Architecture and Building/Construction
Powder coating products are growing in the architecture and construction markets due to their excellent durability and wide selection of finishes and colors. Advances in polyester-TGIC and fluoropolymer powders have enabled powder coatings to rival liquid architectural coatings in durability, weathering, and resistance to fading.
These products are being used in outdoor stadium seating and other exterior applications that were previously susceptible to degradation from UV rays. Aluminum extrusions used on door and window frames are powder coated, as are building facades, fixtures, and modular furniture. Many highway and construction projects use powder coatings on products such as light poles, guardrails, signs, posts, and fences. Light poles, lawn furniture, shopping carts, and shelving often benefit from powders with the addition of fluorocarbon (polytetrafluoroethylene) for enhanced wear resistance
Clear powder coatings are often used as an exterior protective layer on many brass products, such as door handles, hinges, railings, light fixtures, and plumbing fixtures. Certain powder coatings can replace chrome plating and brass plating in certain applications.
Electrical/Electronics
Powder coatings are primarily used for enclosures in the electrical and electronics industries. However, powder coatings are also valued for their unique functional applications.
Powder coatings for copper and aluminum magnet wire significantly reduce environmental concerns in the wire industry. The toughness and durability of powder coatings are an added bonus in applications such as transformers and motor windings. Electronic component manufacturers sometimes use conductive and electrically dissipative powder coatings. These coatings provide components with electrostatic discharge protection – critical during the manufacture, testing and shipping of electronic products. These powder coatings are typically based on epoxy-polyester chemistry.
Non-Metallic Substrates
Powder coatings were initially used only as metal finish coatings. However, with the development of powder coatings that can be applied and cured at low temperatures, the market has expanded to heat-sensitive substrates such as plastics and wood.
Radiation curing (UV or electron beam) allows powders to be cured on heat-sensitive substrates by reducing the curing temperature to below 121°C. Lowering the curing temperature is not without risk. Flow or leveling can be reduced, negatively affecting appearance.
On the other hand, the "softening point" or glass transition temperature of the powder coating particles can be reduced. Only for special purposes may powders be stored at lower ambient temperatures to prevent agglomeration.
