Basecoat,
Itisappliedaftertheprimercoat.Itgivespropertieslikecolourandeffectstothecarbody.Itis
theonethatisreferredtoaspaint.Thiscoatisfurtherdividedintothreecategories:solid,metal
and pearlescent pigments.
Solidpaintslackthe sparklingeffect,theyareeasytoapplyandareusedmainlyonheavy
transportationvehicles,aircraftandequipmentusedinconstruction.Thistypeofcoatiswidely
used in cars, trucks, bikes etc.
Metallicpaintsusuallycontainpiecesofaluminiumwhichgiveitagrainytexture,itprovides
shine to the surface of the carorin other wordsitgivesametalliclook.Ithasanextra
dimensionthatistobeconsideredthustheyarehardtohandleascomparedtosolidpaints.
Paints are used toprovide a consistent finish to thesurface. Flopismaximised whenthe
aluminiumflakeisparalleltothesubstrate,whichissaidtobethedifferencebetweentheshine
whenonelooksperpendicularlytothesurfaceascomparedtoonewholooksatanacuteangle.
Iftheviscosityofthebasecoatincreasesjustafteritsapplicationtheflopismaximised.Itmeans
thatthealuminiumflakegets lockedinaparticularorientationeven whensomesolventis
available. Upon drying when this solvent particularly water evaporates it decreases the
thicknessofthecoatingthusmakingsurethattheflakesarealignedparalleltothesubstrate.It
isunaffectedbytheclearcoatcoatingbutitmakessurethattheclearcoatmustnotcontain
ingredients that redissolve the basecoat.
Pearlescentpigmentscontainpigmentsthatareactuallypearls.Asparkleimpartedbythese
pearls helps in providing depth to the colour. Itcan be two or three-stage in nature.
Clearcoat,
Itisthethirdandthelastlayerofcoatingandisappliedabovethebasecoat.Itisappliedto
providesparkleandistransparentinnature.Beingthelastlayeritisexposeddirectlytothe
environment and thus it should be such that it shouldbe resistant to corrosion and UV light.
Weknowthatastimepassesnewtechnologiescometothemarketmakingaparticularthing
availableinseveralformssamegoeswithpaintsaswell.Nowadaysthepaintthatisappliedto
the automobiles come in several forms like,
Liquid Form, It is usually polyurethane paint andit needs a compressor when applied.
SprayForm,Itsmeaningisevidentfromthenameitself.Itissimilartotheperfumesthatweuse
in daily life.
Powder Form, we know that powder cannot be directly applied onto the surface ofan
automobile and thus a thinner is required.