New Point1 Resists Intense Heat

Northern Advocate, 30 November 1948, Page 3

New Point 1 Resists Intense Heat

MELBOURNE (Per Airmail)—Noninflammable, heat-resisting paints have been developed by the Australian Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.

The Minister in charge of research (Mr J. J. Dedman), in announcing the development, said the paints would resist temperatures of more than 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. The basis of the new paints, said Mr Dedman, is butyl titanate, produced from rutile and ilmenite, major components of the extensive heavy beach sand deposits of New Soutji Wales and Southern Queensland.

Tested on the inside of the main flue stack at Yallourn (electric power centre of the Victorian State Electricity Commission), butyl titanate paint effectively checked corrosion, which normally removed one ounce of steel per square foot every six weeks.

After 32 weeks under these extreme conditions the new paint was still in excellent condition.

Test samples of ordinary paint had entirely disappeared. In addition to its heat-resisting properties. the new paint, said Mr Dedman, provided superior protection against salt-water corrosion. Preliminary tests indicated that ships would need painting far less frequently, and the fire risk would be greatly decreased. Butyl titanate could be added to ordinary linseed oil paints to provide resistance to chalking and weather, the Minister stated. It could also be used to give a matt surface to nitrocellulose lacquers.