Thermochromic Pigment?

[Venatus]

I was just watching a video about Thermochromic Pigments. I started wondering, What if I were to paint some of my PC parts with this stuff? Even just the fans? 



https://www.technoglowproducts.com/thermochromic-pigment/
"Thermochromic pigment change color or become invisible at a particular temperature in this case 25°C (77°F). Some may refer to thermochromic pigments as "heat sensitive pigments". Limitless combinations and effects can be achieved with thermochromic powder.
Color changing pigments can be used for print, plastic molding, resin casting, painting, screen printing and much more! Cover a design or pattern that will be revealed once the correct temperature is reached. Or even create new colors by mixing thermochromic powder with an already tinted paint and create a color changing effect. Use our clear acrylic paint with glow powder to make your own glow in the dark thermochromic paint.
Thermochromic pigments have a micron size of 0.01 and are encapsulated. Encapsulation makes it waterproof so it won't be destroyed or dry out the medium you chose to mix it into. It is non-toxic but should never be ingested or put in direct contact with the eyes, nasal or ear passages, or mouth."

I don't know much about thermodynamics, but I am wondering, how would this effect temperatures of certain parts? What other issues may I be concerned about if I try this? 

Other questions; could a manufacturer make parts (Like watercooling tubes) that have Thermochromic properties? 
 

[TehDwonz]

9 minutes ago, GoldfishGaming said:

Other questions; could a manufacturer make parts (Like watercooling tubes) that have Thermochromic properties? 

Or the liquid itself...  

[Cyracus]

painting fans is generally a bad idea (more weight, balance issues) 
 

[Venatus]

Just now, Cyracus said:

painting fans is generally a bad idea (more weight, balance issues) 
 

Good point, however, removing the "I" component. Could a manufacturer get my intended result? 

[TehDwonz]

3 minutes ago, Venatus said:

Good point, however, removing the "I" component. Could a manufacturer get my intended result? 

Yes, because they could put it into the plastic. But, why fans? As the colour change is generally triggered around 25C, it'd likely not react to the system, just ambient. Maybe the water-cooling lines, or the rad-paint? But once it reaches a stable temperature (likely above 25C), it's going to sit at one colour.

You could conformal-coat an entire motherboard and/or GPU, using a red dye (not colour change), then overlay that with the Thermo stuff in green? As the temperature rises, the green layer would go clear, and show the red underneath where there are "hotspots".

I don't see a strong market for it though - as you can just DIY for most uses.

[BobVonBob]

Just now, Venatus said:

Good point, however, removing the "I" component. Could a manufacturer get my intended result? 

Maybe. Thermochromic pigments might get destroyed by the processes needed to form polymer components like fan blades or water cooling tubes. Although given there are mixing ratios for injection molding at the bottom of that page it might be possible.

 

You could also probably mix the pigment into a very thin paint and use multiple coats to get very even coverage, which should keep the fans mostly in balance. You could also stop with only one or two coats and give the fans a tint that disappears as they heat up. Computer fans are well balanced, but they aren't that well balanced, so painting them isn't going to do all that much.

[vong]

Mayhems made a colour changing coolant a little while ago but I think it was just an experiment that never made it to the market.

[TehDwonz]

Just now, vong said:

Mayhems made a colour changing coolant a little while ago but I think it was just an experiment that never made it to the market.

Pretty much any dye, or colloid (suspended particles) liquid is going to eventually clog up. They can be good for short use to show off a system at a show etc, but I'd never run them in normal use - not worth the trouble. Though I am considered "old" in the IT world, and I prefer windowless cases, and when I water cool it's with soft-tubing and parts from Ali-Express for a total cost of under $50...  

