1067979 University of Kentucky; Kozo Saito 1067995 Clemson University; Mohammed Omar
The Center for Painting/Coating Applications and Surface Inspection Systems will focus on painting/coating materials, formulations, finishes and interfacial behavior, paint and coating applications, curing and inspections systems for the automotive sector as well as others. The University of Kentucky (UKY) and Clemson University (CU) are collaborating to establish the proposed center, with UKY as the lead institution.
The proposed work plans to overcome the technology transfer challenges in coatings and paint segments of the automotive industry. This goal will be achieved by (i) involving industry in precompetitive research, and (ii) conducting focused research in areas such as paint application, monitoring of surface finish, and quality control. A number of fundamental projects are proposed including pollution control by capturing and recycling paint sludge, corrosion protection, paint defect inspection tools, "green" methods of curing paint, reduction in energy during painting process, and developing new equipment to minimize/eliminate paint overspray. PIs are highly qualified and have a proven track record of conducting industry focused research, and successfully transferring research innovations to industry.
The proposal includes a discussion of the typical technology transfer of research results to industry via reports to the IAB members, and the use of graduate students in the research effort. Beyond the targeted automotive industry, the potential impact of the center's technology affects almost every major US capital good industry. The PI has a directed plan and positive track record for inclusion of under-represented ethnic groups. Proposed research activities will involve researchers from different academic disciplines at the two campuses. Student researchers will be encouraged to participate in the planning and implementation phases of various research projects.
The planning Grant to initiate an industry/university collaborative research center I/UCRC, have enabled the Clemson University and the University of Kentucky teams to setup and manage several planning meetings and discussions around forming a center specialized in fundamental pre-competitive research in the transportation painting area. The planning meetings have led to better understanding of the industry needs and specific challenges in the painting area; specifically, painting sustainability research theme, and painting for harsh environments. Several transformative research proposal have been prepared and investigated through the planning grant life cycle; for example; a novel, more efficient painting processes have been proposed via new paint-applicators that can produce uniform droplet size and distributions, also a knowledge based computerized advisory system is proposed to help make the decision making process within the painting industry more objective and takes sustainability metrics into account. Moreover, the planning grant enabled the researchers from both universities to share ideas and discuss innovations in efficient curing technologies such as Ultraviolet based curing assisted with robotics. The research discussions and the industry feedback benefited the graduate students who were engaged in the planning process and provided them with better understanding of the industrial challenges in the transportation painting sector.
