China's anti-corrosion coatings industry is presenting seven major development directions
Develop water-based anti-corrosion primers and topcoats for steel structures. Water-based anti-corrosion primers must address the issues of "idle corrosion" on the substrate and poor water resistance. The emergence of some new types of emulsifier emulsions has fundamentally improved the problem of poor water resistance. In the future, the focus should be on solving the problems of construction performance and application performance. As a topcoat, the main focus is to enhance its decorative and durable properties while ensuring its protective function.
(2) Develop a series of high-solid and solvent-free anti-corrosion coatings. There is an urgent demand for ultra-durable anti-corrosion coatings in drilling, offshore platforms and large-scale anti-corrosion projects. Currently, this market is basically occupied by wholly foreign-owned enterprises and imported products. The main issue of our country's products lies in the fact that there is a significant gap in comprehensive strength such as technological level, economic strength, quality assurance system and product reputation compared with foreign merchants, making it difficult for them to break into the market. To this end, efforts should first be made in technological development, especially in developing lead-free and chromium-free anti-rust pigment primers, that is, anti-rust primers mainly composed of zinc phosphate and aluminum tripolyphosphate.
(3) Develop water-based zinc-rich primers. Inorganic zinc-rich primers and water-based inorganic zinc-rich primers are among long-lasting primers, but they are both solvent-based coatings. Water-based inorganic zinc-rich primer with high modulus potassium silicate as the base material is a high-performance anti-corrosion coating that has been tested in practice and has development potential.
(4) Develop heat-resistant and anti-corrosion coatings that can be cured at room temperature for heat exchangers. Heat exchangers require anti-corrosion coatings that are heat-resistant and have high thermal conductivity. Currently, the epoxy amino coating in use needs to be cured at 120℃ and requires multiple coats of application, making it unusable on large-scale devices. The development of coatings that can cure at room temperature and are convenient to apply remains an unsolved problem to date. The key lies in achieving the best balance among the anti-corrosion performance, heat transfer performance and workability of the coating.
(5) Develop substitutes for chlorinated rubber series anti-corrosion coatings. Chlorinated rubber is a one-component type, which is convenient to apply and has excellent water resistance, oil resistance and resistance to atmospheric aging. It is widely used in fields such as ship and industrial anti-corrosion, and has a broad domestic market. However, because the production of chlorinated rubber uses CC1 as the solvent, it damages the ozone layer. Industrialized developed countries have been developing their substitutes one after another. Some of the more successful ones include the MP chlorinated ether resin series of German BAST Company, water-phase chlorinated polyethylene or modified products.
(6) Develop flaky anti-corrosion coatings. Mica iron oxide (MIO) has excellent resistance to media, atmospheric aging and sealing performance. It is widely used as a primer and topcoat in Western Europe. There is a certain gap between MIO produced domestically and foreign products in terms of particle size distribution, aspect ratio and density. Similar titles also exist in the development of glass flake coatings.
(7) Develop organic-modified inorganic anti-corrosion materials. In recent years, organic emulsion has been applied abroad to modify concrete to improve its strength and resistance to media, and it has been widely used in the coating of industrial floors. Among them, epoxy water emulsion (or solvent-based epoxy) has developed the fastest and is called polymer cement. In the past 10 years, China has also begun to adopt it in anti-corrosion projects, but the development work is not systematic and no series of products have been formed.
(2) Develop a series of high-solid and solvent-free anti-corrosion coatings. There is an urgent demand for ultra-durable anti-corrosion coatings in drilling, offshore platforms and large-scale anti-corrosion projects. Currently, this market is basically occupied by wholly foreign-owned enterprises and imported products. The main issue of our country's products lies in the fact that there is a significant gap in comprehensive strength such as technological level, economic strength, quality assurance system and product reputation compared with foreign merchants, making it difficult for them to break into the market. To this end, efforts should first be made in technological development, especially in developing lead-free and chromium-free anti-rust pigment primers, that is, anti-rust primers mainly composed of zinc phosphate and aluminum tripolyphosphate.
(3) Develop water-based zinc-rich primers. Inorganic zinc-rich primers and water-based inorganic zinc-rich primers are among long-lasting primers, but they are both solvent-based coatings. Water-based inorganic zinc-rich primer with high modulus potassium silicate as the base material is a high-performance anti-corrosion coating that has been tested in practice and has development potential.
(4) Develop heat-resistant and anti-corrosion coatings that can be cured at room temperature for heat exchangers. Heat exchangers require anti-corrosion coatings that are heat-resistant and have high thermal conductivity. Currently, the epoxy amino coating in use needs to be cured at 120℃ and requires multiple coats of application, making it unusable on large-scale devices. The development of coatings that can cure at room temperature and are convenient to apply remains an unsolved problem to date. The key lies in achieving the best balance among the anti-corrosion performance, heat transfer performance and workability of the coating.
(5) Develop substitutes for chlorinated rubber series anti-corrosion coatings. Chlorinated rubber is a one-component type, which is convenient to apply and has excellent water resistance, oil resistance and resistance to atmospheric aging. It is widely used in fields such as ship and industrial anti-corrosion, and has a broad domestic market. However, because the production of chlorinated rubber uses CC1 as the solvent, it damages the ozone layer. Industrialized developed countries have been developing their substitutes one after another. Some of the more successful ones include the MP chlorinated ether resin series of German BAST Company, water-phase chlorinated polyethylene or modified products.
(6) Develop flaky anti-corrosion coatings. Mica iron oxide (MIO) has excellent resistance to media, atmospheric aging and sealing performance. It is widely used as a primer and topcoat in Western Europe. There is a certain gap between MIO produced domestically and foreign products in terms of particle size distribution, aspect ratio and density. Similar titles also exist in the development of glass flake coatings.
(7) Develop organic-modified inorganic anti-corrosion materials. In recent years, organic emulsion has been applied abroad to modify concrete to improve its strength and resistance to media, and it has been widely used in the coating of industrial floors. Among them, epoxy water emulsion (or solvent-based epoxy) has developed the fastest and is called polymer cement. In the past 10 years, China has also begun to adopt it in anti-corrosion projects, but the development work is not systematic and no series of products have been formed.