This invention provides a method for forming a multilayer coating film, the method comprising forming a multilayer coating film that has excellent blackness, high reflectance of an infrared laser, and excellent coating film performance. The method for forming a multilayer coating film includes forming a first colored coating film containing a titanium oxide pigment, in which the diffuse reflectance at a wavelength of 905 nm or diffuse reflectance at a wavelength of 1550 nm, or both, is 40% or more; forming a second colored coating film containing at least one pigment selected from the group consisting of (A1) a perylene black pigment, (A2) a black metal oxide complex pigment, and (A3) two or more pigments selected from the group consisting of blue pigments, red pigments, yellow pigments, and green pigments; forming a third colored coating film containing a carbon black pigment; and forming a clear coating film; wherein the multilayer coating film has a lightness L*(45° of 3 or less and a chroma C*(45° of 1 or less, and wherein the diffuse reflectance at a wavelength of 905 nm or the diffuse reflectance at a wavelength of 1550 nm of the multilayer coating film, or both, is 10% or more.

The invention relates to a tie-coat composition comprising one or more binder polymers obtainable by copolymerizing a mixture of ethylenically unsaturated monomers, the one or more binder polymers comprising pendant curable alkoxysilyl functional groups of general formula (I) —X-L-Si(R.sup.1).sub.n(OR.sup.2).sub.(3-n) (I) wherein L is a hydrocarbon linker group having 1 to 20 carbon atoms, X is a heteroatom other than a sulphur atom, n is 0, 1, or 2; R.sup.1 is an alkyl radical with 1 to 20 carbon atoms, R.sup.2 is an alkyl radical with 1 to 20 carbon atoms or an alkylalkoxy radical with 2 to 20 carbon atoms, wherein in at least 5 mole % of the curable alkoxysilyl functional groups comprised in the one or more binder polymers the hydrocarbon linker group L is a methyldiyl group (L1) and in at least 5 mole % of the curable alkoxysilyl functional groups comprised in the one or more binder polymers the hydrocarbon linker group L is a hydrocarbon group having 2 to 20 carbon atoms (L2), wherein the tie-coat composition does not comprise a crosslinking agent. The invention further relates to a process for controlling aquatic fouling on a surface of a man-made object comprising applying such tie-coat composition and a topcoat composition, and to a substrate coated with a tie-coat layer deposited from such tie-coat composition and a topcoat layer.

The present invention aims to provide a method for forming a multilayer coating film having good coating film smoothness. A method for forming a multilayer coating film, comprising a first aqueous coating composition application step of applying a first aqueous coating composition (A) to form an uncured first aqueous coating film; a second aqueous coating composition application step of applying a second aqueous coating composition (B) onto the uncured first aqueous coating film to form an uncured second aqueous coating film; a clear coating step of applying a clear coating composition (C) onto the uncured second aqueous coating film to form an uncured clear coating film; and a curing step of heat-curing at once these coating films to form a multilayer coating film, wherein the first aqueous coating composition (A) contains a water-dispersible polyurethane resin (a1) and a viscosity modifier (a2), and the second aqueous coating composition (B) contains water and an organic solvent as diluent components besides solid matters in a state of dilution to a coating viscosity.

Provided is a method for forming a multilayer coating film that is capable of forming a multilayer coating film that has pearly luster with excellent blackness and high reflectance of an infrared laser. The method for forming a multilayer coating film includes applying a carbon black pigment-containing first colored paint (X) to form a first colored coating film; applying a second colored paint (Y) containing a pigment (A) that is a transparent or translucent base material coated with a metal oxide to form a second colored coating film; applying a clear paint (Z) to form a clear coating film; and heating the first colored coating film, the second colored coating film, and the clear coating film separately or simultaneously to cure these films, wherein the first colored coating film has a lightness L*(45°) of less than 20, the multilayer coating film has a lightness L*(45°) of less than 20, and the multilayer coating film has a diffuse reflectance of 10% or more at a wavelength of 905 nm.

