Fluorescent Colors | Daylight Fluorescent Colors

In the 1930s, certain dyes and resin combinations produced brighter colors than normal colors and had the unique effect of “glowing” under ultraviolet or black light.

Fluorescent colored objects are seen three times earlier than objects colored with Conventional Pigments due to the fluorescent colors light given off, meaning they are utilized in applications where catching the eye is beneficial. As the chemistry and manufacturing process improved, the areas of application expanded to advertising. Safety and promotional firms began to recognize the uniqueness of these bright colors and their special uses.

What are Fluorescent Colors?

Fluorescent colors, also known as neon colors, are bright, highly saturated shades that emit a vivid, glowing effect. These colors are created by using special pigments that absorb and reflect more light than conventional colors, often appearing to glow under normal lighting conditions. Fluorescent colors are commonly used in safety gear, signage, fashion, and art to attract attention due to their eye-catching, vibrant appearance. Some popular fluorescent colors include neon yellow, neon green, neon pink, and neon orange.

DAYLIGHT FLUORESCENT COLOURS :

Daylight Fluorescent Pigments can create vivid and eye-catching effects as compared to Conventional Daylight Pigments. For example, the Fluorescent orange color absorbs the same orange band as the conventional, however, it also converts the lower end of the spectrum and ultraviolet light into visible light of the predominant wavelength. Conventional/normal color can reflect only light in the visible range, in the case of Fluorescent Colors, it even converts absorbed UV light and reflects in the visible range, thereby color appear brighter than normal color. When a clean, bright conventional color is able to reflect a maximum of 90% of the color present in the spectrum, a Fluorescent Colour can reflect 200-300% of the color present in the spectrum.

MECHANISM OF DAYLIGHT FLUORESCENT COLOURS :

Daylight Fluorescent Colours occur when higher energy, short-wavelength light is absorbed and instantaneously emitted at wavelengths longer than those of absorption. The addition of the reflected light components can bring the brightness up to three times that of conventional pigments where a lot of the energy is merely absorbed and dissipated as heat. Fluorescent colors are generally more fugitive than similar hue conventional colors; the relative degree of light stability would depend on formulations, film deposits, wall thickness, additives, etc., items as well as the areas of the intended use.

LIMITATIONS OF DAYLIGHT FLUORESCENT COLOURS :

Daylight Fluorescent Pigments are stable to indoor light or outdoor conditions other than direct sunlight as they are affected by exposure to direct sunlight. The degree and effect of the change are dependent on the colour, intended end usage, pigment loading, and other important factors including :

Type of vehicle/binder and overcoat.
Type of plastic (Ex: Vinyl will normally give significantly better results than polyolefin).
The thickness of the pigmented coatings or wall thickness of the plastic.
The pigment concentration/loading. (Higher the loading, better the light fastness – in general).

If prolonged outdoor exposure is intended use for the fluorescent-coloured item, actual outdoor exposure tests should be conducted to be certain of satisfactory results. Accelerated testing, such as carbon arc/ xenon weather meter, will give comparative indications of light fastness, but there is no exact correlation between accelerated and actual outdoor weathering exposure.

Lightfastness can be improved to an extent by :

Higher pigmentation level.
Ultraviolet absorbers in the pigmented formulations.
Clear acrylic overcoats (or) clear overcoats with UV absorbers.

All these systems should also be tested to ensure satisfactory results.

EXAMPLES OF FLUORESCENT COLORS:

Fluorescent colors emit glowing and vivid colors which provide the unique effect of glowing under UV and black light.

Below are the different fluorescent colors:

1. FLUORESCENT RED

2. FLUORESCENT ORANGE

3. FLUORESCENT YELLOW

4. FLUORESCENT GREEN

5. FLUORESCENT BLUE

6. FLUORESCENT PINK

7. FLUORESCENT WHITE

While this fluorescent color isn’t as common as the ones previously mentioned, it does exist as a bright vibrant white-colored paint.

He has over 60 yrs experience in domains of Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Management in some group companies like Tata group, Lakshmi group, Mafatlal group and other European companies too. Over 4 decades of varied experience being associated with M/s Lakshmi Machine Tools and widely travelled across the globe for various business assignments.

Over 35 yrs of experience in all faculties of Manufacturing, Quality Assurance, R &D and Management.He holds the position of Joint Managing Director of Rapsri Engineering Industries Ltd.