A new family of polyamides for electrostatic powder coating has been developed by RadiciGroup. Commonly using metals, this technology provides excellent surface finish with high resistance to atmospheric agents. Furthermore, given the total lack of solvents, an added advantage of this type of surface coating is its reduced environmental impact with respect to liquid paints.
The specific formulations, based on PA6.6, provide aesthetic results that are analogous to those achievable with metal-based coatings and open a new range of possible applications. One concrete example is profiles for doors and windows that can replace the aluminium members used in metal-plastic hybrids. The possibility of using a single insulating material based on PA6.6 brings a number of advantages: better thermal insulation, elimination of the aluminium-plastic assembly step and chemical anti-corrosion treatments for aluminium, excellent strength and dimensional stability following the powder coating process at nominal temperatures of up to 200°C.