From the largest man-made structures to the smallest household appliances, most manufactured products have a protective or cosmetic coating. Premature failure of this coating can, at the very least, result in costly penalties or rework.
Adhesion testing after the coating process will quantify the strength of the bond between substrate and coating, or between different coating layers or the cohesive strength of some substrates. Routine testing is used as part of inspection and maintenance procedures to help detect potential coating failures.
Elcometer offer a highly comprehensive range of Adhesion Gauges designed specifically to meet your requirements. The gauges can be split into three categories:
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Cross Hatch / Cross Cut Method The coating is cut into small squares, thereby reducing lateral bonding, and the adhesion assessed against ISO, ASTM, DIN or other International Standards.
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Pull Off Adhesion Method Tensile Dollies (or stubs) are glued to the coating and, when the adhesive has cured, the force required to pull the dolly off the surface is measured.
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Push Off Adhesion Method Similar to the Pull Off Adhesion Test, a dolly is glued to the coating. When the adhesive has cured the dolly is pushed off the surface by the adhesion gauge. Ideal for adhesion tests on curved surfaces.
How to Select the Correct Adhesion Gauge
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Advantages: |
A fast, low cost, comparison method -see table below under "Description" |
Possible Limitations: |
A subjective test for flat surfaces for a limited thickness range. (250 mic)
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Applications: |
For paint and powder coatings up to a thickness of 125 mic. (5mils) |
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Advantages: |
Simple to use, quantitative range -giving you a definitive adhesion value |
Possible Limitations: |
Time required for some adhesives to cure |
Applications: |
Ideal gauge for the laboratory or field - flat or some curved substrate applications |
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Advantages: |
Fast cure time adhesives can be used, ideal for curved surfaces |
Possible Limitations: |
High forces exerted by gauge may cause thin substrates to deform |
Applications: |
Pipelines and metal spray coatings |
Description
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Surface |
IS0/
BS/DIN |
ASTM |
The edges of the cuts are completely smooth, none of the squares of the lattice are detached
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None
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0.5
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B
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Detachment of small flakes of the coating at the intersections of the cuts, A cross cut area not significantly greater than 5%, is affected
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1
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4B
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The coating has flaked along the edges and/or at the intersections of the cuts. A cross cut area significantly greater than 5%, but not significantly greater than 15%, is affected
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2
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3B
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The coating has flaked along the edges of the cuts partly or wholly in large ribbons, and / or it has flaked partly or wholly on different parts of the squares. A cross cut area significantly greater than 15%, but not significantly greater than 35%, is affected
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3
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2B
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The coating has flaked along the edges of the cuts in large ribbons and/or some squares have detached partly or wholly. Across cut area significantly greater than 35% but not significantly greater than 35% is affected
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4
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1B
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Any degree of flaking that cannot even be classified by classification 4/1B
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5
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0B
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Please click on the appropriate image or on the heading for more information about each instrument.
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The coating may be continuous and look good, but how well is it connected to the substrate? The Elcometer 107 Cross Hatch Cutter provides an instant assessment of the quality of the bond to the substrate. Due to its rugged construction this gauge is ideal for thin, thick or tough coatings on flat or curved surfaces. An ideal field or laboratory testing. Mostly used for coatings up to 250 mic. Conforms to ISO, ASTM, DIN, BS,EN & NFT.
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The Elcometer 1540 Cross Cut Tester is a simple instrument for quickly determining the adhesion of a large variety of paints. Made from special steel, it has 11 tapered teeth with 1mm spacing. Two series of lines are cut at right angles to obtain a pattern of 100 squares. Conforms to ISO, DIN, EN, NF & BS
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The Elcometer 1542 Cross Cut Tester is a simple but effective method for determining the adhesion of a large variety of coatings. The instrument is ideal for testing the adhesion of thin coatings on flat surfaces using the cross cut method, available with three different spacings 1, 2, and 3mm, corresponding to the thickness of layer to be tested. Conforms to ISO, DIN, EN, NF, ASTM, BS, FCCA & NFT.
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The Elcometer 106 Adhesion Tester is perhaps the best known adhesion gauge on the market today. The Elcometer 106 adhesion tester is easy to operate and fully portable, providing a numerical value for adhesion. Supplied in a rugged carry case for moving around the jobsite, the unit is hand operated so you don't have to worry about a power supply! Up to 22 MPa. Conforms to ISO, ASTM, BS, ANSI & NFT.
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The Elcometer 106/6 Adhesion Tester has been specifically designed to measure coatings on concrete. Operating in a similar way to the regular Elcometer 106 Adhesion Testers, the Elcometer 106/6 allows for a 50mm diameter dolly for testing coatings on concrete more accurately. Range 0 to 3.5 MPa. Conforms to BS & ACI.
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The Elcometer 109 Push off Tensile Adhesion Tester provides the operator with a means of carrying out a simple pass/fail test of the adhesion of the coating against a specification limit. If the coating bond is greater than the dolly rating, the dolly breaks - not your coating - thus becomming a 'non-destructive' test. Range 5 to 9 MPa. Conforms to BS, EN, ASTM & Norsok.
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The Elcometer 110 Patti® is a portable pneumatic adhesion tester which uses compressed gas from either a canister or the compressed air feed. Due to the controlled force being applied, the resultant adhesion value is highly repeatable. This, together with the gauge's suitability on thin substrates provides the User with an ideal testing instrument in the laboratory or the field. Up to 70 MPa. Conforms to BS, EN, ASTM.
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The Elcometer 1910 PAT Handy Adhesion Gauge is lightweight, portable, hydraulic adhesion tester has built in hydraulic safety devices for smooth and drift proof accuracy. The special test head allows adhesion tests on both internal and external curved surfaces, making this an ideal gauge for pipelines and protective coatings applications. Up to 6.3kN. Conforms to ISO, ASTM, EN.
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The Elcometer 1940 PAT Adhesion Gauge is the most popular in the Elcometer PAT™ Tester range, a manual hydraulic tensile adhesion tester for measuring the bond strength of all types of paints, thermal sprayed coatings, thin films, concrete coatings, ceramics, etc. A portable, precision gauge with both MPa and PSI readings which gives accurate and comparable test results both in the laboratory and on site. Conforms to ISO, ASTM, EN.
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The Elcometer 1940 PAT Adhesion Gauge is a 20 or 40kN manual Hydraulic Tensile Adhesion Tester for testing of coatings (including thermal sprayed coatings), on test panels, sprayed components. Designed for testing with 50mm diameter test elements and with the square 50 x 50mm test element for adhesion testing of tile adhesives and other cementitious materials. From 6 kN up to 40kN. Conforms to ISO, ASTM, EN.
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The Elcometer 1970 PFCV Portable Field Calibration Verification Unit is for use with all the Elcometer PAT™ models & the Elcometer 106, and Elcometer 108 Adhesion Testers, this Portable Field Calibration Verification Unit is ideal for confirming your adhesion gauge calibration. Connect the appropriate pull stub to the unit, pull your adhesion tester and compare the Adhesion Tester reading to the reading on the Portable Calibration Unit's Display.
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The Elcometer 108 Hydraulic Adhesion Tester is an extremely versatile Hydraulic Adhesion Tester which will cope with many adhesion test requirements up to 25 MPa. Test can be made on flat or curved (concave and convex) surfaces. A reusable dolly is adhered to the coating's surface and the force required to push the dolly from the surface is applied using the handle. The value of the force applied is displayed either on a digital display or on an analogue dial. Conforms to ISO, ASTM, BS, EN.
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