Lacquer thinner

Last updated

Lacquer thinner, also known as cellulose thinner, is usually a mixture of solvents able to dissolve a number of different resins or plastics used in modern lacquer. [1]

Previously, lacquer thinners frequently contained alkyl esters like butyl or amyl acetate, ketones like acetone or methyl ethyl ketone, aromatic hydrocarbons like toluene, ethers such as glycol cellosolves, and/or alcohols. [2]

Modern lacquer thinners increasingly have to comply with low-VOC regulations. These formulations are often mostly acetone with small quantities of aromatic solvent. [3]

Paints that dry by simple solvent evaporation and contain solid binders are known as lacquers. When the solvent in lacquer paints evaporates, a solid layer remains. Since this layer can be dissolved again with the solvent, each lacquer can dissolve the one below it. [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paint</span> Pigment applied over a surface that dries as a solid film

Paint is a liquid pigment that, after applied to a solid material and allowed to dry, adds a film-like layer, in most cases to create an image, known as a painting. Paint can be made in many colors and types. Most paints are either oil-based or water-based, and each has distinct characteristics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toluene</span> Chemical compound

Toluene, also known as toluol, is a substituted aromatic hydrocarbon with the chemical formula C6H5CH3, often abbreviated as PhCH3, where Ph stands for phenyl group. It is a colorless, water-insoluble liquid with the odor associated with paint thinners. It is a mono-substituted benzene derivative, consisting of a methyl group (CH3) attached to a phenyl group by a single bond. As such, its systematic IUPAC name is methylbenzene. Toluene is predominantly used as an industrial feedstock and a solvent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solvent</span> Substance dissolving a solute resulting in a solution

A solvent is a substance that dissolves a solute, resulting in a solution. A solvent is usually a liquid but can also be a solid, a gas, or a supercritical fluid. Water is a solvent for polar molecules, and the most common solvent used by living things; all the ions and proteins in a cell are dissolved in water within the cell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Butanone</span> Chemical compound

Butanone, also known as methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) or ethyl methyl ketone, is an organic compound with the formula CH3C(O)CH2CH3. This colorless liquid ketone has a sharp, sweet odor reminiscent of acetone. It is produced industrially on a large scale, but occurs in nature only in trace amounts. It is partially soluble in water, and is commonly used as an industrial solvent. It is an isomer of another solvent, tetrahydrofuran.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Varnish</span> Transparent hard protective finish or film

Varnish is a clear transparent hard protective coating or film. It is not to be confused with wood stain. It usually has a yellowish shade due to the manufacturing process and materials used, but it may also be pigmented as desired. It is sold commercially in various shades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lacquer</span> Liquid or powder coating material which is applied thinly to objects to form a hard finish

Lacquer is a type of hard and usually shiny coating or finish applied to materials such as wood or metal. It is most often made from resin extracted from trees and waxes and has been in use since antiquity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Permanent marker</span>

A permanent marker or indelible marker is a type of marker pen that is used to create permanent or semi-permanent writing on an object.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White spirit</span> Petroleum-derived clear, transparent liquid

White spirit (AU, UK and Ireland) or mineral spirits (US, Canada), also known as mineral turpentine (AU/NZ), turpentine substitute, and petroleum spirits, is a petroleum-derived clear liquid used as a common organic solvent in painting. There are also terms for specific kinds of white spirit, including Stoddard solvent and solvent naphtha (petroleum). White spirit is often used as a paint thinner, or as a component thereof, though paint thinner is a broader category of solvent. Odorless mineral spirits (OMS) have been refined to remove the more toxic aromatic compounds, and are recommended for applications such as oil painting.

A paint thinner is a solvent used to thin oil-based paints. Solvents labeled "paint thinner" are usually mineral spirits having a flash point at about 40 °C (104 °F), the same as some popular brands of charcoal starter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rubber cement</span> Type of adhesive

Rubber cement is an adhesive made from elastic polymers mixed in a solvent such as acetone, hexane, heptane or toluene to keep it fluid enough to be used. This makes it part of the class of drying adhesives: as the solvents quickly evaporate, the rubber solidifies, forming a strong yet flexible bond.

Japan black is a lacquer or varnish suitable for many substrates but known especially for its use on iron and steel. It can also be called japan lacquer and Brunswick black. Its name comes from the association between the finish and Japanese products in the West. Used as a verb, japan means "to finish in japan black". Thus japanning and japanned are terms describing the process and its products.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acetone</span> Organic compound ((CH3)2CO); simplest ketone

Acetone is an organic compound with the formula (CH3)2CO. It is the simplest and smallest ketone. It is a colorless, highly volatile and flammable liquid with a characteristic pungent odor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Primer (paint)</span> Preparatory coating put on materials before painting

A primer or undercoat is a preparatory coating put on materials before painting. Priming ensures better adhesion of paint to the surface, increases paint durability, and provides additional protection for the material being painted.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Methyl isobutyl ketone</span> Chemical compound

Methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK, 4-methylpentan-2-one) is an organic compound with the condensed chemical formula (CH3)2CHCH2C(O)CH3. This ketone is a colourless liquid that is used as a solvent for gums, resins, paints, varnishes, lacquers, and nitrocellulose.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NMR tube</span> Laboratory glassware

An NMR tube is a thin glass walled tube used to contain samples in nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Typically NMR tubes come in 5 mm diameters but 10 mm and 3 mm samples are known. It is important that the tubes are uniformly thick and well-balanced to ensure that NMR tube spins at a regular rate, usually about 20 Hz in the NMR spectrometer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Automotive paint</span> Coloring and resistance to corrosion of cars

Automotive paint is paint used on automobiles for both protective and decorative purposes. Water-based acrylic polyurethane enamel paint is currently the most widely used paint for reasons including reducing paint's environmental impact.

Isopropyl alcohol is a colorless, flammable organic compound with a pungent alcoholic odor. As an isopropyl group linked to a hydroxyl group it is the simplest example of a secondary alcohol, where the alcohol carbon atom is attached to two other carbon atoms. It is a structural isomer of propan-1-ol and ethyl methyl ether. They all have the formula C3H8O.

Stain-blocking primers are used to cover stains such as watermarks, nicotine, markers, smoke, and prevent them bleeding through newly applied layers of paint. They also provide adhesion over problematic surfaces, giving better film leveling, and durability. Commonly used stain-blocking paints include acrylic and alkyd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reactive diluent</span>

Reactive diluents are substances which reduce the viscosity of a lacquer or resin for processing and become part of the lacquer or coating during its subsequent curing via copolymerization. A non-reactive diluent would be a solvent or plasticizer.

VOC exempt solvents are organic compounds that are exempt from restrictions placed on most volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the United States. This class of solvent currently includes acetone, dimethyl carbonate, methyl acetate, parachlorobenzotrifluoride, tert-Butyl acetate, and propylene carbonate. The definition is often that they do not contribute to ozone or ozone depletion.

References

  1. NPCS Board of Consultants & Engineers (9 July 2017). Manufacture of Thinners & Solvents (Properties, Uses, Production, Formulation with Machinery Details). Niir Project Consultancy Services. ISBN   978-93-81039-83-0.
  2. Bottens, Bernie. "What chemicals are in your lacquer thinner?". The Woodworking Network. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  3. "General Purpose Low VOC Lacquer Thinner, 5 Gallon" . Retrieved 2018-04-09.
  4. "Enamel vs Lacquer vs Acrylic Model Paints" . Retrieved 2022-02-25.