Clearcoat with innovative property profile

The Bayer team has since found a solution to this dilemma using new coating raw materials. These can be used to formulate clearcoats which form especially hard layers due to the strong crosslinking of their molecules yet are not brittle and are thus self-healing. Summer temperatures allow small surface scratches to flow back together. The buyer of a car having such a skin will enjoy a vehicle that not only retains its youthful good looks longer but also has a higher resale value.
Environmentally friendly PU clearcoats containing only small amounts of volatile organic compounds have already progressed beyond the laboratory stage. “We have developed waterborne two-component PU clearcoats that are suitable for online applications. Their property profile is every bit as good as that of the solvent-based PU coatings typically used today,” says Mechtel.
Laboratory tests are not the final word when it comes to UV stability, weather stability and chemical resistance, however. The decisive long-term outdoor tests are performed in Jacksonville, USA. As Klimmasch explains, “The air there is very salty, the climate hot and humid and there are long periods of intense sunshine.” All this makes the Florida port city a nightmare for car owners-which is precisely why it is a Mecca for the coatings industry.
One word of advice: pick light colors when buying a car if you want your baby to have a long-lasting shine. According to Mechtel, “While not any less susceptible to scratching, they don’t show scratches and such as easily.”

Leverkusen, 2004-04-02