Paint Education

Why Some Paints are Transparent and Others Opaque 

Light and color effects in painting: Refractive Index 
By George O'Hanlon

The hiding strength (opacity) of a paint is largely influenced by the relative refractive indices of the pigment and the medium, as well as the particle size and distribution of the
pigment, i.e. the shape and degree of aggregation of the particles, the proportion of pigment in the vehicle and the thickness of the applied film.
Artists are sometimes surprised to see one application of paint barely hide the drawing or underpainting below, and another color completely mask all that was underneath. Some
wonder why a few months after they completed a painting, they begin to see pencil lines of the sketch that before were completely unnoticed. (This affect is called pentimento.)
Other artists wishing to apply a beautiful glaze are frustrated when the glaze kills the color below. These are common problems experienced by all painters at one time or
another, but the reasons are little understood.
Given the same thickness of applied paint film, not all paints are equally opaque (or transparent). In painting we call this the hiding strength or covering power of a paint. The
hiding strength (or opacity) of a paint is largely influenced by the relative refractive indices of the pigment and the medium, as well as the particle size and dispersion of the
pigment, i.e. the shape and degree of aggregation of the particles, the proportion of pigment in the vehicle and the thickness of the applied film. These factors determine the
opacity of a particular paint. In this article, we will focus on refractive index; the other factors were considered in a previous article entitled, "Do Natural Pigments Offer More to
the Modern Painter?".
Paints are materials containing tiny pigment particles suspended in a binder, such as oil. We are accustomed to regard some pigments as transparent, or translucent, and others
as opaque. Pigments usually considered to be opaque are transparent in a highly refractive medium. Using a medium of high refractive index it can be shown that the most
opaque colors, even lead white, appear transparent. This demonstrates that the hiding strength or opacity of a pigment can be lost through a change in the conditions that
surround the pigment, or in the case of paint, a change in the binder.
Pigment particles absorb certain wavelengths of light, creating colored paints, or they may be translucent, appearing white to our eyes. Lets consider what happens when light
encounters a layer of paint containing only pigment particles that are transparent.

The Behavior of Light Passing Through Substances

To help us understand the opacity of pigment in paint, we will need to consider the behavior of white light on substances. We think of a sheet of glass as a transparent substance
through which light passes without obstruction. Yet, if we look out of our window at night we get a nearly perfect mirror image of the interior of our home.
As beams of light pass from the air to glass they are impeded, so that some are reflected while part are transmitted. If the beam of light, called incident light, hits the glass at an
angle, the transmitted beam is bent out of its path on entering the glass so as to shorten its path (fig.1).

Fig. 1 When light passes through a transparent liquid some of it is reflected and some transmitted. Transmitted light is refracted as it encounters a material, such as liquid that
impedes it velocity through it.

Light travels at a constant velocity in a vacuum, but when it travels through a substance its velocity is slowed. So, in our example, when the light passes from the less dense air
to the denser glass, its velocity is slowed down; the beam of light is bent or refracted. The amount of refraction is the measure of impediment given by the substance to the
beam of light. In our example, we can substitute the glass for other substances, such as water, oil or diamonds, and find the amount light is impeded is different for each
substance. (The amount light is bent is lso dependent upon other factors, such as the temperature of the substance and the wavelength of the light.) The proportion between the
light that is reflected and the light that is transmitted also varies.
The ratio of the velocity of light in air (ideally, it should be a vacuum) to the velocity of light in another substance is expressed as the index of refraction of refractive index. It is
measured by the angle at which the ray of light is bent. To determine this ratio, one must know the angle of incidence, or the angle between the ray of light entering the
substance and a line perpendicular to its surface, and the angle of refraction, defined as the angle between the refracted ray and the perpendicular to the surface. In
mathematical terms, if i is the angle of incidence and r is the angle of refraction, then the refractive index is N, expressed as follows:
sine i
N=-------
sine r
By definition the refractive index of a vacuum is 1. In practice, air makes little difference to the refraction of light with an absolute refractive index of 1.0008, so the value of the
absolute refractive index can be used assuming the incident light is in air. Since light slows down when it enters a substance, so the refractive index will always be greater than 1.
Most minerals have refractive indices between 1.32 and 2.40, with values between 1.50 and 1.80 (Jones 1980).

