VCI papers or Volatile Corrosion Inhibitors which are renowned for the revolutionized change they brought in the protection of metals from corrosion not only pushed the frontiers of keeping metal out from deterioration but invoked benefits for many sectors including aerospace, automotive, military, machine tools, electronics etc by improving shelf life of the products.
But chemicals like nitrite, borate, azole, phosphanate, polyphosphate, aliphatic amines, chromate and some others which are rooted for the formation of VCI, flinched its foothold and made it to tap on the problem floor as the chemicals opened doors for both health and physical hazards.
Not only chemicals, some VCIs also use solvents like ethers, acetates, glycols, alcohols, naphthenic distillates and others to improve vapor pressure naturally, but experiments revealed usage of these solvents may lead to the generation of volatile organic compounds (VOC’s), which are determined to be non-safe and toxic according to some governments. Also, preservatives BHA, sodium molybdate and sodium nitrite despite approved by FDA to use in some food based applications, they didn’t stand to the mark of safety and eventually showed inhalation problems and bad skin conditions.
Since after finding hazards hatching from VCI paper usage, performance and safety issues, Toyota and other leading auto makers lifted ban over nitrite-based VCI paper and issued orders to stop using them in their services. Culminating the corrosion problems, Cortec, one of the leading manufacturer and producer of anti-corrosion products has most recently slides the notorious factor of VCI paper and introduced the world nitrite-free VCI – CorShield® VpCI®-146 which is toxic-free and biodegradable. CorShield® VpCI®-146 is the patented technology VpCI® based corrosion inhibitor paper prepared from natural Kraft paper that doesn’t uses chlorine and other toxic chemicals in order to protect metal from rust and other damage conditions.
Once the metal is packed with CorShield® VpCI®-146, the chemicals from VCI paper volatilize in the surrounding of product and form an invisible protective layer in-between surface of the metal and corrosion causing agents. The layer simply acts like a barrier and opposes corrosive gas ions exist in water vapor, and thus saves metal from any external damage.
VpCI®146 protects both ferrous and non-ferrous metals. Products protected by it can be soldered, painted and welded. It not just complies with the Federal, State and International requirements but helps environment through its recyclable property. VpCI®146 paper can be recycled to give life for various paper products like cardboards, boxes and other corrugated sheets. Yet another significant factor associated with this paper is that it doesn’t affect physical properties of electrical components such as resistance and conductivity.
VpCI®146 paper is a cost-effective solution to protect various kinds of metals and alloys from environmental conditions like H2S, SO2, humidity and galvic corrosion entails from metals of different kinds. It has also been employed by Indian Navy and saved 60-70% on the typical cost. Indian Navy wrapped the complete engine with VpCI®146 paper and experienced an environment friendly solution that can store products for long term.
