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Zeeospheres™ Ceramic Microspheres Paints and Coatings Applications Profile
Eight ways to help you reduce costs while enhancing
Zeeospheres™ Ceramic Microspheres are high-strength, inert fine particles with intrinsic hardness. Zeeospheres microspheres are engineered to help you reduce costs, increase solids, enhance properties, and improve processability.
1 Lower viscosity and improved flow
Unlike many irregularly shaped fillers, Zeeospheres ceramic microspheres roll easily over one another, similar to ball bearings. This contributes to lower viscosity, better flow, and improved sprayability.
2 Higher filler loading to reduce costs
With the lowest surface area to volume ratio of any shape,Zeeospheres ceramic microspheres reduce resin demand and increase volume loading capacity. Smaller spheres may fill voids between larger ones to enhance packing for higher solids/lower VOCs, and reduced costs.
3 Burnish resistance and hardness
Mohs 7 hardness and spherical shape contribute to increased burnish resistance and hardness of the
finished surface. Surfaces stay new looking longer to save the time and cost of touch-ups or repainting.
With ordinary fillers, soft or jagged particles on the surface often break or wear away.
4 Gloss control
Many gloss control materials can increase viscosity. But increasingly higher levels of Zeeospheres ceramic microspheres can help incrementally lower gloss without significantly increasing viscosity
in many applications.
5 Barrier effect
Tight particle packing, combined with hardness and inertness, creates a durable, low-permeation film barrier against weather, corrosion and chemicals.
6 Inert and free of crystalline silica
Because of their inert composition, Zeeospheres™ Ceramic Microspheres are resistant to a variety of chemicals. Solid ceramic microspheres are also free of crystalline silica (hollow microspheres are not).
7 Radiation curable coatings
To help improve productivity and depth of cure for UV-curable coatings, Zeeospheres ceramic microspheres are UV transparent to 250nm. The microspheres allow transmission of the UV energy through the coating. Gray and 3M ceramic microspheres also improve the viscosity and flow/leveling in E-beam coating applications.
Radiation curable applications include:
• Potting compounds
• Patching compounds
• Wood coatings
• Overprints
• Powder coatings
• Adhesives
8 Standard equipment for dispersing
With high compression strength, Zeeospheres ceramic microspheres are best added during the grind. For optimum dispersion, sand, ball and roll mills are preferred.Equipment wear has been reported to be less than many irregularly-shaped mineral fillers of equal or lower hardness.
APPLICATION BENEFITS AT A GLANCE
Architectural coatings
• Durability • Improved burnish resistance
• Scrub-ability • Uniformity of sheen
• Higher PVC
Powder coatings
• Improved flow • Gloss control
• Hardness • Cost reduction
Maintenance coatings
• Corrosion resistance • Cost reduction
• Durability • High loading
• Lower film permeability
Coil coatings
• Flexibility • Hardness
• Gloss control • Cost reduction
• Higher solids
High solids industrial coatings
• High loading with low viscosity • Cost reduction
• Reduced VOC • Spray-ability
• Improved hardness • Gloss control
Primers
• Improved salt spray, humidity resistance
• Higher volume solids
• Cost reduction
Water-reducible industrial finishes
• Increased volume solids • Durability
• Reduced film permeability/ • Gloss control
improved corrosion resistance • Inertness
• Hardness
UV-cured coatings
• High loading with low viscosity • Burnish resistance
• Cost reduction • Scrubability
• Sprayability
Mastics, grouts
• Improved rheology • Reduced shrinkage
• Higher loading • Durability
Zeeospheres Microspheres Product Descriptions
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Product |
Target Crush Strength |
True Density |
Hagman Grind |
Particle Size |
Color |
Comments |
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Application Ideas |
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Distribution(%) |
Effective Top Size |
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50th |
90th |
95th% |
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G-200 |
>60,000 |
2.5 |
7 |
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5 |
12 |
14 |
gray |
Finest standard product, least gloss reduction |
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Industrial paints and powder coatings Powder coatings. Refined top particle size offers fewer “seeds,” resulting in a smoother surface Maintenance paints and adhesives Polymer concrete, textured coatings, epoxy grouts, and flooring Light-colored, thin film coatings and powder coating Burnish-resistant wall and house paints, most light-colored industrial and maintenance products Maintenance paints thicker then 2 mils, low gloss paints, adhesives and decorative flooring |
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G-400
G-200 PC |
>60,000
>60,000 |
2.4
2.5 |
6
7 |
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8
4 |
18
10 |
23
12 |
gray
gray |
Medium gloss reduction Refined version of G-200, least gloss reduction |
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G-600
G-800
G-850
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>60,000
>60,000 |
2.3
2.2 |
3+
– |
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10
14
50
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25.0
60
125
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35
95
160
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gray
gray |
Refined version of G-400, medium gloss reduction 325 mesh lowest cost/pound, broad distribution |
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