MATERIAL ABSOLUTE REFRACTIVE INDEX

Air 1.0008

Water 1.3300

Glass, soda-lime 1.5100

Ruby 1.7600
Paint Education

Diamond 2.4170
The amount light rays may be bent as shown in figure 1, depends upon the substance it enters. This change in direction becomes smaller as the angle of incidence decreases.
Eventually, when light is perpendicular to a surface it will not bend. The angles at which light is refracted is a constant. For a pigment, the constant N (refractive index) depends
on the difference between the velocity of light in the surrounding medium and in the pigment. It is a characteristic constant for every material including gases and liquids. We
cannot observe the change in the velocity of light on the small pigment particles, but we can observe a change in the direction of propagation of the light and calculate or
estimate the refractive index.
The refractive index is an easy concept to learn, but things arent quite that simple. The refractive index of a pigment particle is not necessarily the same in all directions. Most
pigments are composed of crystals that have definite shapes and are classified into different systems. In cubic crystals, light travels at the same speed in all directions within the
crystal, which is said to be isotropic. Light does not travel at the same speed in all directions within substances that belong to the five other crystal classes; these are said to be
anisotropic. In addition, anisotropic substances are divisible into two types:
Uniaxial have two refractive indices (tetragonal and hexagonal system minerals);
Biaxial are characterized by three refractive indices (triclinic, monoclinic and orthorhombic system minerals).
The most important thing to remember is that a substance which has a higher refractive index is a substance that impedes the velocity of light or offers more resistance to it, and
therefore a larger proportion of the light will be reflected.
Lets return to our example of the beam of light passing into a transparent substance. Consider what happens when a light beam is passing from one transparent substance of one
index value to another substance of another refractive index.
If a beam of light passes from a transparent substance like air with a low refractive index to a transparent substance of a high refractive index, such as water that impedes the
passage of light, part of the light will be reflected at the interface or boundary of the two substances (fig. 1). Light changes speed as it moves from air to water, so that it
experiences refraction and reflection. In our consideration of pigments, the reflection is most important. Now, if we view the water inside a shallow glass dish some of the light
passing through the water and entering the glass, which has a higher refractive index than water, is reflected and some refracted (fig. 2). We get two reflections and two
refractions; one at the surface of the water, and another at the boundary of the water and glass.

Fig. 2 Light passing through two substances, one of low refractive index and the other of high refractive index.

Typically, solid substances have higher refractive indices than liquids, so if we suspend a sheet of glass in a shallow dish of water, we will see a strong reflection and high
refraction at their interface, because of the differences in their refractive indices (fig. 3).
Now instead of a sheet of glass of higher refractive value than water, we place a transparent sheet of another material with a low refractive index, like gelatin; we shall get a
comparably feeble reflection at the boundary of the water and gelatin.
If instead of removing the glass we replace the water with a liquid of higher refractive index, the same refractive index as glass, there will be no reflected light at the meeting of
the liquid and glass.
Paint Education

Fig. 3 Light passing through a liquid of low refractive index and then through a glass plate, illustrating how pigment particles reflect and transmit light in a medium.

Let us summarize what weve learned about the behavior of light. When a ray of light is passing from a transparent substance of low refractive index to a transparent substance of
high refractive index, light is reflected at the boundary; the amount of light reflected being greater the greater the difference between their respective refractive indices.

