Antoine
12-07-2005, 11:54 PM
Mazda, Nippon Paint Develop
Eco-Friendly Coating Process
Japan for Sustainability (http://www.japanfs.org/)
TOKYO, Dec. 7, 2005 - An electro-deposition basecoat known as e-coating that substantially reduces both volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions has been developed by Mazda Motor Corp., a major Japanese automaker, in collaboration with Nippon Paint Co. Mazda had already developed a "Three-Layer Wet Paint System" that combined the primer, base and clear coats into one painting process, and introduced it to all its plants in Japan. The new e-coating developed at this time significantly reduces environment-impacting substances included for rust protection in the base coat process.
In the electro-deposition painting process, the vehicle body is immersed in a paint tank and an electric current is passed through its steel parts, causing the paint adhere to the steel surfaces. With conventional paints, electrical currents pass through some parts more easily than others, causing discrepancies in paint film thickness between the inside and outside body surfaces. As a result, excess paint adhered to the outside body surface while the inside body surface was insufficiently coated.
The newly developed e-coating has reduced the viscosity of the paint and raised its electrical resistance, reducing the amount of electricity used during painting. This provides sufficient paint thickness on inside surfaces and increases rust protection, while excess paint accumulated on outer surfaces can be adjusted to an appropriate level, allowing also for a reduction in total paint consumption.
Mazda plans to introduce this new paint to its four plants in Japan within the year. This will reduce VOC emissions during basecoat painting by 32 tons, CO2 emissions during paint manufacture by 8.8 tons per year and the volume of basecoat materials by more than 10% compared to previous methods, the company said.
Eco-Friendly Coating Process
Japan for Sustainability (http://www.japanfs.org/)
TOKYO, Dec. 7, 2005 - An electro-deposition basecoat known as e-coating that substantially reduces both volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions has been developed by Mazda Motor Corp., a major Japanese automaker, in collaboration with Nippon Paint Co. Mazda had already developed a "Three-Layer Wet Paint System" that combined the primer, base and clear coats into one painting process, and introduced it to all its plants in Japan. The new e-coating developed at this time significantly reduces environment-impacting substances included for rust protection in the base coat process.
In the electro-deposition painting process, the vehicle body is immersed in a paint tank and an electric current is passed through its steel parts, causing the paint adhere to the steel surfaces. With conventional paints, electrical currents pass through some parts more easily than others, causing discrepancies in paint film thickness between the inside and outside body surfaces. As a result, excess paint adhered to the outside body surface while the inside body surface was insufficiently coated.
The newly developed e-coating has reduced the viscosity of the paint and raised its electrical resistance, reducing the amount of electricity used during painting. This provides sufficient paint thickness on inside surfaces and increases rust protection, while excess paint accumulated on outer surfaces can be adjusted to an appropriate level, allowing also for a reduction in total paint consumption.
Mazda plans to introduce this new paint to its four plants in Japan within the year. This will reduce VOC emissions during basecoat painting by 32 tons, CO2 emissions during paint manufacture by 8.8 tons per year and the volume of basecoat materials by more than 10% compared to previous methods, the company said.