Dow Corning Corporation has introduced a new silicone solid flake resin to its full line of flake resins that is tailored to meet needs for higher-temperature performance, VOC reduction and FDA compliance in powder coatings and cookware/bakeware coatings. Dow Corning 255 Flake Resin is a 100 percent silicone, hydroxyl-functional solid flake resin designed for use as a binder for powder coatings to increase heat stability and weatherability.

“Coatings formulators and resin cookers have long employed the thermal and UV resistance of silicone resins to improve the performance of a wide array of paints and coatings,” said Gerald Witucki, coatings industry specialist for Dow Corning. “Formulated with a high level of crosslinking and controlled organic content, Dow Corning 255 Flake Resin possesses a high glass transition temperature (Tg 56°C) and high residual silicon dioxide (62 percent). These characteristics provide Dow Corning 255 Flake Resin with excellent potential for use in high-temperature powder coatings.”

The high glass transition value offers greater assurance of storage stability and powder flowability, and the high residual silicon dioxide content contributes to higher-temperature performance.

“In addition, the resin exhibits excellent ‘hot hardness’ and is compliant with FDA 21 CFR 175.300, which makes it suitable for cookware and bakeware coatings,” Witucki said. “While ambient hardness is an important property for most coating applications, cookware and bakeware coatings also require hot hardness to minimize coating abrasions during the cooking process.”

Dow Corning 255 Flake Resin also can be used as a blending resin with solvent-based silicone resins to reduce VOC content or with solvent-based organic resins to improve heat stability and weatherability.