The Behavior of Light in Paint

Now we will approximate the conditions we find in paint. Let us return to our example of the glass sheet suspended in liquid. We now break the glass into pieces and grind it into
a fine powder. This powder is white and opaque, but if we were to examine a particle of the glass in a microscope we would see that is transparent. The reason is that the light
reflected from millions of facets is scattered, and it is scattered light that produces opacity.
Now put the powder glass in a container, and fill the container with water. The differences between the refractive indices of water and glass is not as great as between air and
glass. As you fill the container with water, the powder glass does not reflect so much light. It becomes partly translucent. If the liquid had the same refractive index as glass, the
glass would be almost invisible. Though the water is not of so high refractive index as glass, it is very much higher than air, and as we see the glass by scattered reflection, if the
reflection no longer takes place, the glass disappears. This is the same phenomenon we observe when we wet an opaque substance, it appears darker in color.
We will repeat what was said earlier: Some pigments we consider to be transparent, or translucent, and others opaque. Pigments usually considered to be opaque are actually
transparent in a highly refractive medium. Using a medium of high refractive index it can be shown that the most opaque colors, even lead white, appear transparent.
Most of the light enters the paint surface and then passes through the randomly shaped and oriented pigment particles. These particles are translucent and dont absorb much
light, but they have a refractive index higher than the medium that surrounds them.
What happens to the light as it passes through one of these pigment particles? The light refracts and reflects on the surface of each particle. Again, changes in the speed of light
causes the light to bend or refract. The light is impeded trying to pass through the particles, even though the particles do not absorb much light. The lights path changes at the
surface and some of it is reflected back out of the paint.
The random shape and orientation of the pigment particles are what gives a paint film of white pigment its white appearance. If all of the pigment particles were instead flat disks
that lay parallel to the paints surface, like coins lying flat on the bottom of a shallow pan of water, the paint would reflect the light like a mirror rather than form a white surface.
The reason is that the flat disks would reflect light directly back from the paint in the manner of a mirror. The paint film would appear like a mirror rather than a mixture of
medium and pigment particles. The random surfaces of the pigment particles are what give white paint its diffuse glow. A narrow beam of light hitting white paint scatters in all
directions while a beam of light hitting the mirror bounces back as a narrow beam.
If the pigment particles had exactly the same index of refraction as the medium that holds them, how would this alter the appearance of the paint? The paint would appear
translucent. Without changes in the refractive index between the pigment and the medium, light passes through it practically unaffected. Although some light will reflect at the
boundary of the air and paint layer, whatever light actually enters the paint will continue on all the way through it to the ground under the paint. The paint will appear
translucent. Some pigments, such as chalk, when mixed with linseed oil will loose their hiding strength and appear translucent, because they have a similar refractive index to
the oil.
A white pigment should have a high refractive index, a high ability to bend light that strikes it obliquely, and a high ability to reflect light. There are many substances that are
useful as white pigments. Common ones are silica (SiO 2), chalk (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), titanium dioxide (TiO2), baryta (barium sulfate, BaSO4), gypsum (calcium sulfate,
CaSO4), lead white (lead carbonate, PbCO3), litharge (lead oxide, PbO), zinc oxide (ZnO) and zinc sulfide (ZnS). If you look at the table of refractive indices, the substances that
have higher refractive indices are greater opacity or covering power because of their high refractive index.

