The Green Solvents Show #010
Many coatings manufacturers are struggling to find safe, environmentally-friendly solvents which work effectively across a broad range of formulations. Companies using Xylene, Tertiary Butyl Acetate (TBAc), or ParaChloroBenzoTriFluoride (PCBTF) in formulation are interested in finding a more effective, environmentally-friendly alternative. TBF Environmental has recently introduced several high-performance, low-VOC solvent products.

Invest 20 minutes to listen to The Green Solvents Show and learn more about environmentally-friendly solvents. Host Erik Reynolds interviews Dave Pasin, co-founder and President of TBF Environmental, about the effectiveness of using of EkaSol 1™,  (patent pending), and ZemaSol™ (patent pending), in industrial coating polymer systems.
Testing for Solvent Performance Parameters
An independent lab was commissioned to compare the performance of ZemaSol vs. Xylene, Tertiary Butyl Acetate (TBAc), and ParaChloroBenzoTriFluoride (PCBTF), and EkaSol 1 vs Dimethyl Carbonate (DMC) and Methyl Ethyl Ketone (MEK). The solvents were evaluated using the same resins so as to compare their efficacy in an equitable fashion.

Several substrates including concrete, steel were used to apply the coating. Tests were conducted for any differences in touch, surface and through dry, gloss and adhesion.
The Test Results
In the solvency and viscosity tests, EkaSol 1 performed equally as well as MEK and had none of the safety concerns of MEK such as flashpoint and toxicity. EkaSol 1 also has a milder, gentler, faster dissipating odor.

Likewise, ZemaSol performed as well as Xylene in each application, and better than TBAc and PCBTF. During the tests ZemaSol was far more effective in reducing solvency and viscosity to about 65% in non-volatile solids. ZemaSol also displayed faster viscosity reduction than other solvents, attesting to its superior efficiency in viscosity control and solid reduction.

During the podcast, Dave will also go through other details of the independent testing, including:

Formulations tested
Hardness test results
Adhesion test results
Assessing gloss
Conclusions of all the tests

Environmentally-friendly Solvent Options
Manufacturers need to replace conventional toxic solvents with high-quality, environmentally-friendly substitutes with less odour and other problems. To learn more about the tests comparing conventional solvents to TBF Environmental’s products, listen to this podcast and come back to give us your thoughts.

TBF products utilize innovative chemical formulations which result in products that reduce or eliminate the production of hazardous waste and emissions, improve environmental impact and increase worker safety.

Listen to Dave Pasin in this podcast to learn the results of the comparison. Then come back and give us your feedback.