Different Paint Protection Film Materials: TPU, TPH, PU, PVC

When the car is scratched by the road splash small stones, or by the tree gum bird droppings erosion, a reliable paint protection film (PPF) can save thousands of money to repair the paint. But into the car beauty shop, TPU, TPH, PU, PVC, these terms often make people confused - the price ranges from three or four thousand to two or three million, expensive really more durable? In fact, the different materials of the protective film is like a mobile phone film: there is easy to yellow the ordinary plastic film, there are also able to automatically repair scratches of the elasticity of the film, the key is to look at the anti-punishment, corrosion resistance, translucency of the three indicators. Next we will use car owners understand the vernacular, dismantle the real advantages and disadvantages of the mainstream car coat material.

Understanding Paint Protection Film(PPF)

Invisible car coat is like wearing a layer of transparent protective armour to the car, this layer of special material film is directly affixed to the surface of the car paint, the thickness is similar to that of the cling film (common 6-10mil, 1mil ≈ 0.025mm). Daily driving, it can block more than 90% of the small cuts - such as tree branch scratches, key accidentally touch, and even 60 km/h flying stones. Summer tree resin insect carcass, winter snowmelt these corrosive stains, as long as the timely rinse will not hurt the primer. Now the high-end car coat with scratches self-healing function, the sun a sunny subtle traces can disappear, so that the car paint all year round to maintain the bright texture of the car when just picked up. The thickness is like picking a down jacket: 8mil or less is thin and light, but the protection is weak, 10mil or more is impact resistant, but the test of the film's craftsmanship, the average city commuter picks the middle value of the most secure.

TPU PPF

Core material properties of TPU PPF

TPU PPF (Thermoplastic Polyurethane Paint Protection Film)is a highly transparent protective film with **Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU)** as the primary material, which is widely used in the automotive, industrial machinery, and consumer electronics sectors, etc., and is mostly used to cover the surface for protection against scratches, impacts, corrosion, and other damage. Its core is the combination of TPU material's special physical characteristics with advanced coating technology, becoming a major solution to the field of modern surface protection!
1. High elasticity and impact resistance
TPU material has excellent elastic recovery (tensile ratio up to 300%-500%), which can absorb and disperse external impacts (e.g. flying stones, cuts and scrapes), avoiding direct damage to the substrate. Its puncture resistance far exceeds that of traditional PVC materials, making it particularly suitable for protection in dynamic environments.
2. Self-healing function
Through the optimisation of the molecular structure, the surface of TPU PPF is heat-activated and self-repairing: minor scratches (e.g. sunbursts, twig scratches) can be automatically recovered after heating at room temperature or in hot water/hot air, thus maintaining the surface finish for a long period of time and reducing the maintenance costs.
3. Weather resistance and chemical stability
● Anti-UV: UV absorber is added to prevent yellowing and brittleness caused by long-term exposure to the sun (life expectancy up to 5-10 years).
● Corrosion Resistance: Resistant to acid rain, bird droppings, tree resin and other chemical corrosion, protecting the integrity of vehicle paint or industrial coatings.
4. High transparency and optical properties
Adopting optical grade TPU substrate, the light transmittance is more than 95%, almost invisible after adhering, without affecting the appearance of the substrate (such as the original paint gloss of the car). Part of the product through the nano-coating technology to achieve hydrophobic, anti-fouling effect.
5. Wide temperature range adaptability
TPU's low glass transition temperature (-40°C to +120°C) allows it to remain flexible in extreme temperatures, avoiding brittle cracking in winter or softening and deformation in summer.

6. Environmental protection and economy
● Recyclability: TPU material can be hot-melt remoulded to reduce waste pollution.
● Cost Savings: Long-term protection in a single installation reduces the cost of frequent repairs or replacements.
 

TPH PPF

Core material properties of TPH PPF

TPH PPF (Thermoplastic Hybrid Paint Protection Film) is a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) based hybrid protection film modified with a small amount of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU). It is between traditional PVC film and high-end TPU film, with low cost and basic protective performance as selling points, mainly used in limited budget but have certain needs for surface protection scenarios.
1. Composition and structure
PVC base (70-80%): provides base stiffness and cost advantages, but lacks flexibility.
TPU modified layer (10%-20%): improve part of the flexibility and tensile resistance, but the proportion is low, the performance improvement is limited.
Surface Coating: Typically a common acrylic coating that provides simple hydrophobicity with no self-repairing capability.