Provided are a multilayer coating film with pearl luster that is bright in highlight and that has a small change in graininess due to difference in observation directions, and a method for forming the multilayer coating film. The multilayer coating film contains on a substrate in the following sequence a color-pigment-containing colored base coating film, an interference-pigment-containing effect base coating film, and a clear-coat coating film. The multilayer coating film has a Y value (Y5) in the XYZ color space of 300 or more. The multilayer coating film has a ratio of a 15° sparkle area Sa to a 45° sparkle area Sa of 7 or less.

A method for forming a multilayer coating film comprising the steps of:

applying, to a substrate, an effect pigment dispersion that comprises water, a surface adjusting agent, a flake-effect pigment, and a rheology control agent, and that has a solids content within the range of 0.5 to 10 mass % to form an effect pigment-containing coating, film; and

applying a colored transparent paint to the effect pigment-containing coating film to form a colored transparent coating film having a total light transmittance at a wavelength of 400 nm to 700 nm of 20 to 70%.

An aqueous coating composition comprising an acrylic resin dispersion (A) having a core/shell structure and a melamine resin (B) comprising a hydrophobic melamine resin, wherein the acrylic resin dispersion (A) is a dispersion of a solution-polymerization product of a core part preparation monomer (a-1) and a shell part preparation monomer (a-2), wherein the shell part preparation monomer (a-2) comprises an acid group-containing polymerizable monomer. The aqueous coating composition exhibits a small viscosity change and can form a coating film having a superior coating film appearance, even when the amount of the solvent contained in the aqueous coating composition is reduced due to changes in the coating environment.

A laminate containing a metallic base layer and a transparent colored layer formed on the metallic base layer, wherein, when

X=[(C*45).sup.2+(C*75).sup.2)].sup.1/2, and

Y=[(L*15).sup.2+(C*15).sup.2)].sup.1/2+[(L*25).sup.2+(C*25).sup.2)].sup.1/2,

X is 64 or more, and Y is 191 or more; and the measured value of graininess (HG value) is 45 or less,
with the proviso that C*15, C*25, C*45, and C*75 represent chroma calculated from spectral reflectances of light illuminated at an incident angle of 45 degrees with respect to the laminate and received at respective angles of 15 degrees, 25 degrees, 45 degrees, and 75 degrees deviated from the specular reflection light, and that L*15 and L*25 represent lightness calculated from spectral reflectances of light illuminated at an incident angle of 45 degrees with respect to the laminate and received at respective angles of 15 degrees and 25 degrees deviated from the specular reflection light.

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an effect pigment dispersion that exhibits excellent water resistance, that can form metallic or pearly luster, and that further exhibits high stability; and to provide a method for forming a multilayer coating film. The present invention provides an effect pigment dispersion that contains water, a wetting agent (A), a flake-effect pigment (B), and a phosphate-group-containing cellulose-based rheology control agent (C). The effect pigment dispersion has a solids content of 0.1 to 10 parts by mass, per 100 parts by mass of all of the components of the effect pigment dispersion; and has a viscosity of 100 to 10000 mPa.Math.sec as measured with a Brookfield viscometer at a rotational speed of 6 revolutions per minute.

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an effect pigment dispersion that exhibits excellent water resistance, that can form metallic or pearly luster, and that further exhibits high stability; and to provide a method for forming a multilayer coating film. The present invention provides an effect pigment dispersion that contains water, a wetting agent (A), a flake-effect pigment (B), and a phosphate-group-containing cellulose-based rheology control agent (C). The effect pigment dispersion has a solids content of 0.1 to 10 parts by mass, per 100 parts by mass of all of the components of the effect pigment dispersion; and has a viscosity of 100 to 10000 mPa.Math.sec as measured with a Brookfield viscometer at a rotational speed of 6 revolutions per minute.