99 <20 µm coatings, printing inks, paper industry
Ceretan Spherical, micronised wax 100 % Dripping point D50 <5 µm
Industry and wood coatings, printing inks
MXS 3815 compound, silica coated powder 105 °C D99 <15 µm

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
 P R O DU C T O V ER VIE W 15

“The main advantage of

matt finishes is the fact that
freeze in the drying surface. This surface scatters the light and thus
appears matt. The particles can have silica, waxes or any other chemi- fingerprints, scratches and
cal bases. Everything has advantages and disadvantages, possibly also
the price. Furthermore, floating in the radiation-curing lacquers popu-
lar for wood lacquers can be difficult due to the lack of volume shrink-
other imperfections are far
age during drying. Here, a large amount of particles usually has to be
introduced so that the volume can be bridged by mass. This usually
less noticeable than on
results in an increase in viscosity. Many of the products shown here
try to minimize the negative effects, while still efficiently matting and
gloss finishes.“
keeping the surface more resistant.
The products shown are often not only responsible for a change in
gloss level. Furthermore, the surface smoothness, block resistance or
even the touch can be modified. This has to do with the chemical basis
of the products. Waxes, as a floating component with relatively soft
consistency, give the otherwise hard surface a slightly textile, velvety
appearance. This can be very pleasant on furniture. Waxes are rather

inappropriate for parquet lacquers on the other hand, as the lubricat- BOOK TIP: WOOD COATINGS
ing properties provides greater slip and thus make the floor unsafe.
Discover the solid knowledge base in industrial wood
coatings! The comprehensive standard work by Jorge
Prieto and Jürgen Kiene focuses on interior and exterior
Properties (apart from matting)
coatings for wood and wood-based materials. More-
over, guide formulations and actual procedures for
Surface protection coatings are shown in detail.

Improved scratch resistance and anti-blocking properties, soft-feel-effect, Jorge Prieto et.al., 396 pages,ISBN: 9783866306080
transparent coatings. No effect on viscosity, surface slip and foam

Low effect on viscosity, high temperature stability (up to 300 °C),

UV and weathering resistance, improve blocling resistance,
no influence on over-coatability
SILICA MODIFIED WATER-BORNE
Uniform matting due to partial incompatibility, soft-feel,
POLYURETHANE MATTING COATING
independent of reactive thinner, mechanical and
chemical resistance, low influence on viscosity
A prepolymer of water-borne polyurethane (WPU) was synthe-
Efficient matting, high transparency, chemically resistant, sised, and silicon dioxide (SiO2) was modified with active amio-
smoothness, low sedimentation behaviour no groups in water. Then, the water solution was directly added
into the WPU prepolymer for emulsification, were they partici-
Efficient matting, high transparency, chemically resistant
pate in isocyanate reaction and chain extension. Finally, modi-
fied SiO2 compounds were grafted into polyurethane chains,
Chemical resistance, ease of dispersion, overgrind resistance, forming the matting material. The properties of the synthesised
good transparency and surface appearance, good gloss/sheen ratio
matting materials were characterised. Property and stability of
the matt WPU material exhibited remarkable performances
Easily dispersible, high matting efficiency, and showed good commercial potential.
low thickening effect and film clarity
Hui Ma et al, Progress in Organic Coatings, Feb 2020
Improved scratch and abrasion resistance, anti-slip,
easy to disperse, in-can stability due to optimized density
Source: CharMoment - stock.adobe.com

Provides smooth surface feel, uniform flatting, scratch

and mar resistance, disperses easily, minimal haze

Abrasion resistance

Abrasion resistance, block resistance

Anti-slip, scratch and abrasion resistance,

soft-feel, anti-blocking
Single matting agent, anti-blocking, high transparency,
high slip, chemical resistance, low influence on viscosity

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

 16 W OOD C O AT I NG S
Source: ronstik - stock.adobe.com
THE EXPERIENCE FACTOR IN
COATING DEVELOPMENT
Two decades of research into the durability of exterior wood coatings. By Dr Gerhard Grüll, Dr Boris Forsthuber,
Florian Tscherne, Holzforschung Austria.
The service life of exterior wood coat-
ings has been a key issue in the research
group on surfaces at Holzforschung
Austria for about 20 years. It is worth
summarising the experience gathered
during this period and looking back on
the development of conclusions for
practice. Have early theories and rec-
ommendations from a young research
team been proven in practice?
C ustomers want to buy safe products and
receive sound and useful practical ad-
vice. Manufacturers of coatings for exterior
wood should have long-term experience with
their products because it brings confidence
and safety that the coatings are durable and
E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
TE CH N IC AL PA P ER
will not show unexpected weathering behav-
iour. Their customers can therefore expect
high-quality products. However, it is often said
that wood needs a lot of care and recoating
to be durable and resist natural weathering.
Coatings protect wood – they can reduce
moisture fluctuations, prevent cracking, re-
duce dimensional changes, they filter harm-
ful wavelengths of light and prevent fungal
growth. However, like all building products,
coatings themselves underlie degradation
processes, which lead to a change of prop-
erties over time of weathering exposure.
Therefore, maintenance is required, and this
is the key to durability of wood in building ap-
plications. Many historic buildings of impres-
sive age prove this.
ESTIMATED MAINTENANCE INTERVALS
In a research project on exterior wood clad-
dings about 20 years ago, a group of young
researchers endeavoured to estimate coat-
ing maintenance intervals. This proved chal-
lenging due to a lack of long-term experience
and limited available literature. Nevertheless,
the results should be sound enough to give
recommendations for practice. An excellent
source of experience in this project was the
assessment of many buildings with wood
claddings in the northern alpine region and
to talk to the building owners about their
history. By collecting data on more than 120
buildings, the team could draft a table on
maintenance intervals, which was first pub-
 T E CHN I C A L PAP E R 17

Figure 1: Time to failure as a function of dry film thickness of 26 out of 30 coating

systems on wood in natural weathering.

RESULTS AT A GLANCE
űű A series of research projects vali-
dated guidance values for maintenance
72
intervals of exterior wood coatings.
66

űű Researchers defined the limit states 60

Natural weathering / months

of wood coatings at different stages, 54
including aesthetic limits, maintenance R 2=0.38
48
intervals and renovation intervals. 42
36
űű A comparison of artificial and natu-
ral weathering revealed reasonable 30
R 2=0.96
conformity – it is possible to predict 24
the durability of wood coating systems 18
using artificial weathering tests. 12
6
űű A factor model can predict the ser-
0
vice life of wood coatings relative to a
reference material and is a useful tool 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
that combines long-term experience Dry film thickness / µm
with laboratory test results.
Acrylates Alkyds
űű Good progress was made regarding Acrylates thickness variation  Trend (linear)
the improvement of hail resistance of Acrylates colour variation alkyds
wood coatings.

lished in a practical booklet [1]. The guide Figure 2: Time to failure as a function of brightness of 26 out of 30 coating systems on
gave estimated maintenance intervals de- wood in natural weathering.
pending on the dry film thickness and opac-
ity of the coating along with practical proce-
dures for maintenance and renovation.
Based on the laboratory results from meas-
uring the physical properties of wood coat- 72
ings, such as water permeability and water 66
vapour or UV-light transmission, researchers 60
Natural weathering / months

assumed coating film thickness and pigmen- 54

tation to have a direct influence on durability.
48
Light transmission measurements with semi-
42
transparent coatings suggested that, in gen-
eral, dark pigmentation increased durability 36
whereas light colours offered less protec- 30
tion against light. For opaque coatings, in 24
contrast, bright coatings lasted longer. Light 18
protection of opaque coatings is excellent
12
because neither UV light nor visible light can
transmit the film. Researchers assumed that 6
bright coatings absorb less energy from sun- 0
light, which results in a lower surface tem- 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
perature and hence, less degradation and
Brightness L*
cracking.
Experts in the wood building sector including < 20 µm Opaque
coating manufacturers, craftsmen, architects, 20 - 60 µm Thickness variation
and others started using this booklet, which > 60 µm  Trend (linear)
eventually became a reference for good
building practice in Austria. The document 

