Development of novel coatings formulations through design of experiments

The development of new coatings is a complex task that requires a rigorous experimental approach to optimize formulations and production processes. This Thesis explores the application of Design of Experiments in the design and optimization of formulations for aqueous dispersion polyurethane coatings for leather and tissues. The goal is to identify the optimal conditions to obtain high performance in terms of resins gloss and hardness at a low cost, while ensuring environmental sustainability. In particular, the use of mixture models, such as those of Scheffé, allows to systematically analyze the interactions between components and predict the trend of the final properties of the coating (Box et al., 2005). The use of polyurethanes in water dispersion is evaluated also from a sustainability perspective, in compliance with EU regulations on VOC emissions (European Commission, 2018). These materials have several advantages both in terms of emission reduction and production costs, resulting in an innovative choice for the coatings industry (Patel et al., 2020; Bergmann et al., 2017). The statistical analysis is conducted using Minitab®, a software which allows to build regression models and to validate the experimental results through statistical tests and compared to the software DesingExpert®. The results demonstrate that the integration of DOE with regression analysis and multi-objective optimization techniques allows to significantly improve the performance of coatings, minimizing the number of experiments required. This methodology is an effective approach for the sustainable design of new resins, combining production efficiency, cost reduction and compliance with environmental regulations.