REFRACTIVE INDICES OF VARIOUS PIGMENTS

COLOR PIGMENT REFRACTIVE INDEX

Azurite 1.73-1.84

Indigo 1.49-1.52

Blue Smalt 1.49-1.52

Ultramarine (lazurite) 1.50

Vivianite 1.58-1.70

Green Chrysocolla 1.58-1.60

Dioptase 1.64-1.71

Green earth (glauconite) 1.62

Malachite 1.65-1.90

Verdigris (basic copper acetate) 1.53-1.56

Paint Education

Volkonskoite 2.50

Gamboge (organic resin) 1.58-1.59

Indian yellow 1.67

Jarosite 1.71-1.82
Yellow
Massicot 2.50-2.61

Ochre, yellow (goethite) 2.00-2.40

Orpiment 2.40-3.02

Cinnabar 2.81-3.15

Hematite 2.78-3.01
Red
Realgar 2.46-2.61

Red lead 2.42

Vermilion 2.82-3.15

Goethite (brown ochre) 2.08-2.40

Siderite 1.57-1.78

Sienna, burnt 1.85

Brown
Sienna, raw (goethite) 1.87-2.17

Umber, burnt 2.20-2.30

Umber, raw 1.87-2.17

Anhydrite 1.57-1.61

Chalk (whiting) 1.51-1.65

Gypsum 1.52-1.53
White Titanium dioxide (rutile) 2.27

White lead (basic lead 1.94-2.09

carbonate)

Zinc oxide 2.00-2.02

Black Carbon black (opaque)

Since for white pigments there is little or no absorption of light, the hiding power of white paints depends entirely on the scattering of the incident light. The higher the refractive
index of the pigment relative to that of the medium and the nearer the particle size to the optimum, the greater the scatter and the greater the opacity of the paint.
The hiding power of a paint containing a colored pigment is also dependent on the ability of the pigment to absorb light, as well as to scatter it as a result of its refractive index
and particle size distribution. With black pigments good hiding power is obtained owing to the almost complete absorption of light and refractive index as such contributes only
little to the effect. For other colored pigments both of these properties, absorption and scatter, are wavelength dependent and the end effect is a complex combination of all the
various factors involved.
All inorganic pigments have high refractive indices, and hence, when used to color paint give high opacity. Such colors from inorganic pigments generally include white, black,
and yellow, red and green oxides. Colors comprising combinations of inorganic and organic pigments may have high opacity, depending on the proportions.

Conclusion
When selecting a pigment it is important to know how opaque it is. Depending upon the desired effect of the paint either opaque or glazes, you will need to use either opaque or
transparent pigments. For underpainting, you will normally need an opaque pigment, and for the final layers, a glazing one. The opacity of a pigment will depend largely on the
refractive indices of the pigments and the binding materials, on the granularity of the pigments and the degree of pigment concentration in the binding medium.
Paint Education

Fig. 4 Refractive indices of various blue pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums

Fig. 5 Refractive indices of various brown pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums
Paint Education

Fig. 6 Refractive indices of various green pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums

Fig. 7 Refractive indices of various red pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums
Paint Education

Fig. 8 Refractive indices of various white pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums

Fig. 9 Refractive indices of various yellow pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums

Based on color effects in Artists Handbook of Materials and Techniques by Ralph Mayer
   
Paint Education
 

Refraction of light. A light ray passing through a sheet of glass or other transparent Transmission and reflection of light. Under average conditions a certain amount of
material bends (is refracted) and takes a shortcut. The angle of refraction varies with light is also reflected from the surface of clear glass as from a mirror. The proportions
each substance and increases according to the power of each substance to impede of light reflected and transmitted vary according to the nature of the substance, the
light. surrounding conditions, and in many cases, the angle from which the surface is viewed.
 

Absorption of light. Thin, translucent milk glass or other semi-opaque material   Dark surfaces. The greatest amount of light absorption, accompanied by the least
transmits less light than does a transparent material. In this instance, some of the light reflection, occurs when light falls on a dead mat, intensely black surface. Other issues
is reflected, and some absorbed. The more the light is impeded and absorbed, the being equal, a brilliant white surface will reflect the most light, and as it is tinted the
greater the opacity. amount of reflection will decrease according to the depth of color.
 

Luminous and bright grounds. When a layer of paint composed of pigment particles   Any coloration of the ground will tend to decrease the amount of reflection, and the
and binder is coated on a white ground the resulting reflection of light contributes more translucent the coating is or becomes, the more the brightness of the resulting
brilliance and luminosity, which are altogether lacking when the painting is done on a painting will be affected.
black ground.
 
