Preparation Of Aluminum Pigments And Their Modification

The process of flaking aluminum powder was studied and discussed by founding model of milling aluminum powder and educing the formulae.Aluminum flake pigments were manufactured by planetary ball mill and effect of the related factors on the shape of aluminum flake was studied. The results showed that aluminum pigments having a high grade of optical characteristics could be prepared only by controlling conditions properly, and the best was when the running rate of mill was 400~500 r/min, the weight ratio of ball to the materials was 10~16 and grinding for about 4 hours. Wherein kerosene was used as grinding agent and stearic acid as grinding aid.Silica encapsulation of aluminum flakes by sol/gel process provided aluminum pigments used in water-based coatings. The effect of the related factors of the process was studied. Encapsulated aluminum flakes were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), EDS Energy Spectrum instrument, Infrared Spectrum (IR) , laser particle size measurer and touch angle measurer. The results showed that aluminum flakes turned to being water-inert and hydrophilic after being coated by a layer of silica.Aluminum pigments were colored up by liquid deposition of ferric oxide after being coated by a layer of silica.