Both solvent and thinner are liquids used to dissolve and reduce the viscosity of the paint, and are continuously evaporated during the drying process of the paint. What is the difference between solvent and thinner?
(1) The solvent can independently dissolve the film-forming substances in the paint, while the thinner only acts as a diluent, which can only dilute the ready-made solution and reduce the viscosity of the paint.
(2) As a component of the paint, the solvent has been added to the paint product in a certain proportion ; and the diluent is generally only used during the construction process to change the viscosity of the paint, improve the efficiency of the operation or adapt to a certain construction. It is added according to the needs of the method (such as spraying, wiping, etc.).
(3) The solvent contained in the paint can be used as a diluent, but some diluents may not be used as a solvent. Therefore, we cannot add "solvent" and "thinner" to the paint purposefully as the same thing.
(4) The dissolving ability of different film-forming substances by the same liquid is different, so a certain liquid that is a solvent for a certain film-forming substance may be only a diluent for another film-forming substance. vice versa. That is to say, the difference between solvents and diluents lies in their ability to dissolve the specified main film-forming substances.
