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thermal diffusion coating method. The article explains how the new process is suitable for mass finishing of small- and medium-size parts with powder coat- ings, providing substantial cost savings when compared with rack or spray coating. Test results indicate positive outcomes on a wide range of materials, showing exceptional durability and ver- satility in controlling the uniformity, thickness, and colors available for small parts production. What to consider when specifying exterior-durable powder coatings. Joseph Roush and Danielle Dykstra, February 2011, p. 21. Terms such as super-durable, ultra-pre- mium, and high-performance are used frequently for marketing purposes when describing powder coatings; however, what do these terms really mean? Most of the time, trade-offs come with perfor- mance improvements. What are those trade-offs? This article describes, in detail, the performance differences in powder coatings based on literature and actual test results, and gives some insight into what's important to con- sider when specifying exterior-durable powder coatings. Metallic powder coatings: Advancements in chrome effects. William Pofahl. March 2011 digital issue, p. 16. Powder coating systems offer several advantages when compared with tradi- tional liquid paint systems. Besides their obvious environmental advan- tage, powder coatings offer economic and quality advantages over their liq- uid counterparts. The range of effects allowed by powder coatings includes metallics, such as the metallic effects created by use of aluminum pigments. However, to date the industry hasn't created a metallic effect in a powder coating system that truly replicates the visual appearance of traditional chrome plating. This article outlines the meth- ods used to create metallic effects, emphasizing chrome, and introduces a new chrome effect powder coating sys- tem. The article also provides relevant background on this sector of the powder coating market. Liquid or solid: Can you measure powder flow behavior? Robert G. McGregor. September 2011, p. 23. The paint and coatings industry has sig- nificant experience with rheology as it applies to the world of liquid, semi-solid, and powder-based materials. One inter- esting challenge confronting powder coating companies is that the science of flow behavior for measuring liquids is just the opposite for powders. The con- trolling parameter for liquids, known as shear rate, appears to be inconsequential when measuring powders. Consolidation stress is the control parameter that dic- tates powder flow behavior in gravity discharge from bins, silos, and interme- diate bulk containers. This article reviews the test methods that are tradi- tionally used by manufacturers to predict "flowability" of coating materials and then presents some new alternatives. Innovations in GMA acrylic powder coatings. Szuping Lu. February 2013, p. 20. Acrylic powder coating is one of the most important powder coating systems. It is well-known to provide a hard, weather-durable coating with good chemical resistance. The GMA acrylic powder coating especially provides exceptional smoothness and clarity (if in clear-coat) that makes it the best choice for automotive clear-coat appli- cations. However, due to certain coat- ing properties, economic, and produc- tion issues, acrylic powder coating has not been widely accepted in the general powder coating industry, and its mar- ket share in the powder coating indus- try is still low. Researchers have been working on many improvements of acrylic powder coating, including new resin design, hardeners, and additives, to overcome its weaknesses, maintain its strengths, and widen its applications not only in automotive applications, but also in low-temperature-cure, architectural, and other applications. Use total cost analysis to reshore powder coated products. Harry Moser and Millar Kelley. February 2013, p. 28. Reshoring is bringing back manufac- t u r i n g t h a t w e n t o f f s h o r e . T h e Reshoring Initiative is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping companies understand the true cost of offshoring by using Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) analysis. If the customers of powder coating compa- nies use Total Cost analysis more, they will offshore less and reshore more. The Initiative's many tools to help US companies decide to produce q u a l i t y p r o d u c t s a t h o m e a r e reviewed in this article. Ways you can help build the momentum of reshoring and get more business are outlined at the end of the article. Progress in non-chromate powder coatings for corrosion protection. Niteen Jadhav, Joseph Byrom, and Victoria J. Gelling. April 2013, p. 15. The development of non-chromate tech- nologies for powder coatings has been at the forefront of the industry because of the carcinogenic and toxic nature of chromates. In this regard, powder coat- ings based on nanomaterials, conduct- ing polymers, nontoxic conversion coat- ings, and ultraviolet (UV) radiation curable powder coatings are some of the new developments on which researchers have focused their attention. This arti- cle describes, in detail, the impact that adhesion and corrosion protection para- meters have on non-chromate powder coatings and how these new and chang- ing technologies are shaping the indus- try as it moves forward. PC 42 POWDER COATING, February 2018 Write for POWDER COATING www.pcoating.com Visit our website to download our article guidelines or email our editor Alicia Tyznik at atyznik@cscpub.com