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

 18 W OOD C O AT I NG S TE CH N IC AL PA P ER

 was revised over the years [2] but the table of be clear when the end of a coating system’s ent opinions on when the end of a coating’s
maintenance intervals of coatings remained durability is reached. Therefore, we defined a service life is reached. So, it was important
virtually unchanged. series of limit states for exterior wood coat- to separate aesthetic aspects, which require
In a booklet on balconies and decking [3], ings [6] (Table 2). cleaning or refreshing surfaces, from techni-
the table was expanded to include near- At the beginning of this work it became clear cal reasons which require maintenance and
ly horizontal surfaces such as hand rails that even experts in the same field had differ- repair.
(Table 1) to take into account the influence
of inclination of a surface on durability. Re-
search work on balconies and decking veri- Figure 3: Time to failure of 26 out of 30 coating systems on wood in natural weathering
fied that nearly horizontal surfaces degraded compared to artificial weathering.
much faster than vertical ones. This extend-
ed table proved to be a relatively universal
tool for estimating the service life of exterior 84
wood coatings. International experts in the 78
European research project WoodExter [4] 72
discussed and confirmed the values in this
Natural weathering / months
66
table. All the maintenance recommendations R 2=0.80
60
from this research group were compiled in a 54
booklet [5]. 48
42
LIMIT STATES HELP WITH MAINTENANCE 36
DECISIONS 30
24
Traditional investigations into coating degra- 18
dation during weathering report results after 12
a defined period of weathering exposure. 6
In contrast, service life prediction is based
0
on the time of exposure or the dosage of 0 3 6 9 12 15 18 21 24 27 30 33 36 39
weathering impacts that is needed to reach
a limit state – which defines the service life Artificial weathering / weeks
of the product. This involves a different test
Systems  95% Confidence inter val
strategy with longer periods of weathering
 Trend (linear)  95% Prognosis inter val
until failure occurs combined with short in-
spection intervals. At the same time, it must

Figure 4: The SERVOWOOD ser vice life prediction model gives results relative to a reference system; a web-based application to use
this model is under development.

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
 T E CHN I C A L PAP E R 19

Technical defects determine durability be-
cause they impair the protective functions
of coatings. The visual appearance of coated
wood can become unacceptable when col-
our or gloss fade, when the surfaces become
dirty or algae grow, but this has no technical
consequences for the protection of the wood
substrate. A significant loss of film thickness
by chalking, as well as cracks, hail damage,
flaking, blistering or the growth of mould and
blue stain, however, have a negative effect on
the tightness of the coating. These defects
must be repaired and it is of advantage that
this is done early after their occurence.
The maintenance interval is reached when
coating adhesion is still good, and minor
defects can be cured with a simple mainte-
nance coat over the old coating. If the coating
has degraded further and has lost adhesion,
it requires renovation, which needs much
higher efforts compared to maintenance. But
in practice time passes quickly and very of-
ten the need for repair is only recognised by
the time renovation is required. Maintenance
and renovation are the secret of durability
of wood buildings and wood components in
exterior use. The researchers used the defi-
nition of these limit states when investigat-
ing the durability of wood coatings and pub-
lished them to help with decision-making on
the need of maintenance in practice.
STANDARDISED TESTING TO ASCERTAIN
REAL-LIFE DURABILITY
The demand for long-term experience hin-
ders innovation. The development of inno-
vative and improved products needs time,
money and energy of researchers, which
must be earned on the market with the new
product making profit as soon as possible.
Institute researchers learn this very quickly
in direct collaboration with industry partners.
To sell a mature product, developers must
rely on sound test methods that imply safety
factors or enable service life prediction. But
can testing of exterior wood coatings replace
long term experience?
Development and testing of wood coatings
for exterior use are closely related to weath-
ering tests. Natural weathering is the most
accurate method of investigating the dura-
bility and characteristics of a coating as can
be expected in real use on a building. Several
methods and devices for artificial weather-
ing have been developed to accelerate the
development and testing of wood coatings
with the aim of increasing reproducibility.
The European standard EN 927-6 describes
the method that is frequently used to assess
wood coatings using a device with fluores-
cent UVA 340 lamps, water spray and water
condensation in a defined cycle. When inter-
preting the results of artificial weathering,
a common question is how long a coating
will last in exterior use. What does a dura-

Table 1: Guidance values for maintenance inter vals of exterior wood coatings on cladding and balconies [5].

Coating Colour Protection Inclination Maintenance interval

vertical 3 years
protected
horizontal 2 years
bright
vertical 1–2 years
unprotected
Impregnation, low build horizontal 1 year
stain 0 to approx. 30 µm vertical 3–4 years
protected
horizontal 2 years
dark
vertical 2 years
unprotected
horizontal 1–2 years

vertical 5 years
protected
horizontal 3 years
bright
vertical 2 years
unprotected
Medium build stain horizontal 1 year
approx. 30–60 µm vertical 7 years
protected
horizontal 4 years
dark
vertical 3 years
unprotected
horizontal 2 years

vertical up to 15 years
protected
horizontal 7 years
bright
vertical 10 years
unprotected
Opaque paint horizontal 5 years
approx. 30–60 µm vertical 12 years
protected
horizontal 6 years
dark
vertical 8 years
unprotected
horizontal 2–4 years

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

20 W OOD C O AT I NG S TE CH N IC AL PA P ER

bility of 2,000 h artificial weathering mean
expressed in years of natural weathering?
Many experienced researchers know some
rules of thumb, and there have been several
attempts to correlate the results of different
artificial weathering cycles with natural expo-
sure. In 2014, we published a comparison of
wood coating durability in natural weathering
and artificial weathering using the methods
of EN 927 standards [7].
OPAQUE COATINGS PROVED MORE
DURABLE
After this publication the research group ex-
tended the same natural weathering trials,
and so we now have long-term results from
seven years’ natural weathering compared to
10,080 hours (60 weeks) artificial weathering
of 30 coating systems. Four opaque paints
have displayed the greatest durability to nat-
ural weathering and are still in good condi-
tion without needing maintenance. Three of
these systems were durable over 60 weeks
of artificial weathering, which is one indica-
tion that the laboratory test selected the best
coatings. The results confirmed that coating
film thickness and pigmentation of semi-
transparent systems strongly influenced the
time to failure during weathering. Figure 1
shows that coatings with a higher dry film
thickness had a clear tendency towards a
higher time to failure in natural weathering.
While the linear correlation was poor for
all systems because of their very different
formulation, a variation of the same coat-
ing material in four dry film thicknesses re-
vealed an excellent correlation (dotted line).
Figure 2 shows the influence of pigmenta-
tion. Although not as clear as for dry film
thickness, there was a trend of higher dura-
bility of varnishes with darker pigmentation,
which was probably caused by better light
protection for the substrate and the coating.
Opaque coatings had the best light protec-
tion and achieved the highest time to failure,
i.e. maintenance intervals, of all systems.
These scientific data confirmed the assump-
tions that were made when drafting the table
of maintenance intervals in the early work of
the research group (Table 1). With all tested
systems we found reasonable conform-
ity between artificial and natural weather-
ing results (see Figure 3). This means that it
is possible to predict the durability of wood
coating systems using artificial weathering
tests in the laboratory. The prognosis interval
illustrates the uncertainty of this correlation,
but this can be narrowed down by collecting
more data on coating materials from a sin-
gle formulator, which would be a treasure
for a coating developer. Standardised testing
therefore makes sense and a collection of
data over the years is well-documented long-
term experience.
SERVICE LIFE PREDICTION MODEL
In recent years, service life prediction mod-
els for exterior wood coatings have been de-
veloped in the SERVOWOOD project [8] [9].
These are based on data from experiments
with 52 different model formulations of wood
coatings with known composition. The exper-
iments included a unique dosage variation in

Table 2: Definition of limit states for wood coating systems [6].

