82
Low
Cost and High Performance, Polymer Nanocomposite, Specialty Industrial
Coatings--Nanopowder
Enterprises, Inc., 201 Circle Drive, Suite 102/103, Piscataway, NJ
08854-3900; 732-885-1088, www.nanopowderenterprises.com
Dr.
Amit Singhal, Principal Investigator,
Dr.
Gary Tompa, Business Official,
DOE
Grant No. DE-FG02-03ER83726
Amount:
$100,000
Due
to the potential for low cost and high performance, polymer nanocomposite
coatings could replace conventional, high cost polymer coatings for applications
where outstanding abrasion resistance and long maintenance cycles (approximately
20 years) are desired. This project
will develop a generic technology for producing low cost polymer nanocomposite
coatings that can be used in a broad range of applications. The
coatings will provide excellent resistance to both wear and UV degradation, good
stability to chemicals and the environment, and good optical transparency.
Phase I will synthesize polymer nanocomposite coatings deposited on
different kinds of substrates. Mechanical
properties will be evaluated and compared to state-of-the-art polymer coatings.
Commercial Applications and Other
Benefits
as described by awardee: This new
class of high performance, nanocomposite polymer coatings should have potential
in a broad range of industrial applications, including maintenance paints,
automobile refinishing, and aircraft coatings.
Also, the technology could lead to environmentally benign, high
performance, water-borne polymer coatings that could replace the more expensive,
solvent-based, fluoropolymer coatings in a number of applications, including
fuel tanks, structural steel, and oil tankers.