Paint Education

Why Some Paints are Transparent and Others Opaque 

Light and color effects in painting: Refractive Index 
By George O'Hanlon

The hiding strength (opacity) of a paint is largely influenced by the relative refractive indices of the pigment and the medium, as well as the particle size and distribution of the
pigment, i.e. the shape and degree of aggregation of the particles, the proportion of pigment in the vehicle and the thickness of the applied film.
Artists are sometimes surprised to see one application of paint barely hide the drawing or underpainting below, and another color completely mask all that was underneath. Some
wonder why a few months after they completed a painting, they begin to see pencil lines of the sketch that before were completely unnoticed. (This affect is called pentimento.)
Other artists wishing to apply a beautiful glaze are frustrated when the glaze kills the color below. These are common problems experienced by all painters at one time or
another, but the reasons are little understood.
Given the same thickness of applied paint film, not all paints are equally opaque (or transparent). In painting we call this the hiding strength or covering power of a paint. The
hiding strength (or opacity) of a paint is largely influenced by the relative refractive indices of the pigment and the medium, as well as the particle size and dispersion of the
pigment, i.e. the shape and degree of aggregation of the particles, the proportion of pigment in the vehicle and the thickness of the applied film. These factors determine the
opacity of a particular paint. In this article, we will focus on refractive index; the other factors were considered in a previous article entitled, "Do Natural Pigments Offer More to
the Modern Painter?".
Paints are materials containing tiny pigment particles suspended in a binder, such as oil. We are accustomed to regard some pigments as transparent, or translucent, and others
as opaque. Pigments usually considered to be opaque are transparent in a highly refractive medium. Using a medium of high refractive index it can be shown that the most
opaque colors, even lead white, appear transparent. This demonstrates that the hiding strength or opacity of a pigment can be lost through a change in the conditions that
surround the pigment, or in the case of paint, a change in the binder.
Pigment particles absorb certain wavelengths of light, creating colored paints, or they may be translucent, appearing white to our eyes. Lets consider what happens when light
encounters a layer of paint containing only pigment particles that are transparent.

The Behavior of Light Passing Through Substances

To help us understand the opacity of pigment in paint, we will need to consider the behavior of white light on substances. We think of a sheet of glass as a transparent substance
through which light passes without obstruction. Yet, if we look out of our window at night we get a nearly perfect mirror image of the interior of our home.
As beams of light pass from the air to glass they are impeded, so that some are reflected while part are transmitted. If the beam of light, called incident light, hits the glass at an
angle, the transmitted beam is bent out of its path on entering the glass so as to shorten its path (fig.1).

Fig. 1 When light passes through a transparent liquid some of it is reflected and some transmitted. Transmitted light is refracted as it encounters a material, such as liquid that
impedes it velocity through it.

Light travels at a constant velocity in a vacuum, but when it travels through a substance its velocity is slowed. So, in our example, when the light passes from the less dense air
to the denser glass, its velocity is slowed down; the beam of light is bent or refracted. The amount of refraction is the measure of impediment given by the substance to the
beam of light. In our example, we can substitute the glass for other substances, such as water, oil or diamonds, and find the amount light is impeded is different for each
substance. (The amount light is bent is lso dependent upon other factors, such as the temperature of the substance and the wavelength of the light.) The proportion between the
light that is reflected and the light that is transmitted also varies.
The ratio of the velocity of light in air (ideally, it should be a vacuum) to the velocity of light in another substance is expressed as the index of refraction of refractive index. It is
measured by the angle at which the ray of light is bent. To determine this ratio, one must know the angle of incidence, or the angle between the ray of light entering the
substance and a line perpendicular to its surface, and the angle of refraction, defined as the angle between the refracted ray and the perpendicular to the surface. In
mathematical terms, if i is the angle of incidence and r is the angle of refraction, then the refractive index is N, expressed as follows:
sine i
N=-------
sine r
By definition the refractive index of a vacuum is 1. In practice, air makes little difference to the refraction of light with an absolute refractive index of 1.0008, so the value of the
absolute refractive index can be used assuming the incident light is in air. Since light slows down when it enters a substance, so the refractive index will always be greater than 1.
Most minerals have refractive indices between 1.32 and 2.40, with values between 1.50 and 1.80 (Jones 1980).

