ChromaFlair is a

pigment A pigment is a powder used to add or alter color or change visual appearance. Pigments are completely or nearly solubility, insoluble and reactivity (chemistry), chemically unreactive in water or another medium; in contrast, dyes are colored sub ...

used in

paint Paint is a material or mixture that, when applied to a solid material and allowed to dry, adds a film-like layer. As art, this is used to create an image or images known as a painting. Paint can be made in many colors and types. Most paints are ...

systems, primarily for automobiles. When the paint is applied, it changes

color Color (or colour in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) is the visual perception based on the electromagnetic spectrum. Though co ...

depending on the

light Light, visible light, or visible radiation is electromagnetic radiation that can be visual perception, perceived by the human eye. Visible light spans the visible spectrum and is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400– ...

source and viewing angle. It was created at Optical Coating Laboratory, Inc. (OCLI) ater JDS Uniphase and Viavi Solutionsin 1979 and is used by

DuPont Dupont, DuPont, Du Pont, duPont, or du Pont may refer to: People * Dupont (surname) Dupont, also spelled as DuPont, duPont, Du Pont, or du Pont is a French surname meaning "of the bridge", historically indicating that the holder of the surname re ...

and PPG.

Names

The paint system (and competing versions made by other companies) are known by a wide variety of proprietary names, including ''ChromaLusion'', ''ChromaPremier'', ''ColourShift'', ''Exclusive Line'', ''Extreme Colors'', ''Harlequin Color'', ''IllusionColor'', ''Maziora'', ''MultiTones'', ''MystiChrome'', ''Ch(K)ameleon'', ''Interference Fireglow'' and ''Paradis Spectrashine''.

Effect

The ChromaFlair effect is achieved by interfering with the reflection and

refraction In physics, refraction is the redirection of a wave as it passes from one transmission medium, medium to another. The redirection can be caused by the wave's change in speed or by a change in the medium. Refraction of light is the most commo ...

of light from the painted object's surface. The paint contains tiny synthetic flakes about one micrometer thick. The flakes are constructed of

aluminium Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

coated with

glass Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline solid, non-crystalline) solid. Because it is often transparency and translucency, transparent and chemically inert, glass has found widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in window pane ...

-like

magnesium fluoride Magnesium fluoride is an ionically bonded inorganic compound with the formula . The compound is a colorless to white crystalline salt and is transparent over a wide range of wavelengths, with commercial uses in optics that are also used in space ...

embedded in semi-translucent

chromium Chromium is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first element in Group 6 element, group 6. It is a steely-grey, Luster (mineralogy), lustrous, hard, and brittle transition metal. Chromium ...

. The aluminium and chrome give the paint a vibrant metallic sparkle, while the glass-like coating acts like a refracting

prism PRISM is a code name for a program under which the United States National Security Agency (NSA) collects internet communications from various U.S. internet companies. The program is also known by the SIGAD . PRISM collects stored internet ...

, changing the apparent color of the surface as the observer moves. ChromaFlair paints contain no conventional absorbing

s; rather, the pigment is a light interference pigment. The color observed is created entirely by the refractive properties of the flakes, analogous to the perception of rainbow colors in

oil slick An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity, and is a form of pollution. The term is usually given to marine oil spills, where oil is released into th ...

s. ChromaFlair paint has also been used as a substitute for optically variable ink in the use of

counterfeiting A counterfeit is a fake or unauthorized replica of a genuine product, such as money, documents, designer items, or other valuable goods. Counterfeiting generally involves creating an imitation of a genuine item that closely resembles the original ...

the currency of the United States. Counterfeiter Art Williams stamped green-silver ChromaFlair paint onto counterfeit bills to replicate the color-shifting ink on the 1996-issued $100 bill. The ChromaFlair pigment is available in thousands of color variations. It is usually applied to items where visual appeal is important — such as

motor vehicles A motor vehicle, also known as a motorized vehicle, automotive vehicle, automobile, or road vehicle, is a self-propelled land vehicle, commonly wheeled, that does not operate on rails (such as trains or trams), does not fly (such as airplanes ...

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external electric Guitar amplifier, sound amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar. It uses one or more pickup (music technology), pickups ...

s and computer

case mod Case modification, commonly referred to as case modding, is the modification of a computer case or a video game console chassis. Modifying a computer case in any non-standard way is considered a case mod. Modding is done, particularly by Compute ...

s. In addition to paint, it can be applied as a coating, for example, on synthetic polyurethane leather, or dispersed in a

resin A resin is a solid or highly viscous liquid that can be converted into a polymer. Resins may be biological or synthetic in origin, but are typically harvested from plants. Resins are mixtures of organic compounds, predominantly terpenes. Commo ...

for

injection molding Injection moulding (U.S. spelling: injection molding) is a manufacturing process for producing parts by injecting molten material into a mould, or mold. Injection moulding can be performed with a host of materials mainly including metals (for ...

References

External links

ChromaFlair pigments siteFord Mystichrome History: A Look Back at the Iconic Color-Shifting Paint
— Example of a ChromaFlair paint application from DuPont.
Background information on interference-pigments on pcimag
{{DuPont Visual arts materials DuPont Articles containing video clips

Names

Effect

See also

References

External links