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Paint&pintura |Dezembro2014 | 9
yearwill remainthesameas lastyear.“Thepaint industry’sresults
at theendof thisyearwill bevery similar to thoseof 2013 in total
volume,withdecorativecoatings(constructionpaints)performing
basically just like theydid last year.OEMautomotivecoatingswill
displayadropofaround 10percent,whileautomotive refinishco-
atingswill showa slight increasedrivenbyfleetexpansion.As for
industrial coatings, sometherehasbeena fall incertainsegments,
but, overall, there shouldbe just a slight decreaseas a result of a
combinationofautopartsandautomakersandthewithholdingof
some industrial investments.”
Defoamers -EvolutionTowards“Green”Products
Withahigher consumptionof defoamers in theBrazilianmarket,
companies increasingly seek to develop innovative technologies
thatcontemplatesustainabilityandenvironmentalcompliance.“The
defoamermarkethasevolvedalotintermsofchemicalcomposition.
Previously,theprevailingtechnologyconsistedofdefoamersbased
onmineral oils. Tokeepupwith the requirementsof thecoatings
industry, defoamers have chemically evolved, and nowwe have
silicone-basedproducts,emulsionpolymers,productsbasedonve-
getableoils,andhigh-performancepolymers,”saysMarlonBraidott,
technicalconsultantonadditivestoBASF.
Theconsumptionofdefoamershasbeenexpanding inBrazil,espe-
ciallydue to the increaseduseofwaterborne technology indeco-
rativepaints,automotiveOEMandrefinishcoatings,and industrial
coatings.“Themaintechnologicalinnovationsrelatetosustainability,
involving the use ofmaterials from renewable sources, such as
vegetableoils, and low-VOCproducts.BASFhas theStarmolecule
technology,whichnotonlycontributestodefoaming,butalsohelps
towetthesystemthanksto itspolymerstructure.”
The latest innovationshavecomealong to satisfymarket require-
ments intermsofbothreducingcostsandmeetingspecificneeds,
according toBraschemical’smarket expert Amadeu Paiva. “We
provideadditivesproducedfromrenewablesources,andalsothose
designed forenvironmentally friendlyproducts, suchasUV-curing
waterborne coatings, which are not really inhighdemand in the
Brazilianmarket,butarealreadyavailablefromourportfolio.”
Paivasaysthatdependingontheapplication,whileeffectivelyelimi-
natingfoamintheprocess,defoamersmayalsoberequiredtohave
aminimal interferencewithglossand levelingproperties,tohavea
residualactionduringboththestoragetimeandapplication,andto
delivergoodadhesionbetweencoats,forindustrialsystems.“Onthe
otherhand,thereisheavypressureforcostreductionswithaviewto
gainingcompetitiveness.Thechallengefacingsuppliers istoprove
thattheiradditivesfeaturealloftheseproperties.Braschemicalhas
invested inourapplication laboratorytohelpcustomersfindthese
greatfeatures,runningperformancetestsdirectlyonthecustomer’s
product,whichmayleadtotheindicationofabetteroptionforeach
specific case. That laboratory is available to customerswhoneed
supporttodevelopourproducts.”
Acrylic Resins - Improved Performance and
Coverage
Asoneof themainpaint components, acrylic resinsprovide
end productswith improved adhesion, strength, flexibility
andgloss,makingthemmoreaccessibleforuse inallkindsof
formulations.
The search for innovative technologies has always been a
constantinthemarketforacrylicresins,whichiswhysuppliers
oftheserawmaterialshavebeenmaking investments innew,
high-performanceproductsfeaturinggoodcost-benefitratios.
“Theacrylicresinsmarket isknowntobeverycompetitive in
Brazil. There’sa largenumberofdifferent-sizemanufactures
producingacrylic resins from themostbasic tomore special
ones,andalsopaintcompaniesthatproduceacrylicresinsfor
theirownuse,”saysLubrizol’saccountmanagerEdsonZicari.
In theworldof decorative coatings, acrylic resins compete
withother technologies, such as vinyl-veova, but the acrylic
resin familyhasa largeshare in thedecorativepaintmarket,
andalso some in industrial coatings, according toZicari. “In
2014, thedemandhaskeptpacewiththegrowthofthepaint
industry,butmanypaintcompanies,pressuredforformulation
costreductionsbythefiercecompetitiveness inthe industry,
continuetoworktowardsreducingtheresincontents intheir
formulae, obviouslywithoutprejudice to thequalityof their
productsandmaintainingtheminimumcharacteristicsrequired
bythe Industry-SpecificQualityProgram.”
Overthepastfiveyears,byvirtueofkeyqualityrequirements
imposedbyABNT’s(BrazilianAssociationforTechnicalStandar-
ds)NBR15079standardthroughthe Industry-SpecificQuality
Program,manufacturersofacrylicemulsionsforcoatingscan
besaidtohavemadegreatstrides,especiallyintermsofwasha-
bility(scrubresistance),whichisapredominantrequirementin
thismarket,accordingtoEdsonLuizCimadon,salesmanager
atDenverEspecialidades.“Inthisregard,Denvernowprovides
styreneacrylic-basedproducts,suchasDenvercrilRA193and
DenvercrilRA199,whichthoroughlymeetalloftheABNT15079
requirements,deliveringgreatperformance.”
For themost part, according toÁguiaQuímica’s laboratory
technicianAdrianaAlmeida, there is a growingdemand for
acrylicsdrivenbyacrylicemulsions. “Accordingly, inaddition
to traditional styrene-acrylicemulsions, there’salso room for
thosedesigned for use in road-markingpaints,which are in
increasinglyhighdemandduetoenvironmentalconcerns,and
foruseinwaterborneenamels,whichareahigh-valuesegment.
Inthesolutionacrylicsegment,growth isconcentrated in re-
sinsfordemandingapplicationsrequiringspecialproperties.”
However, in the opinion of Dow CoatingMaterials expert
CéldiaLizardo,thepaintandcoatingmarkethasgrownbelow
expectationsin2014,inahighlycompetitiveenvironmentwith
pressureforlowcosts.“Duetothepredominanceofeconomy
