GE Industrial Systems

Industrial Motor Paint Facts

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Cindy Grimes, GE Industrial Systems, Materials Engineering, 10/17/01

Industrial Motor Paint Facts:

General Paint Chemistry
A paint system consists of three processes: proper cleaning of the machined casting, application of a suitable primer, and finally the finish coat itself.

The performance of any paint system is a function of the type of material to be protected and its surface characteristics, as well as paint chemistry, film build, and the environmental exposure expected for the painted part. All these factors must be considered when comparing paint systems and evaluating results.
Surface Type
Both the chemistry and surface profile of the material to be painted will affect its propensity to corrode. While the characteristics of cast-in strength of design, heat transfer and precision machinability make it an ideal material for electric motor containment, cast iron is also one of the more challenging surfaces to coat. There is little in the chemistry of cast iron to prevent it from rusting, and the typically rough surface makes building an adequate protective coat difficult due to natural paint flow away from the projections. When reviewing paint performance claims it is important to realize that paint testing is generally carried out on smooth steel panels. For equivalent performance on cast iron, the surface profile must first be filled, and then an equivalent film built above the projections. This can be achieved through sophisticated paint chemistry, by expensive multiple coats, or with filled paints.

Primers
A primer rich in heavy metals is effective for corrosion resistance, but environmental regulations now restrict the use of this type of paint. Primers containing zinc at lower levels than qualifying as zinc-rich primer are sometimes found on castings made outside the USA. However a true zinc-rich primer may still be applied to these under controlled conditions. The casting is first sandblasted to remove the existing primer coat, after which new primer is applied in an environmentally approved manner. Since zinc-rich primers function by creating a galvanic cell with the metal surface to be protected, they will not be effective if applied over a previously painted surface.

Final Paint
Manufacturers often refer generically to epoxy paint, but there are in fact several grades that may give entirely different results. For example, the paint used on GE Standard and Severe Duty motors is a single part air-dry epoxy ester. The table below shows a performance comparison of this epoxy ester against two multi-component paints. Collectively these are the most common paints used on industrial motors. Not all may be available as options on a given motor, depending on manufacturing location.

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Epoxy ester # Components Cure Mechanism Cure Time Typical Film Build* Chemical Resistance (HNO3, H2SO4, HCl and NaOH) Weathering Impact Resistance System Salt Spray ** Bonderite Panels Cast Iron IEEE 841 500 hours 120-350 hours 96 hours 1 Air Dry 20 min 1-2 mils/coat Good Chalks Fair ***

Epoxy 2 Catalyzed 8-10 hours 5-7 mils Excellent Chalks Excellent +1000 hours Not Tested 96 hours

Polyurethane 2 or 3 Catalyzed 8-10 hours 5-7 mils Excellent Excellent Excellent +1000 hours Not Tested 96 hours

Data reported is based on GE experience * One coat final paint is typical ** System implies primer plus topcoat. *** Air-dry epoxy ester paints are fair in impact resistance and will show signs of damage when a chain is dragged across the surface. In some cases, the suppliers will match the primer to the top coat to make it less apparent when the paint chips.

GE has extensive experience with the single part epoxyester paint system. This has demonstrated a consistent ability to perform in a wide range of environments and applications such as paper mills, steel mills, pumps, and locomotives. However, this type of paint is not effective in controlling corrosion in coastal applications, since the film build of epoxyester paint is inadequate to protect the motor from salt corrosion. For such environments, polyurethane paint pro-

vides both the best corrosion protection and UV resistance. Because of longer application and dry times, as well as higher material usage and cost, multi-part catalyzed paint systems are subject to a price adder if applied at the factory. If polyurethane paint was not originally specified, one option is for the customer to apply an additional coat of two component paint prior to motor installation.

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Competitive Studies
To benchmark various paint systems, several competitive motors were purchased and salt spray testing performed on their conduit box covers, motor frames and endshields. Paint performance may vary between parts due to different primers used (as indicated by primer color) and part geometry. Primer type and film thickGE ness can have significant impact on the performance of the total system. Based on measured film thickness and performance seen, it appears that all the motor manufacturers evaluated used single component air-dry paints (see table on page 5).

Toshiba

Baldor

Reliance

Siemens

USEM

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Conduit Box Covers

Competitor Motor Type Toshiba Toshiba Siemens Siemens Reliance Reliance Marathon USEM Baldor GE 324T Severe Duty 405T 365T Severe Duty 445T 96 hours None 250 hours 96 hours Motor Listed as Advertised Salt Top Coat/Primer Spray Performance 96 hours 96 hours Top Coat + Primer Primer Top Coat + Primer Primer Top Coat + Primer Primer Top Coat + Primer Primer Top Coat + Primer Primer Top Coat + Primer Primer 324T Severe Duty 324T Severe Duty 324T Hostile Duty 405T Severe Duty 96 hours Top Coat + Primer Primer Top Coat + Primer Primer Top Coat + Primer Primer Top Coat + Primer Inside Conduit Box Film Build* Avg 324T Severe Duty 2.22 1.09 3.17 1.46 2.77 1.55 2.98 1.69 2.38 1.41 2.13 1.63 3.68 1.29 3.36 2.5 2.12 1.88 4.17 4.31 336 120** 144 168 120 120 168 144 144 120 48 120 144 144 72 168 120 120 192 Salt Spray Failure (>2% red rust or blister) Conduit Box Endshield 120 120 Frame 288

Note: Salt spray performed in accordance with ASTM B117. See T99FWL1623 for additional details. * Film build is very difficult to measure on cast iron. Film builds are estimates using an Elcometer magnetic thickness gage. ** Unit was not removed until 624 hours for pictures. All other units were removed at the time recorded.

Film Thickness
Two common failure mechanisms are seen in painted samples undergoing salt spray tests. The initial failure mode is caused by inadequate film build to fill in the profile of the base material. Subsequently the paint chemistry becomes more important. Film build varied considerably among the samples tested, as did salt spray performance. However the film thickness that can be formed in single coats of air-dry primer and final paint is limited, since excessively heavy application adversely affects other properties such as adhesion, appearance and flexibility.

Conclusion
Field service representatives can help determine the type of paint suitable for specific applications. Based on GEs experience and testing, the paint recommended for coastal applications where protection against salt corrosion is important is a catalyzed two component paint. If a standard single part air-dry paint is used, motors will begin to rust after a short period of time, resulting in unacceptable appearance.

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