My recent keynote presentation on megatrends given at the Paintistanbul Turkcoat Congress generated significant interest in electric vehicles (EV) as a driver for coating innovations. Given that every major automobile manufacturer has announced plans for conversion to electric vehicles in the next decade and global sales of new EVs are rising significantly, it is no surprise this market represents new...
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Car buyers around the world prefer neutral colors by a large margin and have done so many years. That trend is expected to persist for the next several years as well, although colors should make a small comeback.
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Achieving Class A appearance over fiber-reinforced substrates can be challenging. We discuss the evolving measurements used to characterize topcoated surface appearance. The influence of carbon fiber on the surface appearance of a thermoplastic resin-transfer-molding (RTM) substrate is related to differences in thermal expansion within the substrate.
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Getting the color right on automobiles is incredibly important. Many people feel very connected to their cars and see them as an extension—or at least a reflection—of who they are. Appearance is therefore crucial. In many cases, the design of a vehicle is enhanced by the choice of paint applied to the surface—the color, sparkle, travel, and other special characteristics...
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The automotive industry is undergoing a significant transformation. Conventional internal combustion engines (ICEs) are being replaced by batteries in electric vehicles (EVs), and drivers will ultimately become passengers in autonomous vehicles (AVs). Coatings have an important role to play in making these new technologies possible. Beyond their traditional jobs of protecting automobile components from corrosion, abrasion, and ultraviolet (UV) degradation...
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While the passenger vehicle market has experienced weakening of demand in recent months, the market for heavy-duty vehicles remains healthy. Consequently, demand for coatings used on these vehicles and their components is also trending in a positive manner. Coatings that help increase application efficiency and productivity, offer improved durability, and meet evolving regulatory requirements for lower VOCs have the advantage....
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A new class of metal-free catalysts has been developed that promotes the crosslinking reaction of epoxy functional polymers with carboxyl functional compounds and polymers. Particularly effective at much lower cure temperatures, these catalysts provide stable single package formulations and improved resistance properties. In addition, unlike amine-based compounds, these catalysts do not yellow during cure or on over-bake.
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New water-soluble urethane diol resins have been developed to be used as resin modifiers for waterborne coatings systems crosslinked with amino resins. These urethane diols are a multipurpose chemical species that can be utilized to enhance performance properties as well as resolve some of the common issues experienced when formulating waterborne systems.
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Automation in manufacturing can provide many benefits, from reduced risk of human error to greater worker safety. For the automotive coating process, use of robotic systems can also improve the paint quality while reducing waste. J-CO America, the U.S. branch of Italian company Geico, a global supplier of turnkey automated automotive coating and painting systems, has incorporated robotic painting with...
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