Quantitative Image Analysis of Roller Application Performance

By Wenqin (Sunny) Wang, Amy Qin, Gerry Valdez, Sophie Kim, Sam Lim, Yicheng Hu, Jennifer Mills, The Dow Chemical Company, USA

Coatings’ application performance, such as ease of application, superior coverage, and faster return-to service, continue to be a key consideration for both consumers and contractors when choosing architectural coating products. Based on the claim analysis of commercial architectural coatings, paint application related properties are among the top claimed product performance in architectural coatings, as shown in Figure 1.1 The rheological properties of coatings play critical roles in determining various aspects of coatings application, including sag and leveling balance, spatter resistance, application feel, roller pattern, and applied hide. In addition to rheology of coatings, paint application process and results are highly dependent on environmental conditions, roller cover, paint applicator, and substrates. Traditionally, evaluating the appearance of coating and spatter resistance has heavily relied on visual assessment, which could be influenced by inconsistencies in human visual perception. To address this, we have conducted a series of roller application studies in different formulation spaces and employed advanced image analysis technologies to enable more reliable and quantitative evaluation of spatter resistance and roller patterns. In this article, we will share the insights gained from our study and discuss the impact of rheology modifiers on the performance of roller  applications.