The project will evaluate the feasibility of step-changing the productivity & the competitiveness of making functional thick-film heater coatings by supplementing the current thermal spray application process, using pre-oxidised transition metals, with a low-pressure cold-spray application process using admixtures of ductile metal particles with brittle metal oxide particles. 2DHeat Ltd will partner with TWI Ltd to establish a viable production technique suitable for setting-up an export supply chain for the production & sale of novel far IR radiant heater panels in Slovenia. TWI will provide expertise of powder behaviours, performances & selection under cold-spray conditions as well as surface characterisation & relevant measurement techniques. They will also provide access to high temperature/ high pressure cold-spray equipment, as required. Dycomet UK Ltd will specifically provide expertise on the selection, access & running of low-pressure/ low temperature application equipment as well as practical guidance on run-condition optimisation. Once established, the project work is expected to have relevance in other high volume outlets, including automotives, white goods & plastic injection moulding.

2DHeat Limited seeks to evaluate the feasibility of establishing a collaborative consortium for the production & sale of a new generation of energy efficient far infra-red panel heaters in Slovenia. The range of products offered will use 2DHeat's patented thick-film heater technology and will target the domestic, commercial & industrial sectors. The panels will be designed to operate at higher temperatures than currently available panels. Potential collaborative partners include Gorenje DD (Velejne), Ekosen DOO (Maribor) and EMO Frite DOO (Celje). The feasibility study is expected to complete in early 2017 and collaboration work would be expected to commence shortly afterwards.

The current project seeks to develop specialist, high-value , 'bake-out' coating systems for application to high value, Ultra-High-Vacuum particle accelerator lines, synchrotron research installations and specialised semiconductor fab production lines. These permanently installed, novel coatings will be immediately deployable for baking-out, whenever required, & will deliver significant operational benefits to those systems in terms of improved 'bake-out' performance & economics (whilst establishing the vacuum) and in improved running efficiency of the installations themselves. The project will seek to provide such novel bake-out coatings for application to a range of different vacuum vessel materials of construction, including stainless steel, aluminium (& its alloys), OFHC copper & various high-nickel-content alloys.