Modelling and simulation of drying processes - a new approach in virtual painting

Against the background of increasing demands on the reproducibility of the drying process of paint coatings and on increased process reliability, the simulation of temperature distribution, thermal conduction and flow conditions in industrial paint dryers is becoming increasingly significant. At the end of 2006 a research project was therefore started coordinated by the Institute of Industrial Manufacturing and Management (IFF) at the University Stuttgart in cooperation with four car manufacturers, four plant and paint manufacturers, two software houses and three universities. The focus is on the development of an experimentally verfified simulation application to predict the convective unsteady drying of paint films on complex, three-dimensional components. This article illustrates the current state of technology, existing requirements and the results achieved so far.