Limit state Film-forming coatings Non film-forming coatings State of coating Defects

Change of gloss
Aesthetic limit, Aesthetic limit, Only visual
L-E Change of colour
optical deficiency optical deficiency alteratioins
Growth of algae

Intensive chalking

Cracks in coating film

(without discoloration)

Cracks in coating by hail im-

Minor defects that do not pact (without discoloration)
L-D1 Maintenance inter val require removal of original
coating Flaking in single areas
(< 5mm², without
Discoloration around flaked
area)
Maintenance inter val =
Superficial mould growth /
renovation inter val
blue stain

Cracking

Blistering

Flaking

L-D2 Renovation inter val Coating degradation Hail damage

Discoloration
around cracks
Penetrating mould growth /
blue stain

Brown rot fungi

L-D3 Decay of wood Decay of wood Onset of decay in wood White rot fungi

Wood-boring insects

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
 T E CHN I C A L PAP E R 21

Figure 5: Schematic of hail damage and degradation of a coating on wood with moisture ingress, followed by growth of blue stain
fungi and flaking; maintenance can be possible until step 3.

1 4

2 5

3 6

Figure 6: Section through a hail impact on coated wood after nine months natural weathering; top: varnish without primer, strong
discoloration and fungal growth in the wood; bottom: varnish with primer, no fungal growth, hardly any discoloration.

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

22 W OOD C O AT I NG S
natural weathering on multi-faceted expo-
sure rigs enabling the samples to be exposed
to weathering in nine different directions.
This setup captured how much fungal growth
is pronounced on surfaces facing north and
east while degradation was determined by
cracking and flaking on the south and west
faces. Results from statistical analysis of data
from four European laboratories were input
for a factor model according to ISO 15686-8.
This has the advantage that the model can
be improved consequently when new data is
available. Natural weathering tests, started
within the SERVOWOOD project, were pro-
longed and will give input to the model in the
near future.
The model will also be transferred into a
web-based calculation tool for easy and
guided use (Figure 4). Within the model, coat-
ing properties that can be measured in the
laboratory together with dosage factors will
provide an estimation of service life relative
to a reference material. In the example in Fig-
ure 4 an unpigmented system was chosen as
the reference coating and the pigmentation
of the model system increased the service
life by the factor 1.5. A set of factors will be
available for variations of dry film thickness,
mechanical properties, wood species and
growth ring angles as well as for parameters
of exposure dosage, sheltering and detailing.
As the reference material is usually a system
well known to the user of the model, not only
from laboratory testing but also in practise,
this approach of the model combines long-
term experience with the laboratory test re-
sults of a new product.
HAIL RESISTANCE TO IMPROVE
DURABILITY
Find out more!
Wood coatings
611 search results for wood coatings!
Find out more: www.european-coatings.com/360
E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
TE CH N IC AL PA P ER
Extreme weather phenomena have become
more frequent and many thunderstorms
involve regional hailstorms. Hail impact can
destroy many building materials because the
ice balls can be several centimetres in diame-
ter and hit the surface with very high energy.
Coatings on wood are prone to damage even
from relatively small hailstones. The damage
caused by hail is characterised by barely vis-
ible concentric cracks. At these cracks, mois-
ture can creep under the coating and even-
tually lead to loss of adhesion and flaking as
well as growth of blue stain fungi (Figure 5). In
a recent project on hail resistance of wood
coatings good progress was made in the im-
provement of coating durability under these
extreme circumstances. This challenge can
be addressed on the one hand by specific
mechanical properties of the coating at rela-
tively high dry film thicknesses, which was de-
scribed in a multivariate model. On the other
hand, proceeding damage after hail impacts
can be decelerated by using primers, which
avoid moisture ingress, ensure good wet ad-
hesion and include fungicides (Figure 6).
In natural weathering studies it was found
that the tolerance for the period after hail
damage until application of a maintenance
coat can be as high as one year with high
quality coating systems. This tolerance can
be tested in natural or artificial weathering
with simulated hail damage. This is made
with a steel ball that is placed on a coated
wood panel when a mass piece falls from a
defined height. This causes an impact very
similar to hail and the impact energy can be
varied by the falling height and mass. A sim-
ple tape test helps to check whether coating
adhesion is still good at hail impacts during
weathering in a standardised test or in prac-
tice on a building component [5]. This helps
to decide whether a maintenance coat is suf-
ficient or if it is necessary to remove the old
coating and renovate the surface..
After many projects like those described here
and excellent collaborations with renowned
coating manufacturers and their R&D labs,
we see a good development in durability of
exterior wood coatings. This is also a result
of knowledge transfer in the sector including
the wood industry and painters to ensure a
better quality coating application. 
REFERENCES
[1] B
 randstätter M et al., Holzfassaden. Vienna:
Holzforschung Austria, 2002.
[2] S
 chober K P et al. (2018): Fassaden aus
Holz: proHolz-Information. 3rd edition, Vienna:
proHolz Austria (ProHolz Information). ISBN
978-3-902320-74-2
[3] S
 chober K P, Auer C, Grüll G (2006):
Balkone und Terrassenbeläge aus Holz.
Holzforschung Austria, Wien, ISBN 978-
3950252613
[4] D
 earling T B, Suttie E D (2011): Maintenance
and renovation of exterior wood coatings. Cli-
ent report number 273427, Woodwisdom-Net
project WoodExter
[5] G
 rüll G, Tscherne F (2020): Wartungsanleitung
für Beschichtungen auf Holz im Außenbereich.
4th edition, Holzforschung Austria, Vienna,
ISBN 978-3-9519933-0-0
[6] G
 rüll G et al. (2011): Maintenance procedures
and definition of limit states for exterior wood
coatings. Eur. J. Wood Prod., 69, 443-450
[7] G
 rüll G et al. (2014): Comparison of wood
coating durability in natural weathering and
artificial weathering using fluorescent UV-
lamps and water. European Journal of Wood
and Wood Products, 72, 3, 367-376.
[8] F
 orsthuber B, Ecker M, Grüll G (2017): Predict-
ing changes to appearance and overall
discolouration of wood. European Coatings
Journal, 4, 142-147.
[9] F
 orsthuber B et al. (2018): Service life predic-
tion of exterior wood coatings. In: Barbu,
Marius C.; Petutschnigg, Alexander; Tudor,
Eugenia (Ed.): Processing Technologies for the
Forest and Biobased Products Industries.
Dr Gerhard Grüll
Holzforschung Austria
g.gruell@holzforschung.at
 CEP E C O R N E R 23

GREEN DEAL WILL IMPACT US ALL

CEPE’s Managing Director ist outlin-
ing the signaficance of the Green
Deal, how it will affect the coatings Christel Davidson
industry and how the Association will Managing Director
proceed in this context. CEPE
C.Davidson@cepe.
org

