colors. This area usage of paint is expanding at a very rapid pace, especially in schools, hospitals, other
institutions, and industrial plants.
e. Appearance. The primary use of paint is to provide maintenance and improve safety and
efficiency. Decorative painting is sometimes considered to be secondary in importance and is therefore
kept at a minimum. However, the functional use of color creates comfortable living and working
conditions and more pleasant surroundings that result in improved morale and increased efficiency.
f. Camouflage. The military forces use paint to camouflage weapons and installations against
enemy detection. As a result of expert application of colors that blend with the surrounding terrain, the
enemy has difficulty detecting the locations of weapons, supplies, buildings, or even ships from the air.
g. Fire Retardance. Application of fire-retardant paint will delay the spread of fire and assist in
confining it to its origin. This allows more time during which fire-fighting equipment can arrive to
extinguish the blaze before it gets out of control. The use of fire-retardant paint is restricted to
appreciable areas of highly combustible surfaces and for selected uses. Use of this paint type is further
restricted to interior surfaces except for Arctic areas. You should not consider fire-retardant paint as a
substitute for conventional paints because its cost is much higher.
2-4. Principle Ingredients of Protective-Coating Materials. The principal paint ingredients are the
pigment and the vehicle. The pigment is the part of the paint that constitutes the solids, and the vehicle
is the fluid. The many types of materials used in the formulation of paint are far too numerous to
describe in this lesson; however, in order to acquaint you with the most common paint pigments and
vehicles, they are discussed as a class, and in some instances, the more important materials in a class are
described.
2-5. Pigments. Pigments are fine, solid particles used in the preparation of paint, which are insoluble
in the paint vehicle. Pigments are available in two forms: paste and powder. Powder forms a stiff
consistency when combined with oil, lacquer, or an other vehicle. There are five main types of pigments
to use: white, color, metallic, black and extender.
a. White Pigments. White pigments are of great importance to you and the paint industry
because white is a widely used color and serves as the base for popular pastel or tinted colors. The most
common white pigments used are titanium dioxide and antimony oxide. Due to regulations, lead and
zinc-oxide pigments are no longer in use or are restricted to 0.06 percent or less of the paint's content.
(1) Titanium dioxide. This white pigment has been available since 1932. It has a definite
advantage where maximum hiding is required. Titanium dioxide has overshadowed all other white
pigments because of its chalking ability. This means the surface becomes chalky, and you can rub or
wash it off. This is an obvious advantage when white or light-colored house paint is used because rain
will wash away the chalk, and along with it goes the dirt and the grime, leaving a clean, bright surface.
Its disadvantage is with dark colors because it gives a fading appearance to the color.
EN0562
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