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3M CERAMIC MICROSPHERES
3M Ceramic Microspheres are intrinsically hard, uniquely-shaped fillers engineered to provide a number of customer-pleasing properties – all while helping paint and coating formulators reduce costs, enhance durability and improve processability. Because of their shape and particle size distribution, 3M Ceramic Microspheres enable lower resin demand and lower viscosities without sacrificing filler loading.
The unique spherical shape of 3M Glass Bubbles offers a number of important benefits, including: higher filler loading; lower viscosity; improved flow and reduced shrinkage and warpage. It also helps the 3M Glass Bubbles blend readily into compounds and makes them adaptable to a variety of production processes including spraying, casting and molding.
The chemically stable soda-lime-borosilicate glass composition of 3M Glass Bubbles provides excellent water resistance to create more stable emulsions. They are also non-combustible and nonporous, so they do not absorb resin. And, their low alkalinity gives 3M Glass Bubbles compatibility with most resins, stable viscosity and long shelf life.
Features
- Hardness- up to 60,000 psi crush strength.
- Chemically inert.
- Spherical particles.
- Can be highly loaded into polymers and coatings.
- UV transparent to 250 nm.
Benefits
- Extend the life of a coating.
- Assist processability and flow in thermoplastic and coatings.
- Improved burnish, scrub and abrasion resistance for longevity of coatings and performance.
- Formulations with lower Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), eg. paints and lacquers.
- Allow through cure in UV systems.
- Viscosity control.
- Gloss control of paints.
- Strength and durability of thermoplastics and thermosets.
- Improved corrosion and temperature resistance.
*(VOC’s) Volatile Organic Compound
Applications
3Μ Ceramic Microspheres are used by formulators to reduce VOC levels, increase filler loadings, improve hardness, and add burnish, scrub and abrasion resistance to a variety of coating formulations. Due to the ceramic chemistry of these products, they are also UV transparent down to 250 nm and have utility in radiation-curable and thin-film powder coatings. Industrial and maintenance coatings, Architectural coatings, Semi-gloss to matte formulations, Architectural coatings, Radiation curable coatings, Primers, Mastics, Grouts.
