Press Releases

2005

March 23, 2005

Sales Launch of water treatment agent for waterborne paints "Kuristuck ™B310"

Kurita Water Industries (HQ: Shinjuku, Tokyo, President: Hiroshi Fujino) has developed "Kuristuck™B310", a water treatment agent designed for the treatment of waterborne paints used in auto factories. Favorable results from 5 tests with actual equipment allow for the full-scale launch of "Kuristuck™B310".

[Summary]

Painting booths designed for spray painting automobiles are outfitted with a system that not only absorbs excess paint from the air within the booth but also collects it into "circulating water" to assure proper painting."Kuristuck™B310" is a water treatment agent that achieves separation and recovery of paint present in the circulating water.
The adoption of waterborne paints free of toxic VOC (volatile organic compounds), instead of the existing solventborne paints, is a general upward trend for the minimization of the environmental burden of paints used in auto painting. The use of existing water treatment agents, however, has posed the problem of potential insufficient treatment of paint in circulating water due to different properties of waterborne paint and solventborne paint. Therefore this problem has demanded the development of a new type of water treatment agent that adapts to waterborne paints. "Kuristuck™B310" is an innovative agent that delivers superior flocculation effects and contributes to stable painting quality while maintaining clean circulating water. "Kuristuck™B310" relieves the loads on general effluent treatment facilities of the final circulating water treatment process, which eventually leads to a reduction in waste from excess paint, as well as the prevention of water pollution.

[Text]

1. Development background

Automobile painting booths are equipped with a system at the bottom of the booth that absorbs excess paint from the air and collects it into the circulating water to assure proper painting. Excess paint is collected and undergoes separation through the addition of a circulating water treatment agent which renders treated water reusable. Changing the paint type from solvent based to water based causes difficulties with separating solids and liquids that result in the accumulation of residual paint in the circulating water. This causes the problems listed below.

  1. a)Deterioration of painting quality
    A decrease in the amount of circulating water is caused by high viscosity and foaming of the circulating water, which affects the collection of excess paint from the air. Insufficient painting occurs because of excess paint remaining in the booth.
  2. b) Increase in loads on general effluent treatment facilities
    The load on a general effluent treatment facility rises with an increase in COD and BOD in the circulating water.
  3. c)Waste increase
    A high percentage of the moisture content in sludge (mainly solid content) produced by the effluent treatment process (collection and precipitation) is obtained due to a high affinity for water in waterborne paint, which results in an increase in waste.

These problems have motivated the development of a new type of water treatment agent that has been adapted to waterborne paints.

2. "Kuristuck™B310"

"Kuristuck™B310", originated by Kurita Water Industries, not only eliminates the problems of the previous water treatment agent but also improves productivity. Key features of "Kuristuck™B310" include:

  • 1) "Kuristuck™B310" features
    1. a)Excellent collection and separation
      When "Kuristuck™B310" reacts with paint particles, it forms a light, hard coating on the particle surface which is superior in hydrophobicity. The excess paint separation gains speed, which produces a stable separation.
      "Kuristuck™B310" is capable of collecting the foaming substances in paint, such as surface-active agents, which ensures drastic curbs in the foaming of circulating water.
    2. b) Expanded versatility
      Constant and superior results are obtained regardless of the scale and type of the painting booth.
      It is capable of producing the same effects regardless of the type of paint enabling treatment with a mix of waterborne paint and solventborne paint.
    3. c)High level of safety
      No materials outside the legal limit are used. It uses alkaline solutions and low sodium, which causes no corrosion damage to the booth.
    4. d) Cost reduction
      A cutback in running costs of 80 to 100 yen per car is generated, as compared to 120 to 150 yen with our previous product.
  • 2) "Kuristuck™B310" advantages
    1. a)Stable painting quality
      Stable excess paint control and elimination are allowed by maintaining clean circulating water, which also stabilizes painting quality.
    2. b)Decrease in loads on general effluent treatment facilities
      A 1/5 - 1/10 reduction in not only the SS (suspended solids) concentration of the circulating water, but also a 1/5 reduction of COD and BOD, which relieves the load on general effluent treatment facilities.
    3. c)Curbs in waste
      High hydrophobicity of separated and eliminated paint components facilitates dehydration, which allows a 10% to 20% reduction in moisture content which drastically curbs sludge.

3. Our target market

The waterborne paint painting booths on which "Kuristuck™B310" is capitalized represent approximately 30% of the industry, and previously had a 450 million yen annual market. Estimated annual sales of As more and more plants are incorporating "Kuristuck™B310" each year, estimated annual sales are expected to be 2 billion yen if implemented in all relevant plants.
With prospects of its adoption in electric equipment and metal manufacturers that have pursued a reduction in VOC, the market in which "Kuristuck™B310" is applicable is presumed to expand to 2.5 billion yen a year.

4. Further business development

Kurita Water Industries has been aggressively engaged in the marketing of "Kuristuck™B310", aiming at auto manufacturers, painting booth manufacturers, and paint manufacturers. Focus is being given to achieving an anticipated annual sales of 500 million yen in three years.