Penetrative Nature and Chemical Bonding of Silicate Mineral Paints

Modern acrylic paints sit on top of the surface like a band-aid and are film formers. The nature of their adhesion is physical and they are stuck to the surface due to the stickiness or tackiness of their polymers. It is comparable to putting a layer of plastic such as cling-wrap on your building. This causes many issues such as dust-pickup due to the polymers (See our article on “Dust Resistance of Silicate Mineral Paints”) and trapped moisture behind walls due to the impermeability (See our article “What is Paint Breathability and Why is it Important?”) of these films to water vapor. The trapped moisture evaporates and increases greatly in volume during the drying process. Due to moisture impermeability of the paint film, the water vapor exerts great pressure on the paint film. A superficial physical bonding cannot withstand these pressures and the result is the classic sight of the paint blistering or bubbling.

Zydex Silicate Mineral Paints are made using Potassium Silicate (see our article on “What is Potassium Silicate”). Due to Potassium Silicates water like consistency, it has the ability to penetrate onto the masonry on which it is being applied. It further reacts with the mineral surfaces to become chemically attached in a manner that is irreversible. Thus, the paint matrix becomes an integral part of the surface. This is demonstrated by the fact that the pull-off adhesion values for Zydex Silicate Mineral Paints are between 3.5-4 N/mm2 as compared to Acrylic paints which are in the 0.7-1.2 N/mm2 range.

Acrylic coatings form a surface film on the surface which bonds only through mechanical adhesion

Zydex mineral paints penetrate into the substrate and form an inseparable chemical bond

The penetrative chemical bonding combined with the breathability of Zydex Silicate Mineral Paints ensures that not only does the trapped moisture escape easily, but the paint matrix does not blister or bubble or delaminate due to being an integral part of the wall. Instead of flaking or peeling at the end of their service life, Zydex Silicate Mineral Paints weather gracefully over decades!