Pigments & Colourants

Both are titanium dioxide (Pigment White 6) in different crystal forms. Rutile has the higher refractive index, about 2.7 against roughly 2.5 for anatase, so it gives more hiding power, and it is less photoactive, so it is chosen for exterior paints, plastics and durable coatings. Anatase is softer and slightly bluer-white; it suits interior paints, paper, ceramics and delustering of synthetic fibres, where long outdoor exposure is not needed.

Both are copper phthalocyanine blue (C.I. 74160) in different crystal forms. Alpha blue (Pigment Blue 15, 15:1, 15:2) is the warmer, red-shade blue; unstabilised alpha can shift to the greener beta form with heat or aromatic solvents, so stabilised 15:1 grades are used in solvent paints. Beta blue (Pigment Blue 15:3, 15:4) is the stable green-shade blue and the standard process cyan of printing inks; 15:4 grades resist flocculation in paints.

No. India's Regulation of Lead Contents in Household and Decorative Paints Rules, 2016 cap lead at 90 ppm, which rules out lemon, middle and primrose chrome (Pigment Yellow 34), scarlet chrome (Pigment Red 104) and red lead in those paints. These pigments are supplied only for permitted industrial uses, with the buyer confirming the end use. Lead-free routes include organic yellows, mixed metal oxides and zinc phosphate primers.

Iron oxides are the standard choice because they are lightfast and stable in the strong alkali of cement and lime: red (Pigment Red 101), yellow (Pigment Yellow 42), black and blended browns and oranges, typically dosed at 1–5% of cement weight. Phthalocyanine green and blue, ultramarine and mixed metal oxides add other shades. Prussian blue is unsuitable, because alkali breaks it down.

In leafing paste the aluminium flakes are coated with stearic acid, so they float to the surface and overlap into a bright, mirror-like silver layer that reflects heat and resists moisture; it suits heat-resistant, roof and tank paints and is not normally overcoated. Non-leafing flakes stay spread through the film, giving a metallic sparkle that can be tinted or clear-coated, as in automotive, two-wheeler and hammer-tone finishes.

Share the C.I. name (for example Pigment Blue 15:3) or the brand and grade you use now, your end use and system (water-based, solvent-based, plastic or cement), a shade standard, any heat, light or bleed requirement, and the quantity. We confirm grade and make before quoting, send samples on request for your own trial, and ship the manufacturer's COA and SDS with every batch.