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On Jan. 1, 2023, the industry will undergo a change as the requirements NSF/ANSI/CAN 600 are adopted into the NSF Std 61 Health Effects Evaluation and Criteria for Chemicals in Drinking Water standard. While much of the nation will be rushing to prepare for these new standards, Induron Protective Coatings—longtime manufacturer of  ceramic epoxies for corrosive environments—has been ready for some time. 

“Ceramic epoxy” refers to a unique pigment package that Induron adds to our epoxy technologies.  PHOTOs: COURTESY OF INDURON

More than a decade ago, when the industry was adopting new standards for VOC emissions, Induron developed several new coating products for water tank and water treatment plant clients. During this process, we had a choice to make:

Either 1) develop a product that meets the minimum requirements of present day or 2) look at the direction of regulation and develop for the future.

Committed to the belief that the company’s value in this market derives from innovation, we chose to design for the future. While it was more difficult, more time consuming and more costly, it is now making life much easier for Induron and its partners, as the nation prepares for the implementation of NSF 600.

When preparing for the OTC phase 1 regulation, it was clear that the elimination of many more solvents in the future was inevitable. Induron made the choice to not only reduce the VOCs in any new products we developed, but to also go a step further and eliminate Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs) from new formulas. This was an expensive move, and it absolutely made selling our products more difficult in the short run due to the impact on cost. However, because of this forward-thinking decision, Induron products have been releasing lower-level VOCs and HAPs into the environment for years.

The decision to go HAPs free all those years ago left us with a fully-compliant catalog of NSF 61/600-approved ceramic epoxy products, which now have more than a decade of proven performance.

Benefits of NSF 600-approved ceramic epoxy technology

If you have interacted with Induron, you have heard the term “ceramic epoxy.” Ceramic epoxy refers to a unique pigment package that we add to our epoxy technologies. The ceramic spheres included in the pigment package of Induron’s ceramic epoxies add multiple application and performance benefits for both steel and concrete substrates, making ceramic epoxies ideal for water, wastewater and treatment plants.

Induron Protective Coatings has manufactured ceramic epoxies for various corrosive environments, including potable water storage tanks and water treatment facilities.

• Reduced permeability;
• Increased film build; and
• Prohibition of microbial growth.

Perhaps the most complex and important attribute of ceramic epoxy performance comes from our ability to design the point at which the film’s adhesion will become greater than its cohesion. This means that, when a corrosion cell forms, the coating will break at the point of stress without peeling back to expose more substrate. In this manner, ceramic epoxy has become the proven solution to stop undercutting corrosion and ensure that small repair areas do not spread out to jeopardize the surrounding coatings as they would with non-ceramic epoxies.  

Induron has the right coatings solution to meet and exceed customers’ needs for the corrosion protection of assets and provide a long lasting, aesthetically-pleasing appearance. 

For more information about ceramic epoxy technology, contact an Induron sales representative or visit induron.com.