What is dry-on-dry?
With our product “EF26”, we offer an innovative solution to cure primer and topcoat at once at a lower curing temperature. We call this technique “dry-on-dry” and is especially created to optimise the curing and production process. When they are cured separately, many factors can influence and lessen the adhesion between the two. This risk is completely removed thanks to our technique.
How does it work?
EF26 is a powerful, reactive primer that provides an excellent edge coverage with a thin layer of powder coating. In combination with our topcoat “PE40-FE”, excellent results are obtained. It ensures that your products will withstand all weather conditions and their quality will be optimes.
PE40-FE is a high-quality powder with very good outdoor resistance and is approved by Qualicoat as well as Qualisteelcoat. This powder is – amongst other qualities – known for its excellent degassing characteristic.: your coatings will be as good as free from craters, air bubbles or pinholes. Furthermore, PE40-FE is suited for curing at temperatures starting 150°C.
The combination of our EF26 and PE40-FE offers many advantages for a quicker and more efficient production line. Your products only need to be cured once, significantly reducing your production time and costs. This results not only in a lower energy usage, but also in reduced CO2 emissions.
In short, with our EF26 and PE40-FE we offer a unique combination of technologies and products that lift your production process and end result to a higher level.
Some examples of successful projects are compressors, army bed bases, earth-moving machinery parts, agricultural machinery, etc.
Case Study
Corrosion and blistering are common problems during the lifetime of coatings on metal. To avoid these problems, a primer is often applied to the substrate to protect it even better. Which is why we want to unveil our dry-on-dry technology.
But how effective is such a primer really?
Our R&D department conducted 3 neutral salt spray tests according to ASTM B117-07 on bare steel that was pretreated with iron phosphate and then passivated.
- Primer EF26 and topcoat PE40-FE with a total layer thickness of 70 – 90 µm.
- Primer EF26 and topcoat PE40-FE with a total layer thickness of 90 – 110 µm.
- Only topcoat PE40-FE with layer thickness of 80 µm
Corrosion formation
If only the topcoat is applied, there is visible corrosion formation on the edges after 750 hours. With a thin layer thickness, this can only occur after 1250 hours; but with sufficient layer thickness of primer and topcoat, we easily reach 2000 hours without any corrosion formation.
Blistering
Only a topcoat, already causes blistering after 750 hours. With a thin layer thickness, blisters will only form after 1500 hours; while with a higher thickness, no form of corrosion is visible even after 2000 hours. Blistering can therefore be prevented with the help of a good primer.
Adhesion
The adhesion, or bonding, of the coating to the substrate is also very important. After all, it is not only important that the coating protects well, but also that it adheres well and for a long time. Our research shows that the use of a primer has a very positive effect here. The adhesion of the coating is up to 100% better when a primer is used than when only a topcoat is applied.
In other words, this dry-on-dry technique can contribute significantly to preventing problems and improving the adhesion of the coating to the substrate. This research shows that the overall coating thickness also plays an important role in protecting the substrate from corrosion and blistering. Moreover, the use of a primer has a beneficial effect on edge protection, especially for sharp edges.
Is this specific technology not suited for your necessities? Our EF-SERIESTM offers numerous other primers in which you will find a suitable option for your needs.
Do you have questions about our product range or do you want to know which product is most appropriate for your needs? Please feel free to contact our experts. They will gladly help you.
