1. Empowering Development with National Environmental Policies
Guided by the "dual carbon" goals, national environmental policies have been continuously strengthened, with increasingly stringent controls on VOCs (volatile organic compounds) emissions in the industrial coating sector. A series of policy documents, including the "14th Five-Year Plan for Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction" and the "Comprehensive Treatment Plan for Volatile Organic Compounds," have been successively issued, explicitly requiring the promotion of research and application of low-VOCs coatings. This policy direction has brought unprecedented development opportunities to the powder coating industry, especially powder coating technology, which is entering a golden age of rapid iteration and upgrading as a supporting industry for new energy vehicles.
In the coating field, powder coatings, with their core advantages of being pollution-free, having zero VOCs emissions, high recyclability, simple coating processes, and high automation, are widely recognized by the market as "4E-type" environmentally friendly green coatings—namely, high efficiency, excellent film performance, ecological friendliness, and economical cost-effectiveness. Compared to traditional solvent-based coatings, powder coatings eliminate VOCs at the source, requiring no diluents, hardeners, or other volatile substances, thus fundamentally solving the air pollution problem during the coating process. Furthermore, the recycling rate of spilled powder coatings can reach over 99%, reducing raw material waste and lowering waste disposal costs, perfectly aligning with the "low-carbon and environmentally friendly" development concept of the new energy vehicle industry.
It is worth noting that the environmental value of powder coatings is not only reflected in the production and application stages but also extends throughout the entire product lifecycle—effectively reducing the carbon footprint of new energy vehicles through multiple pathways such as reducing raw material consumption, lowering energy consumption, and reducing waste emissions, providing crucial support for the automotive industry to achieve "carbon neutrality throughout its entire lifecycle." Currently, this "4E-type" green coating has been widely applied to the coating of core components of new energy vehicles, including car batteries, wheel hubs, frames, under-hood components (such as radiators, shock absorbers, motor housings, etc.), car bodies, and various precision parts (control levers, rearview mirrors, wipers, door handles, etc.), providing a green and efficient coating protection solution for the entire new energy vehicle industry chain.
2. Upgraded Demands for Power Battery Protection
As the "heart" of new energy vehicles, breakthroughs in the core technologies of power batteries are a key engine for promoting the high-quality development of the new energy vehicle industry. With the continuous improvement of the driving range of new energy vehicles, the energy density of power batteries continues to increase, and the spacing design of battery modules is becoming increasingly compact. This makes power batteries highly susceptible to overheating, short circuits, and other safety hazards under long-term high-load operation, complex road conditions, or extreme environments. Therefore, good electrical insulation protection and flame-retardant performance have become indispensable key elements to ensure the normal operation of power batteries and protect the safety of passengers—just as the pursuit of speed and passion must be based on stable and reliable safety guarantees, technological progress must never deviate from the core bottom line of safety. Powder coatings, with their superior comprehensive protective performance, have become an ideal choice for protecting power batteries. In terms of electrical insulation, the dense film structure formed after powder coating cures, with its high insulation resistance, effectively blocks current conduction between battery modules, preventing short-circuit faults. Regarding flame retardancy, by adding halogen-free flame retardants and other components to the formula, powder coatings can achieve the UL94 V0 flame retardant standard, effectively inhibiting flame spread and delaying battery thermal runaway, buying valuable escape time for occupants. Furthermore, powder coatings possess excellent high and low temperature resistance, chemical corrosion resistance, and mechanical protection properties, resisting temperature changes and electrolyte leakage during charging and discharging, protecting the battery casing from damage, and extending the battery's lifespan.
Besides power batteries, the high protective performance of powder coatings also provides safety assurance for other key components of new energy vehicles. Its coating possesses excellent flexibility, impact resistance, scratch resistance, and water resistance, effectively resisting external collisions, stone impacts, extreme weather erosion, and component aging caused by prolonged high-load operation during vehicle operation. It reduces safety hazards such as fires and component failures from multiple dimensions, comprehensively protecting the lives and property of passengers.
3. Core Advantages of Powder Coatings Compared to Liquid Coatings
Compared to traditional liquid coatings, powder coatings have irreplaceable core advantages in the field of new energy vehicle coatings, especially in performance, production efficiency, and cost control, perfectly aligning with the automotive industry's development philosophy of "energy conservation and emission reduction, intelligentization, and lightweighting." In terms of performance, powder coatings excel in coating toughness and scratch resistance. The cured film hardness can reach over 2H, and the impact strength exceeds 50 kg·cm, effectively resisting daily wear and minor collisions during vehicle use and maintaining the integrity of the vehicle body and components. Simultaneously, powder coatings exhibit superior weather resistance and corrosion resistance compared to most liquid coatings. After accelerated aging tests, the coating can remain unfaded and non-chalky for 5-8 years in outdoor environments, meeting the long-term performance requirements of new energy vehicles. As competition in the new energy vehicle market intensifies, powder coating companies are continuously investing in technological upgrades, striving for breakthroughs in weather resistance, low-temperature performance, thin-film coating, and high decorative properties. Low-temperature curing technology can reduce curing temperatures from the traditional 180℃+ to 120-150℃, significantly reducing energy consumption during the coating process. Thin-film coating technology can achieve a 30-50μm thin-coating effect, reducing vehicle weight while maintaining protective performance, thus contributing to the lightweighting of new energy vehicles. High decorative technology, through texture design and metallic finish creation, provides more diverse options for automotive exteriors, enhancing product market competitiveness.
