Types of Varnishes

Varnishes can be classified by their chemical composition, each type having its own beneficial qualities for
different PCB environments. Most of the materials used are historically solvent-based, the benefits of which are:

• Ease of processing and application
• Easy viscosity adjustment
• Suitable for a wide variety of application methods
• Customized application and cure

Acrylic Varnish

Acrylic coatings combine reasonable price with good environmental protection; they retain clarity and can resistdarkening and hydrolysis during extended outdoor exposure. However they have limited solvent resistance, making them suitable for repair, but not where high chemical resistance is needed.

Main properties:

• Good flexibility and full protection
• Excellent protection against humidity and salt mist
• They are easy to put on and take off, and dry quickly at room temperature through simple evaporation.
• Operate in a wide range of temperatures
• Excellent adhesion to a wide range of substrates

Electrolube Acrylic Varnishes:

AFA HPA APL TFA

Polyurethane Varnishes

Unlike acrylics, polyurethane coatings offer excellent chemical resistance and superior protection in harsh
environments. They also maintain flexibility at very low temperatures. And like acrylics, they work over a wide
range of temperatures.

Main properties:

• Good flexibility, particularly at low temperatures
• Excellent chemical resistance
• Can be removed with specialized products
• Very good abrasion resistance

Electrolube polyurethane varnishes:

PUC PUCLO

Hybrid Varnishes

Hybrid coatings are based on a mixture of chemical compositions. This results in different types of coating, adapted to the specific requirements of each application. Electrolube’s SCC3 range are polyurethane-based resins modified with silicone to improve high temperature properties.
These coatings exhibit a wide range of advantages over standard materials and because they are solvent-based, they also provide ease of application, with all the advantages that this entails. The SCC3 range of coatings offers a host of performance benefits without the problems associated with standard silicone coatings, i.e. silicone migration and low molecular weight siloxane effects.

Main properties:

• Operates under a wide range of different temperatures
• Easy to apply
• Very high chemical resistance
• Can be repaired with specialized removal products
• Good protection in many types of environments

Electrolube Hybrid Varnishes:

LFCC DCRT DCR DCB DCA DCAFD

Electrolube also provides other hybrid coating technologies that have been specifically designed for the railway industry.
railway industry. These coatings offer a wide range of protection in hostile and changing environments..

• Good overall protection
• IEC 61086 approved
• Ease of processing and ideal for repair work

Electrolube Acrylic Silicone Varnishes:

FSC FSCP

Water Based Varnishes

These coatings cure by evaporation of water from the system itself. They are low VOC, replacing most solvents in the waterborne system with water. This improves operator safety and also drastically reduces solvent emissions.

Principales propiedades:

• Reduces the use of solvents; improving operator and environmental safety
• They are NMP free; again offering a safer product.
• Hybrid products offer improved performance
• Can be applied using equipment, immersion and spray versions available as standard.
• Can offer good chemical resistance

Water-based coating:

WBP WBPs

UV curing varnishes

They are another example of hybrid coatings. In this case, different types of chemistry are used to produce a dual cure system, thus avoiding problems with shaded areas of UV light during curing. problems with shaded areas of UV light during curing. UV-curable coatings offer the best cure times in seconds under UV light. This is very beneficial for high performance applications and any shaded areas will cure through the secondary cure system over time. Due to their highly crosslinked structure, when cured, they can be difficult to remove and in some cases may suffer reduced flexibility during thermal changes and therefore should be carefully tested.

• Extremely fast processing time
• Secondary system to support UV shaded areas
• Good protection in different environments
• Excellent chemical resistance
• Offers good flexibility when frequent changes in thermal conditions occur

:

UVCL