Choosing a Coating2 min read

Active Content and Nonvolatile Content: Ask How Each Coating Value Is Defined

Active content and nonvolatile content may describe different things. Ask the supplier to define the quantity and test basis before using either percentage to compare coating products or estimate deposited material.

Updated · NANOLAB Knowledge

The key distinction

A commercial description of active material depends on what the supplier includes in that term. A nonvolatile measurement depends on the specified procedure and conditions. Neither label should be converted automatically into a universal percentage of protective performance or an assumed final film composition.

Practical checks

  1. Request the definition, units and method behind the reported percentage.
  2. Identify whether the value concerns the supplied liquid or another sample state.
  3. Compare products only when the quantities and conditions are meaningfully aligned.

Example

Illustrative example: a buyer compares an active-content statement from one brochure with a nonvolatile-content result from another report. The percentages may not measure the same components or use the same procedure. A supplier clarification is needed before drawing a technical or economic conclusion.

Scope and limits

Do not choose a coating solely because one percentage is higher. Application, substrate suitability and complete-system evidence remain relevant. This guide does not state NANOLAB composition values or prescribe a residue test; it helps prevent unlike technical descriptions from being treated as equivalent specifications.

Related guidance

Ask NANOLAB about the exact product and intended use. Use the current product documentation for formulation-specific instructions.