MATERIAL ABSOLUTE REFRACTIVE INDEX

Air 1.0008

Water 1.3300

Glass, soda-lime 1.5100

Ruby 1.7600

Diamond 2.4170
The amount light rays may be bent as shown in figure 1, depends upon the substance it enters. This change in direction becomes smaller as the angle of incidence decreases.
Eventually, when light is perpendicular to a surface it will not bend. The angles at which light is refracted is a constant. For a pigment, the constant N (refractive index) depends
on the difference between the velocity of light in the surrounding medium and in the pigment. It is a characteristic constant for every material including gases and liquids. We
cannot observe the change in the velocity of light on the small pigment particles, but we can observe a change in the direction of propagation of the light and calculate or
estimate the refractive index.
The refractive index is an easy concept to learn, but things arent quite that simple. The refractive index of a pigment particle is not necessarily the same in all directions. Most
pigments are composed of crystals that have definite shapes and are classified into different systems. In cubic crystals, light travels at the same speed in all directions within the
crystal, which is said to be isotropic. Light does not travel at the same speed in all directions within substances that belong to the five other crystal classes; these are said to be
anisotropic. In addition, anisotropic substances are divisible into two types:
Uniaxial have two refractive indices (tetragonal and hexagonal system minerals);
Biaxial are characterized by three refractive indices (triclinic, monoclinic and orthorhombic system minerals).
The most important thing to remember is that a substance which has a higher refractive index is a substance that impedes the velocity of light or offers more resistance to it, and
therefore a larger proportion of the light will be reflected.
Lets return to our example of the beam of light passing into a transparent substance. Consider what happens when a light beam is passing from one transparent substance of one
index value to another substance of another refractive index.
If a beam of light passes from a transparent substance like air with a low refractive index to a transparent substance of a high refractive index, such as water that impedes the
passage of light, part of the light will be reflected at the interface or boundary of the two substances (fig. 1). Light changes speed as it moves from air to water, so that it
experiences refraction and reflection. In our consideration of pigments, the reflection is most important. Now, if we view the water inside a shallow glass dish some of the light
passing through the water and entering the glass, which has a higher refractive index than water, is reflected and some refracted (fig. 2). We get two reflections and two
refractions; one at the surface of the water, and another at the boundary of the water and glass.

Fig. 2 Light passing through two substances, one of low refractive index and the other of high refractive index.

Typically, solid substances have higher refractive indices than liquids, so if we suspend a sheet of glass in a shallow dish of water, we will see a strong reflection and high
refraction at their interface, because of the differences in their refractive indices (fig. 3).
Now instead of a sheet of glass of higher refractive value than water, we place a transparent sheet of another material with a low refractive index, like gelatin; we shall get a
comparably feeble reflection at the boundary of the water and gelatin.
If instead of removing the glass we replace the water with a liquid of higher refractive index, the same refractive index as glass, there will be no reflected light at the meeting of
the liquid and glass.
Fig. 3 Light passing through a liquid of low refractive index and then through a glass plate, illustrating how pigment particles reflect and transmit light in a medium.

Let us summarize what weve learned about the behavior of light. When a ray of light is passing from a transparent substance of low refractive index to a transparent substance of
high refractive index, light is reflected at the boundary; the amount of light reflected being greater the greater the difference between their respective refractive indices.

