We sent off a sample to RFT Marine in South Australia a few months ago. As a result of their testing, they voted for us for the MP Readers’ Choice Corrosion Innovation of the Year Award, and sent us a short sample of their findings from the tests. Clearly, they went through some effort to, in their words, “destroy” EonCoat and it “survived where all others failed.”  We couldn’t have said it better ourselves. Here’s what they had to say:

  “I received samples of EonCoat & tested with ultrasonics for anti-fouling, could not fault over 90 days. I welded one side to simulate welding inside the hull, slight discoloration with no loss of integrity. I then subjected a sample to a drop hammer (12 tonne impact to simulate a collision resulted in a slight cracking, I then used a press to bend a sample and cracks appeared after a bend of 21 degrees. For the project I have planned I needed a coating to withstand everything it could encounter so I tried to destroy the product and failed, Eoncoat survived where all the others failed.” Kerry – Australia

I had welded the sample to 500mm of steel before the bend test. The drop hammer test was not steel on steel but a piece of timber 2cm laid on your sample, I believe it was a fair test. Kerry

We send out samples to companies all around the world. So far, EonCoat has proven to be as effective in testing environments off-site  as it has been here in our testing facilities.

Contact us if you’re looking for industrial corrosion resistant coating and would like to receive a sample of EonCoat.

Materials Performance (MP) is the world’s largest circulation journal dedicated exclusively to corrosion prevention and control.Their website describes their affiliation with NACE International as:

MP readers include more than 16,000 members of NACE International, the recognized leader in the corrosion field, and other nonmember subscribers. Through NACE affiliation, MP readers actually set the standard for corrosion control practices and technology.

This is the first time they’ve asked their reader’s to nominate and vote on a corrosion innovation, based on the following criteria:

• Innovations should go beyond marginal improvements to current products, services, methods, and techniques.
• We are looking to showcase groundbreaking technological advances in all industries that directly relate to corrosion prevention and mitigation…

We are so proud that as a young company, we have been included for consideration by such a leading publication in the corrosion field.

There’s still time to vote until February 15! Learn more about and vote for the nominees here.

Sameer, what does role as lead scientist at EonCoat entail?

My role is to not only develop coating products, but to make those products as useful as possible for both contractors and customers.

Can you tell us more about the 2 component system used with EonCoat? What are the two primary “ingredients” for EonCoat and why are they stored separately?

Our coating has two components very similar to epoxies, polycarbonates and urethanes. Our two components are generally called part A and part B. Part A contains acidic minerals and part B contains basic minerals. When these parts mix and are sprayed, they form the final product (binder) on the substrate. Because the two parts are reactant when mixed, they are kept separately either in cartridges or buckets for storage purposes.

Once EonCoat has been applied, the resulting coating continues to strengthen for years. How long does EonCoat take to cure and why does it continue to strengthen over time?

Since our coating is based on the ceramics, it will change its microstructure over an extended period of time and gain strength. For comparison purposes, it can be likened to the chemical process with naturally occurring stones. While it gains strength over a period of time, it cures in only 10 minutes, reducing equipment downtime and saving costs in the “watching paint dry” category

If the current trend in the painting/coating industry is “green paint” where do you see the industry going next? Will there be a continued focus on green paint alternatives or do you see the industry focusing on innovation in different areas?

The “green paint” trend will continue for years to come and I’m sure several new types of paints and coatings will come to market for consumers during this transition period. In the future, I think innovators and manufacturers will end up using similar materials to what we are using right now for EonCoat.

What’s your favorite aspect of your work at EonCoat? What drives you as lead scientist?

As a lead scientist I certainly like to work on formulations developments which can give unique properties, but I also enjoy working on how to bring formulations to market by making them first work at production level and spray level.

*****

A big ‘Thank You!’ to Sameer for taking the time to tell us a bit about EonCoat and his role as lead scientist. Any questions for Sameer not addressed above? Leave your question in the comments and we’ll ask him ourselves!

VOCs are chemicals that turn into breathable gases at room temperature and can contain benzene, toluene, formaldehyde, mercury and many other harmful chemicals. In the United States, after automobiles, paint-related products are the second largest source of VOC emissions. Ever gotten a whiff of a fresh coat of paint? The smell of a fresh coat of paint is actually the smell of VOCs!

In the past, one of the issues slowing the widespread use of paints with low or no VOCs was that it was difficult to create different colors and hues. The chemicals used to create different paint colors and tints are high in VOCs and as a result, the color options with low or no VOCs paint was limited. While this has changed with new ways to color paints without VOCs, it was an obstacle in the widespread adoption of paints without VOCs.

EonCoat, and other no VOCs paints, have no odor because of the lack of VOCs within the paint. Normal paint requires solvents to keep it in liquid form and to keep it from drying in the can. The problem with this approach is that most solvents are high in VOCs. By separating EonCoat’s two main components, we are able to avoid using VOCs at all. A two component spray system is used to apply the paint. Mixing the two chemicals together at the last second negates the need for solvents and the dangers associated with VOCs.

Before your next indoor paint job consider the paint you’re using for the project. What levels of VOCs are present? The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) measures VOCs in grams per liter. According to the EPA, paint is low in VOCs if there are less than 250 gm/l in latex paints and 380 gm/l in oil-based paints. Low VOCs paints, like Olympic Premium Interior are a step in the right direction but are still releasing harmful gases into the air you breathe.

Manufacturers use VOCs to keep chemicals separate in the paint. The VOCs must evaporate for the paint to dry correctly and the odor we smell is that evaporation process. The benefits of using paints with no or low VOCs are that there is no risk of fire and there are no odors or paint headaches.

Many paint companies are beginning to offer low VOC paint products. Some are even offering paints or coatings with no VOCs, although it’s still not an easy task to find high performance corrosion resistant coatings with no VOCs (EonCoat industrial coating has no VOCs). Put that mask away and start painting!

We want to hear what you think. Have you ever had someone complain of the fumes when you had just finished a coat? Have you ever gotten headaches from paint fumes? Sound off in the comments.