T he EU has committed to being carbon

neutral by 2050 and the European Green
Deal is the roadmap to achieve this. There had
been speculations that the current Covid-19
pandemic would force the EU to reconsider
this objective, but these proved wrong. On the
contrary, the EU has reasserted its commit-
ment to the EU Green Deal by firstly, including
it in the Recovery Plan that was adopted in June
and secondly, by maintaining the timelines
originally foreseen. The Green Deal is here to
stay and it will be the driving force behind the
EU’s political agenda in the coming years.
The Green Deal will impact us all, whether citi-
zens or businesses, and the coatings industry
is no exception. The Green Deal consists of
several initiatives, many of which are relevant
such as the circular economy action plan (es-
pecially the Sustainable Product Policy Frame-
work and the new waste focus on increasing
safety of secondary raw materials), the initia-
tives around construction and the industrial
policy. However, the most relevant for our in-
dustry is likely to be the upcoming Chemicals
Strategy for Sustainability. The overall objective
of this strategy will be to further increase the
level of protection of human health and envi-
ronment. It will focus, in particular, on issues
such as the exposure to endocrine disruptors,
combinations of chemicals, hazardous chemi-
cals in products including in imports and very
persistent chemicals. As CEPE we will advo-
cate that coatings are part of the solution to
establish a circular economy in Europe and to
become more sustainable. Therefore, we will
stress the need for the EU chemicals frame-
work to adopt a holistic approach towards sus-
tainability, which includes i.a. favouring a risk
approach rather than a hazard approach and
basing decisions on clear evidence and sound
science.
The issues stemming from the Green Deal will
form the basis of all of the work of CEPE in the
coming years. In addition, CEPE has estab-
lished two working groups around the Green
Deal. The first group focuses exclusively on the
issue of extended producer responsibility (of
waste), while the second is specifically devoted
to the policy and political aspects of the Green
Deal. The first meeting of these two groups is
set for September. 

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E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU R N A L X X – 20X X

 24 B IO- B A S E D C OAT I NG S
Source: xangai - stock.adobe.com
NAIL POLISH MADE OF WOOD
New application concept makes nail polish made from resorcinol, tannic acid and lignin possible. By Anna Becker-
Staines and Daniel Appel, University of Paderborn.
For years, more and more customers have been attracted to
natural alternatives for traditional cosmetics, which are often
harmful to health and the environment. The innovative pro-
ject “BioNails” focuses this trend on nail polish: natural raw
materials and a new application concept define a new way of
sustainability.
N ail polish was invented in the 1920s as a by-product of the auto-
motive paint industry. The basis of traditional nail polish is nitro-
cellulose, which corresponds to the state of the art at the time. While
the entire paint industry has evolved in terms of mechanical stability,
durability, health protection and environmental awareness, the nail pol-
ish industry is lacking in relevant developments.
The application of traditional nail polishes is based on the physical dry-
ing of nitrocellulose, which is dispersed in organic solvents. However,
organic solvents have been discredited in recent years due to inhala-
tion exposure and environmental pollution. Since then, there have been
more and more water-based nail polishes on the market. The binders
are derived from e.g. acrylate copolymers, styrene acrylate copolymers
or glycol trimellitic anhydride copolymers. These substances are also
known as “microplastics” and, according to the Federal Environment
Agency, can lead to environmental pollution [1]. There are also harmful
E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
additives to discuss the health risk of nail polishes, e.g. benzophenone,
etocrylene, octocrylene or styrene, as a UV blocker or plasticizer [2].
BioNails uses the innovative concept of “EMA” (enzyme mediated ad-
dressing). With this application technology, the coating layer is formed
directly on the nail and with high specificity (Figure 1). The system is
water-based and based on natural resources. For the application, the
user has to apply the enzyme directly to the nail, this can be done us-
ing an “enzyme pen”. The way it works is analogous to an oil care pen
for nails and accordingly easy to use and produce. In previous research
within the research group “BioMat” [3], horseradish peroxidase (HRP)
was tested as a suitable enzyme. HRP is obtained from horseradish and
is soluble in water. After the aqueous enzyme film has dried on the nail,
the nails are put in an aqueous bath in which the natural monomers are
dissolved. In the presence of hydrogen peroxide, the enzyme initiates a
polymerisation, which forms a uniform and continuous coating directly
on the nail.
Enzyme-mediated polymerisation with HRP is known in the literature
[4] and is initiated by radical formation. Various polymerisations are
possible, including atom transfer radical polymerisation, thiol-ene step-
growth polymerisation, oxidative polymerisation and free radical vinyl
polymerisation [5, 6]. Because of the various possibilities of polymerisa-
tion options, HRP enables the synthesis of a wide range of plastics, in-
 B I O -B A SED C O AT I N G S 25

Figure 1: Schematic representation of the application concept of

traditional nail polish and the “BioNails” principle.

RESULTS AT A GLANCE
 Nail polish made from wood, such as resorcinol, tannic acid
and lignin is possible with a new application concept.

 Enzyme catalysis enables nanometer-precise polymerisa-

tions.

 Thanks to the “EMA” process, uniform and stable films are

formed, even under mild conditions.

cluding polypropylene (PP), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polystyrene (PS) and
poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) [7]. The decomposition of hydrogen
peroxide activates the enzyme’s iron center, which can subsequently act
as an oxidizing agent for phenolic species [8]. With this biological system,
phenols can be polymerised without the addition of aldehydes.
Materials that can be obtained from wood or from wood components
and have phenolic groups were chosen as monomers. Among them,
resorcinol, tannic acid and lignin provide promising results. Resorcinol
is obtained from natural resins, is soluble in water and has two hydroxyl
groups (Figure 2a). Due to the antiseptic effect of diluted resorcinol solu-
tions, it is used in dermatology. Tannic acid occurs in wood and in plant
parts, is soluble in water and has a non-uniform, polyphenolic structure.
The basic building block is gallic acid (Figure 2b). Tannins occur in wine
and tea and are also used in cosmetic products such as deodorants.
Lignin occurs in wood and in plant parts, is not soluble in water and
has a non-uniform, polyphenolic structure. The basic building blocks
are paracoumaryl, coniferyl and sinapyl alcohol (Figure 2c). The biopoly-
mer is responsible for the strength and stability of trees and plants and 

Figure 2: Structural formulas of (a) resorcinol, (b) gallic acid, (c) paracoumaryl, coniferyl and sinapyl alcohol.

a) b) c)
OH
HO O
OH
OH
HO
OH
OH HO
HO
HO O
O
O

OH

HO

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

 26 B IO- B A S E D C OAT I NG S

 Figure 3: Experimental setup for the coating according to “EMA”.
can only be used technically if it has been broken down by the sulfate
or sulfite process. The sulfate process produces water-soluble alkaline
lignin and the sulfite process provides water-soluble lignin sulfonic acid.
Water-soluble dealkaline lignin can be produced by adjusting the pH of
alkaline lignin or by chemically modifying lignin sulfonic acid.

EXPERIMENTAL

Based on the various monomers, polymer coatings were produced

and deposited on 18x18 mm cover slips. The cover slips were first
cleaned with ethyl acetate (EtAc) and dried at room temperature. 0.1 ml
of an enzyme solution with 4 mg/ml HRP (150 u/mg) was added to each
cleaned cover glass and dried in an oven at 30 °C. 0.11 g resorcinol (M
= 110 g/mol), 1.7 g tannic acid (M = 1700 g/mol) or 0.5 g dealkaline lignin
were weighed into specially prepared containers, filled with 60 ml sol-
vent and added 87.6 µl hydrogen peroxide. The cover slips were then
attached to the cup lid using a holder and hung in the monomer solu-
tion. The reaction starts immediately and the polymerisation is visible
after a few seconds. The cup structure is shown in Figure 3. The quality
of the coatings was examined depending on the solvent composition.
Based on their positive hazard assessment, water and dimethyl sulfox-
ide (DMSO) are the most important solvents for the target application.

