Argentina. On November 8, the Ibero-American Technological Association of Paints, Adhesives and Inks (Atipat) organized a technical conference on measurement, formulation and color adjustment in the plant through the use of spectrophotometers.
"The enigma of color has attracted the interest and attention of many of the most gifted intellects of all time, who have contributed to our knowledge of color," said engineer Carina Oddone, who led the training, which lasted about four hours.
During this time, Oddone explained that all the studies that have been done so far on color science have responded to three main objectives: to know how we perceive color and try to express it by objective numerical methods; measure and express in some way the differences we see between two colored samples; Obtain a guide or calculation method that allows us to decide correctly which pigments and in what quantity we should add in a sample to match the color of another sample.
"Color adjustment is often one of the longest stages of the production process, so a reduction in adjustment time has a significant impact on the total cycle, whether the manufacturing system is by direct grinding or through the use of pigment concentrates," said the engineer.
According to Carina, auxiliary systems with spectrophotometer and color formulation software are designed to work as tools that facilitate the colorist's work.
"The most important functions of these systems are to develop initial formulas to match a new color and to calculate color corrections for batches that deviate from the standard," he said.
To implement these functions, he points out, the pigments must be characterized in a database built from a series of panels prepared with the available pigments and mixtures with black and white, using Kubelka Munk's theory as a theoretical framework.
"These systems make it possible to predict in a simple and fast way which pigments are needed to formulate a new color and provide several alternatives from which we will choose the best option according to technical and/or economic criteria. It is also possible to easily and quickly correct deviated batches using the same criteria," he said as part of the presentation of his talk.