[Cyracus]

Aside from the above mentioned, there's also already rgb fans and software can be used to achieve temp based color changing effects so color changing paints likely aren't a major target there.
Back to what's ok to paint, pcbs should be fine, fan parts that don't move when power applied, I'd avoid anything that creates a lot of heat or dissipates heat like vrms or heatsinks

[Venatus]

9 minutes ago, TehDwonz said:

Yes, because they could put it into the plastic. But, why fans? As the colour change is generally triggered around 25C, it'd likely not react to the system, just ambient. Maybe the water-cooling lines, or the rad-paint? But once it reaches a stable temperature (likely above 25C), it's going to sit at one colour.

You could conformal-coat an entire motherboard and/or GPU, using a red dye (not colour change), then overlay that with the Thermo stuff in green? As the temperature rises, the green layer would go clear, and show the red underneath where there are "hotspots".

I don't see a strong market for it though - as you can just DIY for most uses.

at a particular temperature "in this case" 25°C (77°F). I would imagine that you could achieve some cool effects if the outside and inside of the fan were to be at different ambient temps. 

 

 

11 minutes ago, vong said:

Mayhems made a colour changing coolant a little while ago but I think it was just an experiment that never made it to the market.

I'm going to give that a peek, thanks! 

 

7 minutes ago, TehDwonz said:

Pretty much any dye, or colloid (suspended particles) liquid is going to eventually clog up. They can be good for short use to show off a system at a show etc, but I'd never run them in normal use - not worth the trouble. Though I am considered "old" in the IT world, and I prefer windowless cases, and when I water cool it's with soft-tubing and parts from Ali-Express for a total cost of under $50...  

"Thermochromic pigments have a micron size of 0.01" 

I don't know if it would gum up a pump, or how it would react diluted into a solution that is constantly moving. Would be cool to test this stuff though.

[Venatus]

1 minute ago, Cyracus said:

Aside from the above mentioned, there's also already rgb fans and software can be used to achieve temp based color changing effects so color changing paints likely aren't a major target there.
Back to what's ok to paint, pcbs should be fine, fan parts that don't move when power applied, I'd avoid anything that creates a lot of heat or dissipates heat like vrms or heatsinks

I will probably heed that advice, but I may test my luck for the sake of science with a 1050ti I have kicking around. 

[TehDwonz]

2 minutes ago, Venatus said:

"Thermochromic pigments have a micron size of 0.01" 

I don't know if it would gum up a pump, or how it would react diluted into a solution that is constantly moving. Would be cool to test this stuff though.

Eventually, yes, because in the smaller gaps, like inside the radiator channels and the CPU block, they will stick together. All it takes is one or two to stick to the walls of the channel, and they start clumping up. Doesn't matter how small the particles are.

[Venatus]

2 minutes ago, TehDwonz said:

Eventually, yes, because in the smaller gaps, like inside the radiator channels and the CPU block, they will stick together. All it takes is one or two to stick to the walls of the channel, and they start clumping up. Doesn't matter how small the particles are.

What do they use to dye/colour current water cooling liquids? (Also I Understand that it may have different corrosion standards)

[Cyracus]

3 minutes ago, Venatus said:

What do they use to dye/colour current water cooling liquids? (Also I Understand that it may have different corrosion standards)

there's a variety of things they use, most manufacturers do not disclose the details, but the history of colored fluids is littered with fallout and gunking issues

[TehDwonz]

12 minutes ago, Venatus said:

What do they use to dye/colour current water cooling liquids? (Also I Understand that it may have different corrosion standards)

Varies, but pretty much all strong colours are going to end the same way. The ones with the least problems are going to be the ones that are still transparent or tinted. You can mitigate the problem a little bit by having a high pump speed, and making sure there are no "dead areas" where water flow is stagnant or very low, but it will eventually happen.

Most people using the colours are doing it for show - for a work machine, I stick to air cooling for clients, or in the case of my personal setup, clear water with a 20% isopropyl alcohol mix (an effective and cheap biocide, and also kills bubbles faster by altering the surface tension).

But now I am off-topic...

[Jurrunio]

1 hour ago, Venatus said:

how would this effect temperatures of certain parts? What other issues may I be concerned about if I try this? 

