Accelerated Environmental Testing

ETAC helps manufacturers test and evaluate the durability and weather-resistance of coatings and products.

• About "Weather-ability"
• About the XR35 Weather-Ometer
• Industrial Uses of the Weather-Ometer
• How Accelerated Environmental Testing Can Benefit Your Business
• Send a question to an ETAC Environmental Testing expert. ETAC experts will answer Environmental Testing questions every Monday, or sooner if necessary.

About "Weather-ability"

As coatings are exposed to the weather, they eventually degrade and age as a result of sunlight, moisture, and extreme temperatures. The "weather-ability" of a coating is its resistance to deterioration upon exposure to these elements. The weather-ability of a coating or product can be improved by modifying the chemical formulation or manufacturing process, and testing these new products under simulated operating conditions. Since the natural weathering process is extremely time consuming due to the low intensity of exposure, accelerated weathering conditions to determine a material's durability or aging properties can advance product development and provide the consumer with longer lasting materials. ETAC installed an intense environmental testing facility to verify that replacement coatings will perform as well or better than solvent-based coatings. Instruments in their testing facility include the XR35 Weather-Ometer, Industrial Type 411 Corrosion Test Chamber and CSF850 Cyclic Salt Fog Chamber.

About the XR35 Weather-Ometer
The XR35 Weather-Ometer is a precision environmental testing instrument manufactured by Atlas Electric Devices Company, which repeatedly exposes specimens to accelerated environmental conditions and weathering cycles. The instrument creates weather conditions by controlling the temperature, humidity, light and water spray. A typical cycle may include freezing and then thawing at elevated temperatures, high and low humidity, alternating light and dark, and alternating water spray exposure. The weather-ability of a specimen can be quickly determined with the exact control of temperature, humidity and radiant energy, as compared to ordinary outdoor weather testing. ETAC's Industrial Type 411 Corrosion and CSF850 Cyclic Salt Fog Test Chambers provide reliable salt-spray fog and humidity testing for weather-ability and quality control of product finishes.

The Weather-Ometer consists of a control panel, test chamber housing a specimen rack and water-cooled xenon lamp and supporting internal components. The specimen rack supports three tiers of specimen holders and rotates at one revolution per minute to evenly expose specimens to light and water spray. The standard lamp used with the XR35 is a 6500-Watt model, which is cooled with circulating de-ionized water. The specimen spray tube has three nozzles, which spray de-ionized water on the front surface of test specimens to stimulate rain and may also expose specimens to thermal shock. Another spray tube allows water to hit the back of specimens to produce condensation on the front. Wet and dry bulb thermometer sensors provide a differential reading to control the humidity and a panel sensor is attached to the specimen holder for temperature monitoring. Air blowers at the top of the chamber ensure uniform airflow over the specimens.

Industrial Uses of the Weather-Ometer
The Weather-Ometer may be used to test the weather-ability of coatings, adhesives, platings, plastics or fabrics, such as window handles and other mechanisms that open and close. Industrial uses include testing the weather-ability of the following items:

• Paint on automobiles, outdoor signs and roofing
• Adhesives for outdoor products
• Water tight enclosures for electrical equipment

How Accelerated Environmental Testing Can Benefit Your Business
There are several ways that the Accelerated Environmental Testing may benefit your product or process including:

• Drastically reduces the time required to determine if paint fades, adhesives adhere or electronic housings leak.
• Ensures that coatings adhere to substrates under adverse conditions.
• Ensures that coatings do not corrode from salt spray.
• Verifies the performance of coatings products that operate outdoors.

To learn more about how Accelerated Environmental Testing may benefit your business, contact us.