Paper Number
RS27                         My Program 

Session
Real-World Rheology & Sustainability

Title
Influence of rheology modifiers on the microstructure evolution of drying paints

Presentation Date and Time
October 15, 2024 (Tuesday) 2:30

Track / Room
Track 7 / Room 502

Authors (Click on name to view author profile)

  1. Vezzetti, Sarah E. (Lehigh University, Polymer Science and Engineering)
  2. Dolan, Casey (Lehigh University, Department of Materials Science and Engineering)
  3. Kaewpetch, Thitiporn (Kasetsart University, Department of Packaging and Materials Technology)
  4. Gilchrist, James F. (Lehigh University, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering)

Author and Affiliation Lines (in printed abstract book)
Sarah E. Vezzetti1, Casey Dolan2, Thitiporn Kaewpetch3 and James F. Gilchrist4
1Polymer Science and Engineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015; 2Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA 18015; 3Department of Packaging and Materials Technology, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand; 4Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA

Speaker / Presenter 
Gilchrist, James F.

Keywords
experimental methods; advanced manufacturing; colloids; dense systems; particualte systems; polymer solutions; real-world rheology; techniques

Text of Abstract
The evolution of microstructure in drying coatings is essential to the final film properties. Understanding this process and the microstructure during drying is a common question in the coatings industry. There is often a separation between the predicted film and the final applied film due to evolving rheology and particle-scale interactions. There are few techniques that are able to provide this information in situ. This work focuses on tracking fluorescent silica particles that behave as surrogate pigment using high-speed laser scanning confocal microscopy to give the time evolution of microstructure as a function of the formulation. Specifically, the addition of cellulose-based rheology modifiers is examined to understand the impact of rheology modifiers on the drying process and resulting microstructure. Clear changes in particle stability, such as the onset of depletion or other attractive interactions, are observed during drying that significantly alter the microstructure evolution during drying. Using the 3D particle locations, the evolution of this microstructure allows thorough statistical analysis, resulting in simulation-like detail from physical experiments.