It makes heat dissipation worse, but as long as you keep it to parts which arent handling cooling it should be fine, say the panels on the case, fan blades (if you can spread it evenly with smooth surface)

 

1 hour ago, Venatus said:

Other questions; could a manufacturer make parts (Like watercooling tubes) that have Thermochromic properties? 

In theory yes, but when people started caring about changing colours why not get electronically controlled RGB LEDs?

 

1 hour ago, TehDwonz said:

Or the liquid itself...  

All kinds of pigments tends to build up in portions of the loop with slower water flow (e.g. tight bends in the waterblock) and walls of the tubes, maybe these pigments are prone to such things

 

1 hour ago, Venatus said:

at a particular temperature "in this case" 25°C (77°F). I would imagine that you could achieve some cool effects if the outside and inside of the fan were to be at different ambient temps. 

I'm sure you can find types with larger temperature ranges, maybe through mixing multiple types of pigments into one paint.

[Venatus]

53 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

It makes heat dissipation worse, but as long as you keep it to parts which arent handling cooling it should be fine, say the panels on the case, fan blades (if you can spread it evenly with smooth surface)

 

In theory yes, but when people started caring about changing colours why not get electronically controlled RGB LEDs?

 

All kinds of pigments tends to build up in portions of the loop with slower water flow (e.g. tight bends in the waterblock) and walls of the tubes, maybe these pigments are prone to such things

 

I'm sure you can find types with larger temperature ranges, maybe through mixing multiple types of pigments into one paint.

I just think that it's cool to have a way to somewhat visually represent the temperature change without any controllers, or resources being used. It's like a rainmeter skin on my case .. 

[Venatus]

1 hour ago, TehDwonz said:

Varies, but pretty much all strong colours are going to end the same way. The ones with the least problems are going to be the ones that are still transparent or tinted. You can mitigate the problem a little bit by having a high pump speed, and making sure there are no "dead areas" where water flow is stagnant or very low, but it will eventually happen.

Most people using the colours are doing it for show - for a work machine, I stick to air cooling for clients, or in the case of my personal setup, clear water with a 20% isopropyl alcohol mix (an effective and cheap biocide, and also kills bubbles faster by altering the surface tension).

But now I am off-topic...

I appreciate that position, but I believe most coolants have a shelf life anyways. I wonder if it would really be that different. 

[W-L]

9 hours ago, Venatus said:

I was just watching a video about Thermochromic Pigments. I started wondering, What if I were to paint some of my PC parts with this stuff? Even just the fans? 



https://www.technoglowproducts.com/thermochromic-pigment/
"Thermochromic pigment change color or become invisible at a particular temperature in this case 25°C (77°F). Some may refer to thermochromic pigments as "heat sensitive pigments". Limitless combinations and effects can be achieved with thermochromic powder.
Color changing pigments can be used for print, plastic molding, resin casting, painting, screen printing and much more! Cover a design or pattern that will be revealed once the correct temperature is reached. Or even create new colors by mixing thermochromic powder with an already tinted paint and create a color changing effect. Use our clear acrylic paint with glow powder to make your own glow in the dark thermochromic paint.
Thermochromic pigments have a micron size of 0.01 and are encapsulated. Encapsulation makes it waterproof so it won't be destroyed or dry out the medium you chose to mix it into. It is non-toxic but should never be ingested or put in direct contact with the eyes, nasal or ear passages, or mouth."

I don't know much about thermodynamics, but I am wondering, how would this effect temperatures of certain parts? What other issues may I be concerned about if I try this? 

Other questions; could a manufacturer make parts (Like watercooling tubes) that have Thermochromic properties? 
 

As others have brought up having this pigment in a water cooling fluid is a bit of an issue due to it being in a suspension and having to not settle out or clog, as for paint however you can purchase thermochromic paint it exists as an exotic coating mainly for aesthetic purposes like on a car. The simplest method I've seen would be to have a thermochromatic pigment mixed in something like a clear or plasti-dip rubber coating which is commonly applied to vehicles to change their look with the addition of reverting back to stock.