2. Physical properties
● Medium elongation (50%-100%): weaker ductility than pure TPU material, easy to wrinkle or shrink back when fitting complex curved surfaces.
● Higher hardness (2H-3H): Resistant to minor scratches, but prone to breakage or permanent deformation when subjected to strong impacts.
● Thickness range (6-8 mil): Slightly thicker than traditional PVC film, but still less protective than TPU PPF (8-10 mil).
3. Weather resistance
● Weak UV resistance: lack of efficient UV absorbers, obvious yellowing and embrittlement after 1-2 years of long-term exposure.
● Poor temperature adaptability: narrow operating temperature range (0 ℃ ~ 70 ℃), easy to brittle crack in low-temperature environments, easy to soften and deform at high temperatures.
4. Environmental friendliness
● Contains plasticisers: Phthalates and other components in PVC may be released slowly, posing a risk of environmental pollution.
● Non-recyclable: Mixed materials are difficult to separate and are usually incinerated or landfilled after disposal.

PU PPF

Core material properties of PU PPF

PU PPF (Polyurethane Paint Protection Film), or polyurethane paint protection film, was an early material used for paint protection. It is made of polyurethane (PU). Compared to modern TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane) and TPH (thermoplastic polyolefin), PU PPF has a certain degree of flexibility and impact resistance, but there are some limitations in terms of durability and weatherability. Because PU materials are more traditional, they have been gradually replaced by TPU PPF with better performance in recent years, but they are still used in some low-cost markets.

1. Composition and physical properties
● Polyurethane substrate: PU is a high polymer, synthesised through the reaction of polyol and isocyanate, with a certain degree of elasticity and abrasion resistance.
● Medium elongation (100%-200%): better than traditional PVC material, but weaker than TPU (300%-500%), easy to leave wrinkles when complex curved surfaces are laminated.
● Hardness range (1H-2H): softer surface, resistant to minor scratches but not sufficiently impact resistant.
2. Weather resistance and stability
● Limited UV resistance: when no efficient UV absorber is added, it is easy to oxidise and yellow when exposed to sunlight for a long period of time (life expectancy is about 2-3 years).
● Temperature adaptability is general: working temperature range -20℃~80℃, easy to harden at low temperature, easy to soften at high temperature leading to edge warping.
3. Functional shortcomings
● No self-repairing ability: surface scratches need to be repaired by manual polishing.
● Weak hydrophobicity: ordinary coatings are prone to residual water and oil stains and require frequent cleaning.
4. Environmental friendliness
● Some contain solvent residues: Hazardous solvents (e.g. DMF) may be used in the production process, posing environmental and health risks.
● Difficult to recover: Chemical cross-linking structure makes hot-melt recovery difficult.

PVC PPF

1. Composition and physical properties
● PVC substrate (more than 90%): rigid plastics are the main, adding plasticisers (such as phthalates) to improve flexibility, but plasticisers are easy to precipitate after long-term use, resulting in material embrittlement.
● Low elongation (<50%): very poor ductility, unable to fit complex curved surfaces (e.g. bumpers, headlights), prone to wrinkles or warped edges during construction.
● High hardness (3H-4H): hard surface, can resist minor scratches, but weak impact resistance, easy to break or permanently deformed by external forces.
2. Weather resistance and stability
● Ultraviolet resistance is extremely weak: when no UV stabiliser is added, exposure to sunlight for 6-12 months is obvious yellowing and cracking.
● Poor temperature adaptability: narrow working temperature range (10 ℃ ~ 50 ℃), low temperature (<0 ℃) easy to brittle crack, high temperature (>60 ℃) easy to soften deformation.
● Lack of hydrophobicity: the surface is susceptible to water and oil residues and requires frequent cleaning.
3. Environmental protection and safety
● Containing plasticisers and heavy metals: Some poor quality PVCs contain stabilisers such as lead and cadmium, which pose environmental and health risks.
● Non-recyclable: incineration may release toxic gases such as dioxins, which are difficult to degrade in landfills.

TPU PPF vs TPH PPF vs PU PPF vs PVC PPF