Table 1: Results of the contact angle measurements of the coatings based on resorcinol, tannic acid and dealkaline lignin.

Θ [°] ± σ [mN/m] ±

Cover slip (EtAc) 63.6 1.0 46.9 2.7

Resorcinol 11.5 3.6 80.0 1.3

Tannic acid 13.1 4.3 74.1 2.7

Dealkaline lignin 52.4 2.2 54.8 4.8

Figure 4: Scanning electron microscopy images of the coatings based on (a) resorcinol and (b) tannic acid polymerized in water and
of (c) resorcinol, (d) tannic acid and (e) dealkaline lignin polymerized in an aqueous DMSO solution.

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
 BIO-B A SE D C OAT I NG S 27

Furthermore, ethanol, isopropanol, dioxane and tetrahydrofuran

(THF) were also tested as solvents. Scanning electron microscopy
(SEM) and contact angle measurements are crucial for analysis.

DISCUSSION

Resorcinol and tannic acid are soluble in water. Coatings on this basis
are hydrophilic. The measured contact angles are in the range of 10
to 15° (Table 1). In contrast, the dealkaline lignin coating has a higher
contact angle, with a value of Θ = 52°. Even as a raw material, lignin
is less hydrophilic than resorcinol and tannic acid, and the contact
angles reflect this trend. The results of the free surface energy also
confirm this trend: the wettability of the coating of resorcinol and tan-
nic acid is better than that of dealkaline lignin.
Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) enables nanometer-precise res-
olution and examination of the specifically polymerised films of resor-
cinol, tannic acid and dealkaline lignin with various solvent composi-
tions. The exclusive use of water is desirable for the target application.
In water, the polymer based on resorcinol forms a network that is very
close-meshed and porous (Figures 4 a–b). In contrast, tannic acid poly-
merises to a very smooth film that tends to blister. It was not possible
to deposit a polymer based on dealkaline lignin in water.
DMSO is classified as harmless to health and can be used safely as
a co-solvent (Figures 4 c–e). Aqueous DMSO solutions have only a
minor influence on the polymerisation of resorcinol, a network is
formed again, but due to the poorer solubility it is somewhat more
meshed than in the case of the polymerisation in water. However,
when tannic acid is deposited, the polar aprotic solvent causes a
major change: instead of a smooth, continuous film, a loose net-
work is formed. This is due to the reduced solubility of tannic acid in
DMSO-containing solutions. The tannic acid precipitates early out of
the reaction solution, i.e. before it can form long polymer chains and
therefore only forms particles and network structures. The reverse
effect can be observed with dealkaline lignin: the improved solubility
with DMSO-containing solutions has a positive effect, a smooth and
thick film is formed.
The coating process of all three monomers was also tested with oth-
er solvents, beyond the intended use. The protic solvents ethanol
and isopropanol, and the aprotic solvents dioxane and THF. In the
case of the two protic solvent mixtures, the SEM images of the re-
sorcinol-based coatings (Figure 5) show clear trends: the higher the
proportion of solvent, the higher the degree of filming. With a sol-
vent content of 25 %, resorcinol forms network structures and with
a content of 75 %, smooth films are formed. In contrast, no trend
can be observed in the case of aprotic solvents: resorcinol forms
network structures in aqueous dioxane solutions and a fibrous film-
ing in aqueous THF solutions. Deposition is no longer possible with
75 % dioxane and over 50 % THF mixtures. As with resorcinol, the
coatings based on tannic acid in protic solvent mixtures show a bet-
ter result than the coating tests in solutions containing dioxane and
THF (Figure 6). The polymerisation of tannic acid in ethanolic solu-
tions produces smooth and thick films. Depending on the ratio of
ethanol to water, the coatings tend to crack, blister and wrinkle. In
contrast, isopropanol solutions only produce smooth films at higher
concentrations, and the coating has holes at low concentrations
of isopropanol. The tendency to form bubbles is characteristic for
tannic acid and is therefore also found in these solvent mixtures,
particularly strongly in aprotic solvents. The polymerisation in the
dioxane solution produces a film network and in the THF solution a
holey film. With both solvents, coating with a solvent content of 50 %
or more is no longer possible. Dealkaline lignin shows a similar pro-
gression of the degree of film formation in ethanolic, isopropanolic
and dioxane-containing solutions (Figure 7). It was not possible to
polymerise dealkaline lignin in THF-containing solutions. 

E UR OP E AN COAT I N GS JOUR N AL 09 – 2020

 28 B IO- B A S E D C OAT I NG S

 In general, the EMA process is interesting for specific coatings that have
to be applied locally and with nanometer precision. However, it is irrel-
evant whether the raw materials are of natural origin or industrial poly-
mers (such as PP, PVC, PS, PMMA). Areas for coatings with EMA are:
ąą medicine
ąą wood
ąą paper
ąą sustainable synthesis of bio-polymers
OUTLOOK
This work shows that coatings made from different wood compo-
nents are possible with the right selection of raw materials for en-
zyme-catalysed polymerisation and the correct setting of the solvent
compositions. For real nail tests, resorcinol and tannic acid can be
prepared in water and dealkaline lignin in an aqueous DMSO solu-
tion. The application is analogous to the experiments with the cover
slip: the aqueous enzyme solution is placed directly on the nail and
dried at room temperature. Once the nails are dry, they can be put in
the reaction mixture with the monomer and hydrogen peroxide. The
physical adsorption of the enzyme is sufficient to start the specific
polymerisation and to initiate the deposition locally. The polymerisa-
tion is complete within a short time and the nails can be removed
from the container after one to five minutes. Photographs are shown
in Figure 8. The resorcinol-based nail polish (Figure 8a) shows the best
properties in terms of uniformity and gloss. Due to the strong intrin-
sic colour, however, there are problems with pigmentation. This is
less relevant for tannic acid (Figure 8b) because tannic acid forms a

Figure 5: Scanning electron microscopy images of the coatings Figure 6: Scanning electron microscopy images of the coatings
of resorcinol polymerised in different solvent compositions. of tannic acid polymerised in different solvent compositions.

Tannic
acid
Resorcinol
Ethanol
Ethanol
Isopropanol

Isopropanol
Dioxane

Dioxane
THF

THF

Figure 7: Scanning electron microscopy images of the Figure 8: Application tests of the coatings based on (a) resor-
coatings of dealkaline lignin polymerised in different solvent cinol, (b) tannic acid and (c) dealkaline lignin according to the
compositions. “EMA” principle.

Dealkaline
lignin
Ethanol
Isopropanol
Dioxane

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
 B I O -B A SED C O AT I N G S 29

“Pigments of natural origin

are in focus.“

3 questions to Anna Becker-Staines

Do you see any chance of eliminating the intrinsic colour of the raw materials? Lignin has
an intrinsic colour right from the start, but resorcinol does not. An aqueous resorcinol solution is
colourless and the deposited polymer only becomes darker as the degree of cross-linking increases.
This situation is comparable with the system of phenoplastics, where the colour is determined by the
degree of cross-linking. Anna Becker-Staines
University of Paderborn
Are there already ideas for producing pigmented coatings in this way? And in your opin- anna.becker@uni-paderborn.de
ion, do they also have to be of natural origin? Yes, this is planned for the future and for our
project pigments of natural origin are in focus. But theoretically also industrially produced pigments
could be incorporated into this system.

