Reflective paints: reflective paints with glass beads

Recommendation points

• What paints are made of
• Areas of use
• Road construction industry
• Industry and construction
• Fencing and control over the protected area
• Application technology

Unlike most paints and varnishes, reflective paints do not have a decorative function as the main one. Their purpose is purely technical, and today we will introduce you to examples of the use of reflective coatings in large-scale construction and industrial economy..

What paints are made of

Most of the luminous paints familiar to the average consumer acquire special properties due to the inclusion of fluorescent or luminescent pigments in the composition. But there is also a special type of paints, which will be discussed today – reflective paints.

This feature lies in microscopic glass spheres. Being in a hardened transparent compound, they contribute to the reflection of light at an angle less than 90 ° to the incidence vector. In other words, retroreflective paints really return up to 90% of the light, and the opposite reflection occurs even when the beam is almost tangentially incident..

As the basis for the reflective layer, transparent varnishes are used: acrylic, alkyd, polyurethane. In general, the type of varnish determines the resistance of the paint to various kinds of harmful influences: mechanical abrasion, moisture, high and low temperatures. The requirements for high purity and transparency are also imposed on the varnishes used in the composition of reflective paints: the film-forming substance, upon setting, should acquire homogeneity, getting rid of air bubbles, and also not fade over time.

To apply a light-reflecting coating, three components are used in turn: a primer, a reflective paint with glass spheres and an activator. Only with the use of an activator, glass beads in the previous layer begin to effectively reflect light with minimal losses. The solvents included in the composition of the activator and paint, by their properties, limit the scope of application of reflective paints, so they cannot be used indoors.

Areas of use

The main purpose of the paint: signal marking of objects at night or in low light conditions, for example, marking fences, supports for bridges and overpasses, quay walls, metal structures and construction towers, marking the limitation of the parking zone and helipads, and so on. The application possibilities are great.

Road construction industry

Many of the paints we are considering are familiar precisely from the experience of participating in the road traffic. Markings, signs include reflective reflective coatings, which are dictated by safety requirements.

Road construction has long ceased to be the prerogative of state structures. Production areas can include a fairly extensive network of roads, the construction of which is carried out privately. Driveways and parking spaces require the use of reflectors without fail, and this kind of paint is the easiest and most versatile method to perform light markings.

The paint is suitable for use both on the roadway and on the outline of signs and roadway fences without changing the composition. Weather resistance and non-criticality to the base material are sufficient grounds for using paint with glass spheres in outdoor work.

Industry and construction

On construction sites, reflective paint is applied to oversized equipment, mobile or stationary units of construction equipment to facilitate navigation and improve safety. So, if paint is applied to the boom of the crane, it is much easier to notice all its movements, while workers can easily adjust their actions without creating emergency situations.

In industry, reflective paint is widely used for marking and signaling, simplifying the navigation and identification of workshops, large equipment and machinery. The primer can be applied in any way necessary, observing the general requirements for painting industrial facilities, while the glass spheres of the finishing layer will provide a reflective effect..

Structures such as bridges, towers, supports are opened with reflective paint as a topcoat. In this case, it is much easier to see their exact outlines, even in poor visibility conditions or from a long distance..

Fencing and control over the protected area

Many security personnel are familiar with the problem of CCTV blind spots caused by insufficient lighting. The standard way out of the situation is to increase the coverage of video surveillance by using more cameras. An alternative to this is the full or partial application of reflective paint to stationary objects, walls and parapets. The presence of such surfaces in the field of view of the camera makes it easier to detect moving objects.

It is also possible to increase the level of production safety using the properties of paint: delineating conventional lines of safe zones during equipment operation, laying routes to switchboards, highlighting unsafe spaces are just some of the examples of such use of reflective paints. Separately, we will point out the handling of vehicles: from cars and self-propelled trucks to wagons and gantry cranes – increasing the visibility of these objects will only benefit. Highlighting with reflective paint is highly desirable where auditory perception is difficult, for example, with a high level of industrial noise.

Application technology

In most cases, retroreflective paint is used only in the outer thin transparent layer. It is better to apply it on a surface covered with a primer of the desired color. It is desirable that the primer is not film-forming – the lacquer base of the paint does an excellent job with protective functions, but requires reliable adhesion to the base. It is best to use a quick-drying primer and apply paint almost immediately. In any case, it is worth adhering to the recommendations of the paint manufacturer..

The application of paint can only be carried out in a way that does not violate the integrity of the reflective components: with a roller, brush, special dispensers and sprayers. So, the method described above has found wide application in machines for applying road markings: a quick-drying soil is rolled with a roller, on which a small amount of reflective varnish and an activator is almost immediately applied.