Paints, Inks & Coatings

Pigments are, most commonly, insoluble metal oxide particles (e.g., TiO2, ZrO2, SiO2, CeO2, and ZnO) that, when dispersed in an appropriate medium, can provide color. Depending on the medium, pigment dispersions are used as inks, varnishes, coatings, paints, etc. Many of the critical properties of these products, such as the color strength, hiding power, surface finish, and durability, are determined by the sizes of the dispersed pigment particles. Since the color strength depends on the cumulative exposed pigment surface area, it can be substantially enhanced by reducing and homogeneously dispersing the particles. Pigment particle size reduction can also improve scratch, crack and UV resistance of inks, coatings, varnishes, and paints because it leads to closer particle packing and their better incorporation into the binding medium.

Industrial Sonomechanics® ultrasonic processors provide a convenient means for dispersing, deagglomerating and wet-milling pigment particles down to the required nanometer size range, while simultaneously removing any entrapped air and/or dissolved gasses (degassing) from the suspension medium. With our patented Barbell Horn® Ultrasonic Technology (BHUT), these processes can be easily implemented at any scale, guaranteeing reproducible and predictable high-quality results.