You write that coatings based on resorcinol and tannic acid are hydrophilic. Could these
wash off too easily in the daily life? Coatings of resorcinol and tannic acid are hydrophilic, but
not soluble in water because of the high cross-linking.

slightly beige, shiny coating during the polymerisation. However, the
coating based on tannic acid is inconsistent and thicker at the edge.
Currently, the worst nail polish is formed by dealkaline lignin (Figure
8c). The reason for this is probably due to the non-uniform, polyphe-
nolic structure of the monomer.
Future work will focus on adhesion and mechanical stability of the
nail polishes. Good results would be a durability of one to two weeks.
From a chemical point of view, recipe adjustments are necessary: The
main focus is on the exchange of hydrogen peroxide with a less ag-
gressive mediator. A natural and sustainable origin should also be
ensured when extracting the raw materials. From the point of view of
the user, the pigmentation of the nail polishes is desirable. These can
be natural pigments or nanoscale melanin particles. 

REFERENCES

[1] https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/themen/mikroplastik-in-kosme-

Find out more! tika-was-ist-das

[2] E . Mendelsohn, A. Hagopian, K. Hoffman, C. M. Butt, A. Lorenzo, J.
Congleton, T. F. Webster, H. M. Stapleton; Environment International,
2016, 86, 45
[3] D . Appel, D. Wedegärtner, M. Lüther, Dr. O. I. Strube; Macromol. Mater.
Eng. 2019, 304, 1800536
[4] J . N. Rodríguez-López, D. J. Lowe, J. Hernandez-Ruiz, A. N. P. Hiner,
F. Garcia-Canovas, R. N. F. Thorneley; J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2001, 123,
Bio-based coatings 11838
[5] S. R. Zavada, T. Battsengel, T. F. Scott; Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2016, 195, 17
[6] A. Sunder, J. Heinemann, H. Frey; Chem. - Eur. J. 2000, 6, 2499
[7] S. Kobayashi, H. Uyama, S. Kimura; Chem. Rev. 2001, 101, 3793
[8] F. Hollmann, I. W. C. E. Arends; Polymer 2012, 4, 759

285 search results for bio-based coatings!

Find out more: www.european-coatings.com/360

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

30 L E G I S L AT IO N
Source: Grispb - stock.adobe.com
Paints and varnishes are chemical
products and pose a risk to health
and the environment if used incor-
rectly. By Dr Dieter Reiml and Rupert
Scherer, TÜV Süd Industrie Ser vice.
MEETING THE
REPORTING REQUIREMENT
For this reason, those who place hazardous substances on the
market in the EU are obliged to report their exact composi-
tion to the poison control centres or the European Chemicals
Agency ECHA. Trustees such as TÜV Süd protect manufactur-
ers’ trade secrets when transmitting sensitive data.
N ot only end users come into contact with paints and varnishes,
but these mixed products are also used in trade and industry.
The hazard potential ranges from physical hazards (e.g. fire hazard) to
health hazards (acute and chronic poisoning) and environmental haz-
ards (poisoning of water bodies). In medical emergencies, poison con-
trol centres or ECHA offer advice by telephone: they provide informa-
tion on necessary measures such as detoxification, examinations and
further steps. To ensure that doctors and experts from a wide range
of fields can provide this information, manufacturers and importers
must classify and label the dangers arising before placing dangerous
products on the market in the EU and provide information on their
chemical composition and toxicological properties.
In the past, there were no uniform rules for notifying poison control
centres about chemical products. Now the EU has standardised the
notification to poison control centers with an amendment to the CLP
regulation (Classification, Labelling and Packaging). There are stag-
gered notification deadlines for those placing products on the market
E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
in the EU, depending on their area of application: For products for end
consumers, the initial deadline was 1 January 2020 - but this deadline
was extended by one year to 1 January 2021. The same applies to
commercially used products. For industrial use, the deadline is 1 Janu-
ary 2024. By 2025, all products must be notified, including products
that were previously on the market under national laws.
KNOW-HOW
Classification and labelling of products is not a simple matter. On the
one hand, consumers have difficulty understanding the information
on product labels and, on the other hand, companies often do not
know exactly how to label chemicals and classify their hazards. The
Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BAuA) in Germa-
ny provides information on this. Detailed information and instructions
can also be found on the pages of the ECHA poison control centres.
Before hazardous substances are reported, however, they must first
meet the requirements of the REACH Regulation. This further chemi-
cals regulation primarily serves to protect human health and minimise
environmental risks.
Notifications to poison control centres are only made electronically
via the harmonised PCN format (Poison Centre Notification) - in ac-
cordance with the CLP Regulation. Among other things, this format

WHEN AN EMERGENCY OCCURS
In the German-speaking countries there are many names for
poison control centres. In Germany and Austria, for example,
“Giftnotruf”, “Vergiftunginformationszentrale” and “Giftinfor-
mationszentrum” are common, while in Switzerland a poison
emergency call is made to “Tox Info Suisse”.
For poison emergency calls in Austria and Switzerland there is a
single telephone number. Unfortunately, this is not yet the case
in Germany. At least you can reach most of the emergency call
centres with the respective area code under the number 19240.
Further information on the national helpdesks and emergency
telephone numbers in all EU countries is available online from
ECHA: https://poisoncentres.echa.europa.eu/appointed-bodies
ensures that discrepancies between EU member states and the Euro-
pean Economic Area are reduced. Based on defined criteria, compa-
nies determine hazardous properties of chemical products and assign
them to hazard categories. A European Product Categorisation Sys-
tem (EuPCS) has been established for this purpose. For classification,
companies can refer to the ECHA’s Classification and Labelling Inven-
tory (C&L Inventory) and consult already harmonised classifications of
substances or carry out a self-assessment of the expected hazards.
If substances are assigned to at least one hazard category, they are
considered hazardous and must be notified. Labelling is done using
standardised elements such as hazard statements, safety instructions
and contact information. In addition, marketers must create a UFI
code (Unique Formula Identifier) and affix it to the product label.
CONFIDENTIALITY AND TARGETED ASSISTANCE
The UFI code, the unique recipe identifier, is a 16-digit alphanumeric
code consisting of, among other things, the VAT number of the com-
pany and a number from 0 to 268,435,455. As the exact composition
of a mixture is a trade secret, it is deposited confidentially with the
poison control centres. The UFI allows the product and its chemical
composition and toxicological properties to be precisely identified in
medical emergencies. In the case of industrial products without a la-
bel, the UFI must be stated in the safety data sheet. The advantage
of a UFI is that it ensures data protection: The poison control centres
know the chemical composition and at the same time manufacturers
avoid product piracy. For easier and more economical administration,
a UFI can also be used across products if the chemical composition
does not differ or as long as deviations or tolerance limits are not ex-
ceeded in the dosage - even for products with a different trade name
or different packaging.
LE G I SLAT IO N 31
“The advantage of a
UFI is that it ensures
data protection.“
TRUSTEES PROTECT SENSITIVE PRODUCT DATA
Anyone wishing to place mixtures from manufacturers outside the EU
on the EU market needs information on the chemical composition. As
there is no obligation to report outside the EU under the CLP Regula-
tion, manufacturers are usually reluctant to disclose their trade se-
crets for reasons of business strategy. A trustee can be appointed to
counteract this problem. A manufacturer outside the EU entrusts the
data to a trustee, who passes them on to the poison control centres
of all EU member states. In this way, business relationships can be
maintained without neglecting reporting obligations.
EXPERTISE AND RELIABILITY ARE FUNDAMENTAL
Trustees must treat all data with absolute confidentiality and must
never pass it on for their own purposes. This also includes keeping
data secure. Furthermore, trustees must be competent in the field of
chemistry as well as in the field of chemicals legislation. In order for
trustees to fulfil the task of notifying poison control centres of prod-
ucts to be imported, they must have the necessary computer skills to
handle the software instruments. Furthermore, reliability means that
trustees carry out their task with the utmost care and attention.
SENSE AND PURPOSE
A uniform product notification system for hazardous mixtures in
Europe ensures that chemicals legislation is harmonised. A further
advantage is that all poison emergency call centres in the EU can be
notified with a central notification. In medical emergencies, poison
control centres can also provide qualified assistance. At the same
time, companies protect their business secrets.
Trustees such as TÜV Süd help with questions relating to the noti-
fication obligation or the translation of the PCN into the respective
national language. 
Dr Dieter Reiml
TÜV Süd Industrie Service
Rupert Scherer
TÜV Süd Industrie Service
rupert.scherer@tuev-sued.de
E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020
 32 P IG M E N T C ONCE NTRATE S
Source: aga7ta - stock-adobe.com

COLOUR PASTES FROM

THE CONSTRUCTION KIT
A modular concept covers the whole colour space. Physical parameters are adjustable and the system is expandable.
By Dr Jörg Horakh, Heubach.