Powder coatings also offer significant advantages in production efficiency and cost control. Powder coatings utilize a "one-time spraying" process, eliminating the need for multiple spraying layers and drying stages required for liquid coatings. This increases spraying efficiency by over 30% compared to liquid coatings. Excess powder coating can be recycled through a system with a recovery rate of up to 99%, significantly reducing paint waste and lowering raw material costs. Furthermore, powder coating boasts a high degree of automation, perfectly compatible with robotic spraying systems, reducing manual intervention, improving coating consistency and stability, and further reducing production costs. This dual advantage of "cost reduction and efficiency improvement + environmental protection and energy saving" makes powder coatings a crucial support for the high-quality development of the new energy vehicle industry.
4. Clarifying Industry Misconceptions
Although powder coatings have broad application prospects in the new energy vehicle field, some misconceptions still exist within and outside the industry—some people believe that powder coatings do not belong to the "traditional coating category," and that their powder form is more similar to ultrafine plastic particles than the liquid or paste-like form in the "coating concept." In fact, this perception overlooks the core functional essence of coatings: the core value of coatings lies in providing protection and decoration for the substrate. Powder coatings differ from traditional liquid coatings only in form and application method; their essence remains a coating product that meets the needs of industrial coating.
The fact that powder coatings have managed to carve out their own niche in the coatings industry precisely demonstrates their unique market value and technological advantages. In recent years, with the continuous expansion of powder coating application scenarios and ongoing technological upgrades, industry perceptions of them are gradually changing. In the future, by strengthening in-depth interaction and cooperation between powder coating companies and traditional coating companies, research institutions, and downstream application companies, we can promote the improvement of industry standards, accelerate technological innovation, and broaden application scenarios, thereby promoting the transformation, upgrading, and high-quality development of the entire coatings industry. Currently, powder coatings are rapidly developing towards three core directions: low-temperature curing, high decorative properties, and functionality. Low-temperature curing technology will further reduce energy consumption and adapt to the coating needs of more heat-sensitive substrates; high decorative technology will integrate more aesthetic design elements to meet the personalized and high-end appearance requirements of new energy vehicles; and functional technology will focus on special protection needs, developing powder coatings with special functions such as conductivity, thermal conductivity, antibacterial properties, and self-healing, expanding applications in emerging fields such as new energy vehicle charging piles and smart cockpits.
5. Huge Market Potential
From a global market perspective, the proportion of powder coatings in the industrial coating field shows significant regional differences: in developed countries and regions such as Europe and the United States, the proportion of powder coatings has reached 20%-25%, with its application in automotive coatings exceeding 30%; while in the Chinese market, the proportion of powder coatings is currently less than 10%, a significant gap compared to the European and American markets. This gap reflects both the development space of China's powder coating industry and indicates huge market potential.
With the continuous tightening of national environmental protection policies, the rapid expansion of the new energy vehicle industry, and the increasingly urgent need for replacement of traditional solvent-based coatings, China's powder coating market is poised for explosive growth. Currently, the transportation industry accounts for about one-third of the country's total carbon emissions. Vigorously developing new energy vehicles has become a key measure to achieve the "dual carbon" target, and powder coatings, as a core material for new energy vehicle coating, will inevitably continue to expand along with the development of the new energy vehicle industry. Simultaneously, in traditional industrial sectors, the replacement of solvent-based coatings by powder coatings is accelerating, with the application rate of powder coatings in industries such as construction, home appliances, and machinery manufacturing continuously increasing. This huge market potential has attracted numerous well-known domestic and international coating companies to invest in the powder coating field, including international giants such as AkzoNobel, PPG, and Sherwin-Williams, as well as leading domestic companies such as Huaguang New Materials and Donglai Technology. All are increasing their R&D investment and expanding their production capacity, driving the rapid development of powder coating technology. It is projected that within the next 5-10 years, with the continuous maturation of technology, sustained cost reduction, and expanding application scenarios, powder coatings will gradually replace the market share of traditional solvent-based coatings, becoming a mainstream industrial coating category with a market size of hundreds of billions of yuan. Driven by the new energy vehicle industry, it demonstrates unlimited development prospects.
6. Conclusion
Driven by both national environmental protection policies and the rapid development of the new energy vehicle industry, powder coatings, with their "4E" green and environmentally friendly advantages, excellent protective performance, and significant cost-effectiveness, are becoming a core material in the new energy vehicle coating field. From the safety protection of power batteries to the decorative protection of vehicle body parts, from the replacement and upgrading of traditional liquid coatings to the satisfaction of emerging functional needs, powder coatings are playing an increasingly important role in the new energy vehicle industry chain.
Although some misconceptions still exist in the industry, the unique value of powder coatings has been widely recognized by the market. Its development trend towards low-temperature curing, high decorative properties, and functionality is clear, and technological innovation continues to accelerate. From a market perspective, the gap between the Chinese powder coating market and those in Europe and the United States signifies enormous growth potential. With the release of demand for environmentally friendly alternatives and the continued expansion of the new energy vehicle industry, powder coatings are expected to become a mainstream industrial coating category worth hundreds of billions of yuan in the future.
In the future, powder coating companies need to continue focusing on technological innovation, overcoming core technical challenges, and optimizing product performance and cost. Simultaneously, they should strengthen inter-industry collaboration, improve the standard system, eliminate misconceptions, and jointly promote the high-quality development of the powder coating industry. It is believed that with multiple favorable policies, technologies, and markets, powder coatings will provide stronger support for the green transformation and safety upgrade of the new energy vehicle industry, writing a new chapter in the green development of the industrial coatings industry.
