Case Studies › Achieving Crystal Clarity for Chemical Coatings

Achieving Crystal Clarity for Chemical Coatings

Ink, Paints, and Coatings • September, 2025

Industrial coatings company eliminated visible haze in isopropyl alcohol formulations using Strainrite's glass media filters, achieving crystal clarity at low pressure while scaling from lab trials to dual production lines with superior throughput.

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The Problem

A leading industrial coatings manufacturer developing an innovative isopropyl alcohol-based product required absolute optical clarity in their formulation. During lab-scale development, an unexpected haze — later identified as suspended salts 1–5 microns in size — threatened the launch and prompted a search for a reliable filtration partner.

The Solution

When the pilot plant team was consulted, Strainrite’s filtration specialists drew on their experience with salt removal and recommended a shift away from polypropylene — as commonly used by competitors — toward glass fiber media.

Situation

A leading industrial coatings manufacturer developing an innovative isopropyl alcohol-based product required absolute optical clarity in their formulation — a necessity for performance and visual quality. During lab-scale development, an unexpected haze threatened the launch, prompting a search for a reliable filtration partner.

Lab-scale batches developed a visible haze after blending, adversely affecting the amber product’s clarity. The haze was identified as suspended salts, primarily 1–5 microns in size. Even with finer filtration, end users struggled to achieve the required combination of throughput and clarity.

Early Attempts:

1 µm disc filters: Only moderate haze reduction; media type unknown.
1 µm Meissner polypropylene capsule: Also moderate success.
0.2 µm Meissner polypropylene capsule: Improved, but still not perfect. Filtration was slow and problematic due to high media volume relative to batch size.

Solution

When the pilot plant team was consulted, Strainrite’s filtration specialists drew on experience with salt removal and recommended a shift away from polypropylene — as commonly used by competitors — toward glass fiber media.

Key Steps

Proposed the Strainrite MCP5D101GP0.8S capsule filter (glass pleat P 0.8 µm glass media).
Laboratory trial conducted using a MAXX-Cap with glass pleat 0.8 media.

Results

The customer’s words say it all.

I finished a filtering trial using the MAXX-Cap MCP5DO0GP0.8-V with great success!!! I filtered 4.5 kg of the solid material (dissolved in IPA/Water to 58% solids) through the filter with ease. The pressure required was less than 10 psi and the flow was very impressive. Material came out crystal clear indicating the fine solid was completely filtered out.

Highlights

Outstanding Clarity:

All visible haze removed; final product crystal clear.

Efficient Throughput:

Low pressure (<10 psi) with high flow rates — significantly better than previous attempts.

Operator Satisfaction:

Simple set-up, no blockage, and minimized handling for small-scale lab batches.

Commercial Impact:

From Lab to Production: Scalable Success. Based on the expected flow rate and size of the application, the project moved from a lab-scale single-use MAXX-Cap to a Large Diameter Mad-MAXX GF cartridge while still using the same 0.8 micron media that was trialled with the MAXX-Cap Glass Pleat capsule. With commercial launch, two coating lines are operating in parallel, each equipped with duplexed #1 size housings and Strainrite Mad-MAXX GF 0.8 filters.

Problem Solved: Glass media succeeded where polypropylene failed — delivering not only technical performance, but also faster batch times and reliable scale-up.

Partnership Value: Strainrite’s expertise enabled rapid troubleshooting, minimized development delays, and helped the customer bring a new product to market with confidence.