New coating technologies offer efficiency and flexibility for designers

by Amanda McGowan

As assemblies get smaller and faster, designers are faced with new challenges in finding the right coating solution for their specific design. While every assembly is different, flexibility to meet performance requirements and efficiency in reducing process time, labor and energy costs are crucial. As a result, coating experts are developing unique takes on coating solutions to meet the needs of product designers.

Dual Cure

For Dymax Corporation, this means enhancing its line of energy and time efficient light curing conformal coatings with a secondary, room temperature moisture cure feature, the Dual-Cure™ 9481. According to Jonathan Galaska, Program Manager of Electronics at Dymax Corporation, the light curing conformal coatings cure within seconds under a high-intensity lamp.

“The fast, room temperature cure eliminates the costs of a curing oven,” Galaska explains. “The technology saves process time and the labor costs associated with racking parts while the coating cures.”

Using the Dual-Cure solution, coatings can be applied under components for added protection. Photo: Dymax Corporation

The Dual-Cure solution utilizes a secondary moisture cure feature for applications where coating resides in a shadowed area, such as under a component, and cannot easily be cured by light. These areas have historically been managed by secondary heat cure processes or selective coating application, ensuring the material does not flow into a shadowed area. Dual-Cure allows exposed areas to cure immediately, while shadowed areas cure with moisture, typically over 2 to 3 days.

Further, as solvent-free materials, there are no volatile organic compounds or hazardous air pollutants emitted during the manufacturing process. All of the Dual-Cure’s characteristics, Galaska says, allows for a process that especially suits the electronics industry, where everything is becoming smaller, faster and cheaper.

While this technology is engineered for the military and consumer electronics, it is also used often in the appliance industry, Galaska says, where it is critical to have thicker coatings for maximum protection from chemical exposure in the operating environment.

Customized Durability

At Misumi USA, Inc., these demands meant the company needed to find a way to provide a long-lasting coating with multiple grades of wear-resistance in order to be flexible enough for varying designs. Recently, Misumi created and tested a Low Temperature Black chrome (LTBC) plating method to lower material costs for designers, while ensuring part protection for multiple decades.

“LTBC-plated shafts and components provide a service life exceeding 10 years,” Paul Wozniak, Engineer at Misumi, adds. ”And, in some cases, up to 20 years and beyond is possible.”

A coated circuit (left) board is more protected than a board left uncoated (right).

According to Misumi Engineering Manager Chris Blaszczyk, LTBC uses an electrochemical reaction below 0 degrees Celsius. In the plating process, an alloy-like diffusion is formed, creating an “inseparable” bond between the base material and the chrome particles so the plating cannot be peeled or flaked off for an extremely rust-resistant protection. According to the company, corrosion tests show the LTBC is just as rust-resistant than more expensive materials of its kind, providing a cost-effective solution to product longevity.

Automated Precision

“In terms of coating in-house, manual application of materials is a cost burden,” Bill Boyd, Equipment Program Manager at Specialty Coatings Systems, says. “Designers are looking to automate these manual processes, which not only reduces overall costs, but material costs specifically, while also increasing accuracy.”

SCS's Precisioncoat RTV features a 5-axis tilt and rotate dispense functionality.

According to Boyd, SCS has developed automated coating systems, including a 5-axis spray and dispense system, to provide flexibility in how they apply coatings. The company’s Precisioncoat RTV uses such a system to apply RTV materials at a controlled rate, and only in specified areas to minimize wasteful energy and materials.

“The RTV System allows designers to achieve cost-effective RTV application without waste or material loss, while lowering labor costs,” Boyd explains.

Into The Future: Protection On A Nano- Scale

Despite differing technologies, coating providers agree that their future offerings will provide greater flexibility for designers, while continuing to push the envelope in terms of efficiency and reducing environmental footprint. Particularly among electronics, Boyd says, as components get smaller and the need for protection increases.

“As assemblies become smaller and more compact, coatings are becoming more robust,” Galaska says. “Designers are incorporating the coating as an insulating layer between the components to prevent interference.”

According to Wozniak, the future of coatings and material will trend towards nanotechnology, controlling matter on an atomic and molecular scale. “Materials reduced to nanoscale will show different properties than what they show in macroscale, enabling unique applications,” he explains. “Nanotechnology will create unique coatings that may replace expensive materials with specific properties in very demanding industries.”
As products progress in the market, coating solutions should provide enhanced usability and customization—and ultimately greater flexibility and efficiency for designers.