| Criteria | Powder coatings | Liquid coatings |
| Surfaces / coating properties / film properties | - High resistance to chemicals and mechanical stress in industrial applications
- High elasticity and impact resistance
- Powder coating systems for façade exteriors approved by Qualicoat and/or GSB/Qualitcoat
| - High chemical and mechanical resistance to chemicals in industrial applications
- Impact resistance and elasticity are product-dependent
- Weather-resistant systems in the gloss range (PVDF-based)
|
| Substrate | - Small irregularities in the substrate are very well covered by the high Film thickness of the coating
- Very good bonding with the pre-treated substrate
| - Unevenness and scratches must be levelled or primed before coating
- Good substrate wetting and adhesion strength
|
| Economy / application efficiency | - 60% to 80% first application efficiency
- Overspray is recovered and fed back into the powder cycle
| - 30% to 40% first coat efficiency
- Overspray cannot be recovered with solvent-based systems
|
| Ecology | - Solvent-free
- Declaration-free
- 100% Solids
- Minimal fire risk
- EPD certification (Environmental Product Declaration)
| - Contains solvents
- VOC release
- 35% Solids
- Increased fire risk
|
| Storage / Transport | - No special safety regulations
| - Special transport and storage regulations
|
| Layer thickness / Film thickness | - Up to 120 µm Film thickness possible in one application
- Single-layer applications with Qualicoat / GSB seal of approval in façade applications
| - Film thicknesses of 25 - 30 µm in one coat
- 2-layer systems, depending on requirements
|
| Curing process / cross-linking agent | - Is thermally melted and cured (15 min. 160° C to 200° C)
| - Is chemically cured (2-component) hardened
|
| Quality / resistance (corrosion DIN EN ISO 9227) | | - Good to very good results
|
| Processing times | - Fast throughput times
- After curing and cooling, the powder coating can be fully loaded immediately
- Immediate further processing possible
| - Longer processing times
- With air drying, further processing is possible after approx. 24 hours, significantly shorter with forced drying
|
| Processing | - Industrial processing (factory application) necessary
| - Location-independent, direct application on site possible
|
| Application | - With electrostatic (corona) and triboelectric systems (tribo), can be automated
- Equipment is investment-intensive
| - With application equipment (airless spraying, compressed air spraying), can be automated
|
| Order quantities | - Stock items available from 2.5 kg
- Minimum production quantities are sometimes required
| - Available from 1 to 2 kg
- Mixing ramp / mixing systems available on site for Uni colours
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