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The secret of the hydrophobic layer of the protective film

According to statistics, China will have 302 million cars by December 2021. The end consumer market has gradually provided rigid demand to invisible car clothing as the number of vehicles continues to expand and the demand for paint maintenance continues to rise. In the face of an expanding consumer market, competition among invisible automobile clothes businesses is heating up. The current tendency is that low-end rivalry is centered on pricing, whereas high-end competition is centered on technical thresholds.

Decorative Film

The secret of the protective film's hydrophobic layer (1)

Because today's products are so homogeneous, the end goal of the price war must be to harm the opponent by a thousand and lose eight hundred. Only by depending on cutting-edge technology to discover a way out and establish product difference can we capture new market opportunities.

Pay attention to the new technology of car coat coating and seize the industry ride

The automobile cover, as we all know, has anti-scratch, tear-resistance, and other features. These characteristics are derived from the car cover's TPU substrate. A good TPU material car cover protects the paint surface well and has a long service life. Another key function of the automobile cover is self-cleaning, self-repairing, and high-brightening. These functions are derived from the coating on the TPU substrate's surface. The quality of that layer not only defines the great self-cleaning function, but it is also one of the most important variables in deciding the appearance of the car. As a result, when buyers buy car clothes to maintain the automobile's everyday appearance, they pay extra attention to the coating's self-cleaning performance.

 

There is a difference between closeness and distance, and the hydrophobic coating car cover is more real!

Many invisible car covers are advertised as having a self-cleaning function, but there is a question mark about the effect. Even many film shops need help understanding. There are hydrophilic and hydrophobic types of invisible car covers. Today we're going to talk about this intimacy difference.

Some car owners found in the process of using that after encountering rain when the water evaporates, black or white rain spots will appear on the surface of the invisible car, similar to the picture below.

According to industry insiders, the primary reason for this is that the vehicle coat's coating is not hydrophobic, therefore water droplets cling to the car coat and do not flow down. When water evaporates, leftover substances form watermarks, water stains, and rain patches. Suppose the coating's compactness is insufficient. In that situation, the residual substances will also infiltrate the interior of the membrane, resulting in rain stains that cannot be wiped or washed away, severely reducing the membrane's service life.

 

Is the car coat coating hydrophilic or hydrophobic? How does this differentiate?

Before we can learn to differentiate, we must first understand the concept of hydrophilic and hydrophobic.

Microscopically, the contact angle between a water droplet and the membrane surface determines whether it is hydrophilic or hydrophobic. A contact angle less than 90° is hydrophilic, a contact angle less than 10° is super hydrophilic, a contact angle larger than 90° is hydrophobic, and a contact angle greater than 150° is Super-hydrophobic.

The secret of the hydrophobic layer of the protective film (2)

The secret of the protective film's hydrophobic layer (2) In terms of the coating of the automobile cover, if the self-cleaning effect is to be produced. It is a feasible solution in theory, whether it is to improve the hydrophobicity or the hydrophobicity. The self-cleaning effect, on the other hand, is optimum only when the hydrophilic contact angle is less than 10 degrees, and the hydrophobic surface does not need to be increased too high to create a good self-cleaning effect.

Some businesses have conducted statistical tests. Most vehicle coats on the market today are hydrophilic coatings. At the same time, it has been discovered that contemporary automobile coat coatings cannot attain super hydrophilicity of 10°, and the majority of contact angles are 80°-85°, with the minimum contact angle being 75°.

As a result, the self-cleaning effect of the market's hydrophilic car cover might be improved. This is because, after attaching the hydrophilic invisible car cover, the area of the body in touch with sewage increases on rainy days, increasing the likelihood of stains and adhering to the paint surface, which is difficult to clean.

According to experts, the production process of hydrophilic coatings is simpler and less expensive than that of hydrophobic coatings. In contrast, hydrophobic coatings necessitate the inclusion of nano-hydrophobic oleophobic ingredients, and the process requirements are quite stringent, which most companies cannot meet—hence the popularity of the waterwheel jacket.

However, the hydrophobic car cover has unique advantages in tackling the problem of the poor self-cleaning effect of invisible car coverings because the hydrophobic coating has the same impact as the lotus leaf effect.

The secret of the protective film's hydrophobic layer (3) The lotus leaf effect is that after rain, the rough microscopic morphology and epidermal wax on the lotus leaf surface prevent water droplets from spreading and adsorbing on the leaf surface, but instead create water droplets. At the same time, it removes dust and grime from the leaves.

The secret of the protective film's hydrophobic layer (4) 

When placed on the hydrophobic vehicle jacket, it is demonstrated that when rainwater falls on the surface of the membrane, it forms water droplets due to the surface tension of the hydrophobic coating. The water droplets will simply slide off and depart the membrane surface due to gravity. Rolling water droplets can also remove dust and sludge from the membrane surface, creating a self-cleaning effect.

The secret of the hydrophobic layer of the protective film (3)
The secret of the hydrophobic layer of the protective film (4)

How to distinguish whether the car coating is hydrophilic or hydrophobic?

There are two main ways:

1. Use professional devices to measure the contact angle.

2.Water is rolled across the membrane surface to make a preliminary assessment.

Water droplets easily adsorb on the conventional hydrophilic surface. Water droplets will not form on a very hydrophilic surface. Only the surface will be moist; water droplets will develop on hydrophobic surfaces as well, but they will flow with gravity. , converge and drift away, the surface remains dry, and the super-hydrophobic effect is stronger.

As a result, when water is placed on the automobile coat, it forms scattered beads, is difficult to flow, and the majority of it is a hydrophilic coating. The water droplets converge and glide away, exposing the surface, which is mostly covered in hydrophobic coatings.


Post time: Sep-15-2022