As customer requirements become more and more individual,
it is essential that products are developed specifically for each
customer and produced in ever smaller batch sizes. Modular
production allows pigment concentrates to be adapted to reg-
ulatory and technical requirements
REQUIREMENTS FOR PIGMENT PREPARATIONS
Both do-it-yourself and industrial applications use water-borne pig-
ment pastes to tint paints, coatings, plasters and glazes. This pro-
duction principle, which can be outsourced to the dealer, presents
the manufacturers of pigment preparations and base coats with nu-

T he developers of modular paste systems combine and network the

individual steps of paste production. The modular structure of the
paste system must be taken into account as early as the system planning
merous individual challenges on:
 System compatibility
 Accuracy and diversity of colour shades
and development stages. Compared to conventional manufacturing pro-  Hiding power
cesses, where the individual products are largely made individually from  Stability of the pastes and of the tinted paints
the raw materials, a higher degree of flexibility is achieved. Adaptations to  Water- and chemical resistance
new legal regulations, customer wishes and individual technical require-  Application properties
ments can be flexibly implemented without the need for completely new  Preservation
developments by combining suitable modules.
Tinting pastes should have a colouring effect, but should not influ-
ence the application properties of the lacquers. However, the addi-
tion of up to 20 % pastes to the liquid paint causes side effects due

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020

RESULTS AT A GLANCE
 The concept of modular pigment concentrates allows for
the versatile development and production of pigment pastes.
 This concept is modular expandable and consequently con-
siders future needs and requirements of the market.
 The production technology offers tailor-made system solu-
tions for various applications.
P I G MEN T C O NCEN T R AT E S 33
to incompatibility of various raw materials with each other, which
can cause immense development costs. By combining additive and
pigment technologies with computer-aided colour formulation cal-
culations, the range of applications for pigment concentrates can be
extended, resulting in more economical, stable and lightfast colour
tone collections. In the following, we focus on the main parameters
for the development of pigment pastes and the resulting challenges.
SELECTIVE DISPERSING ADDITIVES
When pigment concentrates are added to a basecoat, the dispersed
pigments in the coating are strongly diluted and the stabilising addi-
tives can be exchanged and redistributed. This can destabilise both
the dispersed pigments and the tinted paint. The incompatibilities
lead to problems such as pigment flocculation, colour deviations,
sedimentation, separation, rub-out, viscosity instability, gloss reduc-
tion as well as reduced water and chemical resistance.
To prevent these phenomena, dispersing additives are used which
wet both non-polar organic and polar inorganic surfaces while re-
maining firmly anchored to the pigment. Additionally, the wetted pig-
ment must show a high degree of compatibility with the paint ma-
trix. This is achieved by using high molecular weight polyurethanes,
polyesters or polyacrylates with pigment affine groups, which can
stabilise ionic and steric.
TINTING AND MIXING PROCESS
Only optimum compatibility of the dispersed pigments allow tinting
pastes to be incorporated by low shear forces. This is particularly
important for point-of-sale (PoS) tinting, where the shortest pos-
E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020
34 P IG M E N T C ONCE NTRATE S

Figure 1: Left: homogenised using a spatula; centre: 1,5 min;
right: 3 min shaker.
 sible incorporation with commercially available mixers is required,
while at the same time being gentle on the material. Figure 1 shows
the effect of the wetting and dispersing agents migrating from the
color paste to the filler of the basecoat. Using dispersing additives,
the incorporation times and the required shear forces can be op-
timised.

LIGHT AND WEATHER FASTNESS

The optimum performance of the tinting pastes depends largely

on the chosen pigment chemistry [1, 3, 4]. Organic pastes are used
because of their high tint strength and the resulting economy. The
downside is partly lower light and weather fastness. The use of tita-
nium dioxide in base paints additionally enhances pigment degrada-
tion by a photo-catalytic effect.
This becomes particularly clear in Figure 2 in the case of a green
shade that was mixed from the yellow and blue pigments P.Y.3 and
P.B.28, respectively, in order to demonstrate the colour shade shift.
Due to the stronger decomposition of the organic, less lightfast yel-
low P.Y.3 after weathering, the change in hue is particularly strong.
The same colour tone from the combination of the inorganic pig-
ments P.B.28, P.Y.184 and P.Y.42 is much more robust

HIDING POWER IN THE YELLOW-ORANGE-RED-REGION

While black, green and blue pigments absorb a wide range of visible
light, red, orange and especially yellow pigments only cover a nar-
row range. The resulting low hiding power of yellow and orange pig-
ments becomes a challenge when mixing brilliant full shades: Even

Figure 2: Green shade after weathering. Combination of pigments P.Y.3 / P.B.28 (right) and P.B.28 / P.Y.184 / P.Y.42 (left).

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
 P I G MEN T C O NCEN T R AT E S 35

with maximum pigmentation levels, additional layers of paint often Table 1: Hiding power of various pigments: dE* on b/w-contrast
have to be applied to achieve sufficient coverage of the substrate. charts (2K-Acrylic, 5 % pigment conc., 500 µm NSD) [6].

ORGANIC OR INORGANIC dE*

C.I. Pigment index Pigment type
b/w contrast chart
The relationship between scattered and absorbed intensity of pig-
ments can be shown as a function of particle diameter. Absorption P.W.6 Titanium dioxide 4
decreases with increasing particle size, since the interior of the
pigments is more strongly shielded from the outer layers with in- P.Y.184 Bismuth vanadate 15
creasing particle size. In contrast, according to Mie theory, scatter-
ing increases with increasing difference in the refraction indices of P.Br.24 Chromium rutile 5
pigment and carrier material, which explains the high scattering of
some inorganic pigments.
P.Y.74 Monoazo 8
Particle sizes from 100 to 400 nm are optimal for the effective scatter-
ing of visible light. The hiding power of pigments in the yellow-orange
range can therefore be maximised for a given layer thickness and P.Y.154 Benzimidazolone 22
substrate [2] by an optimum balance of scattering and absorption.
P.Y.83 Diarylide 7
THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS

For coatings with high hiding power, mostly inorganic pigments are
used, although some organic pigments also achieve reasonable hid-
ing power. Table 1 shows the results for the same concentrations
of solid pigments in the liquid paint. However, inorganic pigments
usually have lower oil numbers and can therefore be used in pig-
ment preparations in significantly higher concentrations. In order to
compare the performance of organic and inorganic pigment pastes
in practice, we therefore measured the hiding power at 5 and 15 %
paste addition to the liquid coating (Table 2).
COVERAGE OF THE COLOUR SPACE
60 % of all tinting pastes used in the European PoS market are
based on eleven Color Indices (C.I.). The remaining 40 % of the tint-
ing pastes are based on more than 100 different C.I. The goal for a
tinting system is to achieve a maximum number of colour shades
with as few pigment pastes as possible. For this purpose, as shown
in Figure 3, pigments are analysed together with brilliant RAL shades
in the yellow-orange range of the colour space. The sufficiently high

