VIPCOAT OIP is a unique digital environment (TRL-6) supported innovation process for all stakeholders. Users can register and engage in innovative activities on the platform, which has been implemented on an interactive web landing page. A structured innovation process on the OIP starts from a suggested challenge, through project proposal, building a team till running an innovation project.
The VIPCOAT consortium, together with MUSICODE and OpenModel projects, investigated needs and requirements to extend the Open Innovation concept under the Horizon Europe program into Open Innovation Frameworks and published "Position Paper: Open Innovation in Horizon Europe" on OpenAir.
To implement the innovation process at VIPCOAT OIP, several interfaces and web-services have been implemented. Integration of all demonstrators Apps (User cases) has been provided for updated versions of materials models. The deployment of a business decision support system (BDSS) at the industrial partner sites has been realized and deployed on the OIP.
The VIPCOAT platform is implemented using Camunda, MoDeNa OSP, and uses OTEAPI as interoperability layer. An API to fetch chemical data from the international chemical database PubChem and a connection to the REACH database has been executed.
The Process Modelling suite for capturing ontology-based knowledge on protective coating structures and formulations has been integrated. This visual modelling method is subject of the CEN Workshop Agreement on 'ModGra -Graphical representation of physical process models'.
MODA (MOdeling DAta) documentation for the complete modelling workflow representing the main technological challenges in the formulation of coatings and their performance has been performed.
For User case 1 (Protective additives) a quantitative structure-property relationship (QSPR) model has been delivered to predict the corrosion inhibiting effect of small organic molecules on Al2024. The AI-model uses data from literature and generated by the consortium from inhibitor screening experiments.
A flexible stochastic micro-geometry model for the microstructure and morphology of active protective coatings based on 3D image data obtained by nano- and micro-tomography has been delivered for User case 2 (Inhibitor delivery). The data for the models were collected by three experimental campaigns at DESY: two of them were focused on the sub-microstructure and the third one investigated in-situ leaching. The collected additional sets of materials data have been used for stochastic geometrical modelling of complex coating microstructure.
The modelling workflow for the multi-ion models has been finalized and provided for User case 3 (Degradation in defects). The model is realized in the aspects of applicability both COMSOL and the MIoTras software tools. Additional functionality of the codes to model the percolation effects in the primer to analyze the leaching effect has been implemented into MIoTraS. To generate initial and validation data, inhibitor concentration experiments were performed, and surface analytical techniques for selected chemicals have been applied.
The general modelling workflow for User case 4 (Accelerated corrosion test) has been further developed. The effects of water film thickness and salinity over time have been considered. Environmental simulations have been performed for commercially available accelerated corrosion schemes.
User case 5 (Design of an AI-based workflow for coating performance prediction) has been implemented to accelerate grid searches across given parameter arrays in User case 3 and to provide optimization of coating formulation.
Based on VIPCOAT project achievements, TU Delft discovered a new combination of molecules, which allows to generate an environmentally friendly protective coating. A patent "Self-sustaining non-toxic corrosion inhibition compositions for metallic substrates" (application number P100996NL00) has been submitted.