AkzoNobel experts to present insights into energy-curable coatings at ESPS
(7th September) AkzoNobel will share its latest technical insights into energy-curable coatings at the 9th European Symposium of Photopolymer Science (ESPS), which is being hosted by Vienna University of Technology in Vienna, Austria, from 7–11 September 2026.
Two AkzoNobel representatives will present at the symposium, which brings together researchers and industry experts to discuss advances in photopolymer science and its applications.
Michel Rosso, Coatings Scientist at AkzoNobel, will examine how cure and network parameters affect the long-term durability of UV-cured and electron beam (EB)-cured coating systems, particularly as their use extends into demanding outdoor environments such as automotive refinishing and architectural cladding.
In his presentation - Durability of Industrial Radiation-Cured Coatings: Linking Cure Kinetics and Network Architecture to Outdoor Weathering Performance, Michel will draw on existing weathering literature and AkzoNobel's ongoing experimental work. Cure and network parameters will be investigated as practical determinants of coating quality at line speed, leaving a structural fingerprint in the cured network that becomes visible only after prolonged outdoor exposure. It will contrast UV curing, which uses photoinitiator-mediated radical generation, with electron-beam curing, which directly ionizes the coating matrix, and examine the implications for residual species, adhesion, through-cure uniformity, gloss and color retention.
Sébastien Villeneuve, Transformation Manager, Coil Coatings, AkzoNobel Coil & Extrusion Coatings, will present From Laboratory to Line: Technical Challenges in Energy-Curing for Coil Coating. His presentation will focus on the practical considerations involved in applying energy-curable coatings to steel and aluminum coils and the need to optimize reactivity to actinic radiation and electron beams, material formability and mechanical performance, long-term weatherability of the coated metals, and surface appearance including color, gloss and texture. These considerations are central to making energy curing practical on industrial coil-coating lines.
Looking ahead to the technology’s wider industrial adoption, Sébastien Villeneuve says: “The use of UV/EB energy-curing coating lines for protecting and finishing steel and aluminum coils is an emerging technology that is already becoming an industrial reality. Accelerating adoption requires collaboration and a clear understanding of how chemistry, equipment, processing conditions and end-use performance work together. ESPS provides an important opportunity to share these challenges openly and build the collaboration needed to accelerate adoption. This is also the approach behind the IONOMY™ ecosystem: bringing together the expertise needed to make renewable energy curing practical at industrial scale.”
The IONOMY™ ecosystem, a not-for-profit ecosystem led by AkzoNobel and powered by expert partners, was launched in 2025 to help steel manufacturers and coil coaters assess, plan and de-risk a tailored transition from gas ovens to renewable energy curing. The partners include PCT Ebeam and Integration, IST METZ, Globus Srl and Novacel SA. To learn more about the ecosystem, the transition to renewable energy curing, or to explore what it could mean in practice, visit IONOMY ecosystem.
The 9th European Symposium of Photopolymer Science will be held in Vienna, Austria from 7–11 September 2026. For more information, visit www.esps2026.net.