E U R OP E AN COAT I NGS JOU RN A L 09 – 2020

36 P IG M E N T C ONCE NTRATE S

chromas of the pigments P.Y.184, P.Y.74, P.Y.154 allow the brilliant areas of application thus lead to a large number of possible paste
RAL-colours to be realised [5]. combinations, the selection of which is individually optimised ac-
cording to technical and economic specifications.
REQUIREMENTS FOR TINTING SYSTEMS
ECONOMY OF TINTING SYSTEMS
The requirements in terms of economy, but also in terms of the
number of achievable colour shades, colour deviations, metamer- It is misleading to judge the economic efficiency of tinting systems
ism, opacity and light and weather fastness can vary greatly. only by comparing the costs of the pastes or even the pigments used.
A paste system that is suitable for the façade primarily requires Taking into account the parameters colour strength, hiding power
weather-resistant pastes. On the other hand, a system for interior and the total amounts of the individual pastes actually consumed
use will require more colourful organic pastes that are less expen- during tinting can lead to surprising results. Supposedly expensive
sive. Lime or silicate paints have special requirements. The different pigments can become practicable alternatives that generate compet-
itive advantages through their added value. A system with expensive
pigments can ultimately be cheaper if it offers advantages such as
Table 2: Hiding power (acc. DIN 55 987) of various pigment lower complexity, higher hiding power and higher UV stability.
preparations for 5 % and 15 % addition on paint (dE* on With brilliant shades in the yellow-orange-red range, the maximum
b/w-contrast charts; 2K-acrylic, 250 μm wet layer thickness). amounts of paste added are often not sufficient to ensure adequate
hiding of the substrate. Due to the resulting strong viscosity de-
Pigment Pigment Oil no. dE* dE*
%
paste C.I. type [ml/100g] (15%) (5%)
Table 3: Comparison of a tinting system with three alternatives
and their effects on the number of feasible of colour shades, UV-
P.Y.74 tr. Monoazo 40 45 17 34
stability and costs.

P.Y.74 Existing Alternative Alternative Alternative

Monoazo 35 45 13 27
op. system 1 2 3

Benzimida- Total no preparations 16 13 15 16

P.Y.154 55 33 28 44
zolone Preparations with
6 4 5 8
good UV stability
Iron Oxide
P.Y.42 30 60 1 9 Preparations with
Yellow 7 5 7 8
medium UV stability
Bismuth Preparations only
P.Y.184 24 58 9 22 3 4 3 0
vanadate for interior

No colour shades 1694 1924 1884 1884

P.Y.83 Diarylide 58 29 18 34
Common colour shades 1502 1502 1502 1502

Comparison of costs [%] 100 85 72 75

Titanium
P.W.6 18 60 3 9
dioxide Common C.I. 9 13 6

Figure 4: Modular production of tinting pastes from basic pastes.

Find out more!

Pigment paste

152 search results for pigment paste!

Find out more: www.european-coatings.com/360

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
 P IG MENT C ONCE NTRATE S 37

crease, additional layers often need to be applied. By minimising

viscosity reduction in the tinted product and optimizing hiding
power, pigment pastes can reduce labour costs during applica-
tion and raw material costs in the base coat.

COLOURISTIC PERFORMANCE

The analysis shown in Table 3 shows how a tinting system can

be optimised in such a way that the user achieves an optimum
balance of economical and lightfast pigments with the maximum
number of realisable colour shades.

FLEXIBILITY THROUGH MODULAR PASTE PRODUCTION

The complexity of the requirements and the increasing number

of customer-specific solutions lead to alternative production
techniques for system pastes for reasons of efficiency, technol-
ogy and cost.
The basic modules of the formulations are highly concentrated
dispersions of the respective pigments. For the production of
a variety of pigment pastes to customer-specific paste series,
these basic concentrates are combined with further modules
(semi-finished products) (Figure 4).
The respective modules can be used to adjust properties such
as pigment concentration, compatibility in different coating sys-
tems, colour nuances, hiding power and viscosity profile.
This modular strategy makes it possible to create different vari-
ants of a product from the smallest possible number of modules
and to master the complexity of a growing product portfolio. The
concept covers the entire colour space and allows the exact set-
ting of various application-specific parameters. It is modularly
expandable and considers consequently needs and require-
ments of the market. The high expenditure for the changeover
of paste lines, as known from the past and the associated risks
are minimised.
The paste tinting systems are suitable for both colour dosing
systems at the POS as well as for the use in factory tints (In-
Plant-Tinting, IPT). Service packages and a “just-in-time” service
are available, covering

Figure 3: Chroma C* versus hue h° of different pigment pastes

in full shade (2K-acrylic, 5 % pigment, 500 µm wet layer thick-
ness).

100
P.Y. 74
P.Y. 139 P.Y. 154 P.Y. 184
90
P.Y. 151
P.Y. 83
80
RAL1023
RAL1003
C*

70
P.Br.24
60
P.Y.53
50

40
50 60 70 80 90 100

h°

E UR OP E AN COAT I N GS JOUR N AL 09 – 2020

38 P IG M E N T C ONCE NTRATE S

“Thanks to the modular system, we

can develop and produce customised
pastes as quickly as possible.“

3 questions to Dr Jörg Horakh Dr Jörg Horakh

Heubach
How well can the modular paste systems be integrated into existing systems? This formula- joerg.horakh@heubachcolor.de
tion technology has great advantages, especially when integrated into existing systems. Thanks to
the modular system, we can develop and produce customised pastes as quickly as possible. Both the
production and the development of tinting pastes become much more flexible and allow us to offer
our customers a high level of service.

For which areas of application are they particularly suitable? So far we have developed wa-
ter-based and universal tinting systems that allow the problem-free tinting of solvent-based alkyd
paints up to silicate plasters. These paste systems are suitable for use in paint dosing systems at the
point-of-sales as well as for in-plant-tinting.

You mentioned the optimal particle size for effective scattering of visible light. What does
this look like for pigments in the yellow-orange range? To estimate the optimal particle size
for light scattering, half the wavelength can be divided by the difference in the refractive indices of the
pigment and binder. Since the difference in the refractive indices of organic and inorganic pigments
is very different, the optimal particle size for light scattering is 0.2-0.4 µm.

 Formulation technology, REFERENCES

 Development and production of tailormade pastes,
 Elaboration of versatile tinting systems [1] Herbst, W.; Hunger, K. Industrial Organic Pigments, 3rd ed., Wiley-VCH.
 Highly reproducible colour shades und production of pigment [2] Röhr, C. Vorlesung Anorganische Pigmente 11/2012, Universität
pastes within tight tolerances, Freiburg.
 Tinting of solvent-based alkyd lacquers up to silicate plaster [3] Buxbaum, G.; Pfaff, G. Industrial Inorganic Pigments, 3rd ed., Wiley-VCH.
 Rationalisation of technically obsolete tinting systems. [4] Smith, H. M. High Performance Pigments, Wiley-VCH.
The product lines can be flexibly adapted to current legal require- [5] Tragor, F. T. Der Farbraum (Un)endliche Weiten?, Farbe und Lack,
ments and environmental standards.  07/2008.
[6] Ott, J.; Sowade, T. Deep into the Yellow, ECC Nuremberg, 2015.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Special thanks go to S. McDonald, L. Kischkat, K. Batram, L. Müller (all

Heubach) and M. Huesmann (Gebrüder Dorfner) for important contribu-
tions to this article.

E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
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E U R O P E AN CO AT I NGS J O UR N AL 09 – 2020
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