Consumers love metallic coatings on their vehicles, and the popularity of effect pigments offering these unique colors continues to grow. Meeting consumer demand for new effects is a continual challenge, sometimes exacerbated by environmental and processing influences. This paper will discuss some of the hurdles faced by both aluminum pigment and coatings manufacturers in their quest to deliver tomorrow's metallic coatings.
Color sells cars - and metallic colors have never been more popular. Silver, king of all metallic colors, has been riding a popularity boom for the past five years. While silver's popularity will not continue forever, our love affair with a metallic appearance will continue. From bright, sparkling, chromatic colors to smoother, more subtle effects, the demand for metallic colors on a global basis has never been greater. While today's "techno-silver" may begin to lose its appeal, gray, blue and brown metallics, utilizing high levels of aluminum pigments, will begin to take its place. This popularity and the demand for new effect colors has heightened and underscored the need for continuing research and development in the areas of appearance and performance.