The Behavior of Light in Paint

Now we will approximate the conditions we find in paint. Let us return to our example of the glass sheet suspended in liquid. We now break the glass into pieces and grind it into
a fine powder. This powder is white and opaque, but if we were to examine a particle of the glass in a microscope we would see that is transparent. The reason is that the light
reflected from millions of facets is scattered, and it is scattered light that produces opacity.
Now put the powder glass in a container, and fill the container with water. The differences between the refractive indices of water and glass is not as great as between air and
glass. As you fill the container with water, the powder glass does not reflect so much light. It becomes partly translucent. If the liquid had the same refractive index as glass, the
glass would be almost invisible. Though the water is not of so high refractive index as glass, it is very much higher than air, and as we see the glass by scattered reflection, if the
reflection no longer takes place, the glass disappears. This is the same phenomenon we observe when we wet an opaque substance, it appears darker in color.
We will repeat what was said earlier: Some pigments we consider to be transparent, or translucent, and others opaque. Pigments usually considered to be opaque are actually
transparent in a highly refractive medium. Using a medium of high refractive index it can be shown that the most opaque colors, even lead white, appear transparent.
Most of the light enters the paint surface and then passes through the randomly shaped and oriented pigment particles. These particles are translucent and dont absorb much
light, but they have a refractive index higher than the medium that surrounds them.
What happens to the light as it passes through one of these pigment particles? The light refracts and reflects on the surface of each particle. Again, changes in the speed of light
causes the light to bend or refract. The light is impeded trying to pass through the particles, even though the particles do not absorb much light. The lights path changes at the
surface and some of it is reflected back out of the paint.
The random shape and orientation of the pigment particles are what gives a paint film of white pigment its white appearance. If all of the pigment particles were instead flat disks
that lay parallel to the paints surface, like coins lying flat on the bottom of a shallow pan of water, the paint would reflect the light like a mirror rather than form a white surface.
The reason is that the flat disks would reflect light directly back from the paint in the manner of a mirror. The paint film would appear like a mirror rather than a mixture of
medium and pigment particles. The random surfaces of the pigment particles are what give white paint its diffuse glow. A narrow beam of light hitting white paint scatters in all
directions while a beam of light hitting the mirror bounces back as a narrow beam.
If the pigment particles had exactly the same index of refraction as the medium that holds them, how would this alter the appearance of the paint? The paint would appear
translucent. Without changes in the refractive index between the pigment and the medium, light passes through it practically unaffected. Although some light will reflect at the
boundary of the air and paint layer, whatever light actually enters the paint will continue on all the way through it to the ground under the paint. The paint will appear
translucent. Some pigments, such as chalk, when mixed with linseed oil will loose their hiding strength and appear translucent, because they have a similar refractive index to
the oil.
A white pigment should have a high refractive index, a high ability to bend light that strikes it obliquely, and a high ability to reflect light. There are many substances that are
useful as white pigments. Common ones are silica (SiO 2), chalk (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), titanium dioxide (TiO2), baryta (barium sulfate, BaSO4), gypsum (calcium sulfate,
CaSO4), lead white (lead carbonate, PbCO3), litharge (lead oxide, PbO), zinc oxide (ZnO) and zinc sulfide (ZnS). If you look at the table of refractive indices, the substances that
have higher refractive indices are greater opacity or covering power because of their high refractive index.

