Five facts about coatings in transportation
Mobility is one of the major foundations of modern society. To keep it efficient and affordable for everyone cars, trains, ships or common bicycles need good coatings to protect them from corrosion or to reduce friction. Five facts on coatings in transportation.
Coatings on trains
Traveling by train is preventing damage to the environment and human health. It is not only reducing CO2emissions, it also reduces NO2 and fine dust pollution. Sustainability also plays a big role regarding the coating of trains. A standard ICE railcar is coated with circa 800 kg of paint, nowadays 70 to 80 percent of this coating is water based.
Coatings on airplains
The first commercial flight was conducted a bit over a hundred years ago. Today flying around the world seems as normal as it gets. And the market is still growing, especially in the Asia-Pacific region. To coat a Boeing 747, the second largest airplane in the world, between 2,000 and 2,500 liters of paint is needed.
Coating of ships
When it comes to marine coatings the requirements are quite high and complex. Besides top notch protection against corrosion in the harsh salt water environment, the coatings have to tackle the issue of biofouling. This is a quite complex task, especially if you want to avoid hazardous ingredients.
Coatings for bicycles
Every gram counts: a high-tech bicycle that is used for races like the tour de France is coated with only 30 g of paint. However, a standard bicycle for day-to-day activities is painted with 180 g of paint.
Coatings for cars
When you are searching for a benchmark on professional coating, the automotive industry is where you have to look. The high degree of automation, reproducibility and quality sets standards. Even though most coated parts of a car are still made of metal, plastic is getting more and more important. Overall, a standard sized car like the VW Golf is coated with more or less 4 kg of paint.
