Waterborne Polymers for Functional Surface Coatings

Waterborne polyurethane dispersions are environmentally friendly, high performance materials that are employed for a variety of coating and adhesive applications. This project will focus on the synthesis and characterization of novel waterborne polyurethane dispersions as functional coatings for industrial applications. Examples of these applications and the nature of the polymer that will be developed are:
i) Waterborne polyurethanes for new generation self-healing paints for metal surfaces prone to corrosion due to the mechanical deformation of protective paint.
ii) UV-curable, waterborne polyurethanes for thin film coating and 3D printing applications
iii) Cationic and anionic waterborne polyurethanes for paper coating applications