REFRACTIVE INDICES OF VARIOUS PIGMENTS

COLOR PIGMENT REFRACTIVE INDEX

Azurite 1.73-1.84

Indigo 1.49-1.52

Blue Smalt 1.49-1.52

Ultramarine (lazurite) 1.50

Vivianite 1.58-1.70

Chrysocolla 1.58-1.60

Dioptase 1.64-1.71

Green earth (glauconite) 1.62

Green
Malachite 1.65-1.90

Verdigris (basic copper acetate) 1.53-1.56

Volkonskoite 2.50

Gamboge (organic resin) 1.58-1.59

Indian yellow 1.67

Jarosite 1.71-1.82
Yellow
Massicot 2.50-2.61

Ochre, yellow (goethite) 2.00-2.40

Orpiment 2.40-3.02

Cinnabar 2.81-3.15

Hematite 2.78-3.01
Red
Realgar 2.46-2.61

Red lead 2.42

Vermilion 2.82-3.15

Goethite (brown ochre) 2.08-2.40

Siderite 1.57-1.78

Sienna, burnt 1.85

Brown
Sienna, raw (goethite) 1.87-2.17

Umber, burnt 2.20-2.30

Umber, raw 1.87-2.17

Anhydrite 1.57-1.61

Chalk (whiting) 1.51-1.65

Gypsum 1.52-1.53
White Titanium dioxide (rutile) 2.27

White lead (basic lead 1.94-2.09

carbonate)

Zinc oxide 2.00-2.02

 Black Carbon black (opaque)
Since for white pigments there is little or no absorption of light, the hiding power of white paints depends entirely on the scattering of the incident light. The higher the refractive
index of the pigment relative to that of the medium and the nearer the particle size to the optimum, the greater the scatter and the greater the opacity of the paint.
The hiding power of a paint containing a colored pigment is also dependent on the ability of the pigment to absorb light, as well as to scatter it as a result of its refractive index
and particle size distribution. With black pigments good hiding power is obtained owing to the almost complete absorption of light and refractive index as such contributes only
little to the effect. For other colored pigments both of these properties, absorption and scatter, are wavelength dependent and the end effect is a complex combination of all the
various factors involved.
All inorganic pigments have high refractive indices, and hence, when used to color paint give high opacity. Such colors from inorganic pigments generally include white, black,
and yellow, red and green oxides. Colors comprising combinations of inorganic and organic pigments may have high opacity, depending on the proportions.

Conclusion
When selecting a pigment it is important to know how opaque it is. Depending upon the desired effect of the paint either opaque or glazes, you will need to use either opaque or
transparent pigments. For underpainting, you will normally need an opaque pigment, and for the final layers, a glazing one. The opacity of a pigment will depend largely on the
refractive indices of the pigments and the binding materials, on the granularity of the pigments and the degree of pigment concentration in the binding medium.

Fig. 4 Refractive indices of various blue pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums
Fig. 5 Refractive indices of various brown pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums

Fig. 6 Refractive indices of various green pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums
Fig. 7 Refractive indices of various red pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums

Fig. 8 Refractive indices of various white pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums
Fig. 9 Refractive indices of various yellow pigments compared to aqueous and drying oil mediums

Based on color effects in Artists Handbook of Materials and Techniques by Ralph Mayer
   

Refraction of light. A light ray passing through a sheet of glass or other transparent Transmission and reflection of light. Under average conditions a certain amount of
material bends (is refracted) and takes a shortcut. The angle of refraction varies with light is also reflected from the surface of clear glass as from a mirror. The proportions
each substance and increases according to the power of each substance to impede of light reflected and transmitted vary according to the nature of the substance, the
light. surrounding conditions, and in many cases, the angle from which the surface is viewed.
 

Absorption of light. Thin, translucent milk glass or other semi-opaque material   Dark surfaces. The greatest amount of light absorption, accompanied by the least
transmits less light than does a transparent material. In this instance, some of the light reflection, occurs when light falls on a dead mat, intensely black surface. Other issues
is reflected, and some absorbed. The more the light is impeded and absorbed, the being equal, a brilliant white surface will reflect the most light, and as it is tinted the
greater the opacity. amount of reflection will decrease according to the depth of color.
 

Luminous and bright grounds. When a layer of paint composed of pigment particles   Any coloration of the ground will tend to decrease the amount of reflection, and the
and binder is coated on a white ground the resulting reflection of light contributes more translucent the coating is or becomes, the more the brightness of the resulting
brilliance and luminosity, which are altogether lacking when the painting is done on a painting will be affected.
black ground.