United States EPA-600/R-01-030
Environmental Protection
A9enoy April 2001
&EPA Research and
Development
Coating Alternatives GuidE
(CAGE)
User's Guide
Prepared for
Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards
Prepared by
National Risk Management
Research Laboratory
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
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FOREWORD
The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency is charged by Congress with pro-
tecting the Nation's land, air, and water resources. Under a mandate of national
environmental laws, the Agency strives to formulate and implement actions lead-
ing to a compatible balance between human activities and the ability of natural
systems to support and nurture life. To meet this mandate, EPA's research
program is providing data and technical support for solving environmental pro-
blems today and building a science knowledge base necessary to manage our eco-
logical resources wisely, understand how pollutants affect our health, and pre-
vent or reduce environmental risks in the future.
The National Risk Management Research Laboratory is the Agency's center for
investigation of technological and management approaches for reducing risks
from threats to human health and the environment. The focus of the Laboratory's
research program is on methods for the prevention and control of pollution to air,
land, water, and subsurface resources, protection of water quality in public water
systems; remediation of contaminated sites and-groundwater; and prevention and
control of indoor air pollution. The goal of this research effort is to catalyze
development and implementation of innovative, cost-effective environmental
technologies; develop scientific and engineering information needed by EPA to
support regulatory and policy decisions; and provide technical support and infor-
mation transfer to ensure effective implementation of environmental regulations
and strategies.
This publication has been produced as part of the Laboratory's strategic long-
term research plan. It is published and made available by EPA's Office of Re-
search and Development to assist the user community and to link researchers
with their clients.
E. Timothy Oppelt, Director
National Risk Management Research Laboratory
EPA REVIEW NOTICE
This report has been peer and administratively reviewed by the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, and approved for publication. Mention of trade names or
commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.
This document is available to the public through the National Technical Information
Service, Springfield, Virginia 22161.
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EPA-600/R-01 -030
April 2001
Coating Alternatives GuidE (CAGE)
User's Guide
Prepared by:
Dean R. Cornstubble
Research Triangle Institute
P. O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
EPA Cooperative Agreement CR824257-01-0
EPA Project Officer: Michael Kosusko
Office of Research and Development
National Risk Management Research Laboratory
Air Pollution Prevention and Control Division
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711
Prepared for:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Research and Development
Washington, DC 20460
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DISCLAIMER
Neither the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) nor Research Triangle Institute
(RTI) makes any representations or warranties with respect to the contents or recommendations
provided by this program. This program is provided as an information dissemination service
only. The information this program contains is provided solely as a preliminary source of
information on low-emitting coating alternatives for metal parts and products painting only. The
U.S. EPA and RTI do not recommend the use of any particular generic coating technology. Any
mention of trade names or commercial products, if any, does not constitute recommendation for
use or endorsement.
Final selection of any coating alternative must be conducted by individual users in
consultation with a coating vendor.
ABSTRACT
This guide provides instructions for using the Coating Alternatives GuidE (CAGE)
software program, Version 1.0. The guide assumes that the user is familiar with the
fundamentals of operating an IBM-compatible personal computer (PC) under the Microsoft disk
operating system (MS-DOS).
CAGE is designed to provide alternative coating chemistry recommendations for paint
and coating operations. The initial focus of the program is on coatings for metal substrates.
Additional modules will be developed for plastic, wood, and other substrates. The CAGE
program leads the user through a question-and-answer session. Based on the user's response to
each question, a list of relatively ranked low-emitting coating technologies is generated. The
user may then review brief descriptions of the alternatives on the computer screen. If any of the
alternatives are of interest, the user may request a detailed report. The report includes sections on
general information, substrate and surface preparation, application techniques, curing methods,
performance properties, safety/environmental concerns, industrial case studies for the selected
alternative, and information references. The program also provides information on contacts for
state technical assistance for the user's geographical location.
This guide was submitted in partial fulfillment of Cooperative Agreement No. CR824257
under the sponsorship of the U.S. EPA.
This guide covers work performed from April to July 1996, which was based on the beta
version I.Ob, released in March of 1996. CAGE version 1.0 was completed as of July 3, 1996.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Section Page
DISCLAIMER ii
ABSTRACT ii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iv
1.0 BETA VERSION UPDATES 1
2.0 ABOUT CAGE 1
3.0 COATING ALTERNATIVES 2
4.0 APPLICATION EQUIPMENT ALTERNATIVES 2
5.0 INSTALLATION 3
6.0 STARTING CAGE 4
7.0 GETTING HELP 5
8.0 MENU SELECTION 5
9.0 EXPLANATIONS 5
10.0 RETURNING TO PREVIOUS SCREENS 5
11.0 GENERATING THE REPORT 5
12.0 REVIEWING YOUR SELECTIONS 6
13.0 ASSISTANCE 6
in
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The software development was principally the work of Dean Cornstubble of RTI, based
on an original concept by Michael Kosusko, the EPA Project Officer. The information provided
by CAGE was acquired by Jenni Elion and Liz Hill of RTI's Center for Engineering and
Environmental Technology and Jesse Baskir, Alton Peters, Coleen Northeim, and Subba Nishtala
of RTI's Center for Environmental Analysis. The Internet Web version of CAGE was designed
by Dean Cornstubble and Greg Bray, of RTFs Center for Engineering and Environmental
Technology, and is maintained by Greg Bray. This version of CAGE incorporates ideas and
suggestions for the improvement of the beta version I.Ob from four coatings experts in the
coatings industry and many National Pollution Prevention Roundtable members.
IV
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1.0 BETA VERSION UPDATES
Version 1.0 adds some minor bug fixes to the beta version 1 .Ob. It also improves the
logic used for the analysis of coating alternatives. Some general information on equipment costs
has been added. The amount of information in each alternative and the number of case studies
have been increased. Also, the portion of the report for generating the questions asked and the
user's answers has been improved.
2.0 ABOUT CAGE
The CAGE program is designed to provide suggestions for alternative low-emitting
coating technologies that will accommodate the user's current coating process. Coatings for
miscellaneous metal parts painting are the initial focus. Only higher-solids (>50 percent)
solvent-borne, water-reducible, 100 percent solid, radiation-curable, and powder coating
technologies are considered as viable solutions.
The program is designed to be used by state regulatory personnel, process engineers, shop
supervisors, or anyone looking for information on alternative coating technologies.
The goal of the program is to provide general information on viable coating alternatives.
The intent is that the program should provide enough information to the user to reduce the
number of alternatives that must be considered. Specific trade names for coatings or application
equipment are not currently provided. However, this information will, in time, be provided
under the Related Web Links page on the CAGE Internet Web site (http://cage.rti.org).
CAGE works by asking a series of questions about the user's specific coating process.
Based on the answers to those questions, the program provides a list of alternative coating
technologies. More detailed information can then be requested on the alternatives of interest.
The questions may be bypassed at the beginning of the program to allow the user to directly
select information on coating alternatives and their application equipment.
Note that the coatings and application equipment are not recommended as paired sets.
This is because many different coating chemistries can be used with the various application
equipment. It will be up to the user to select and evaluate the various components that will make
up the total coating process. However, upcoming versions of the CAGE Internet Web site will
contain an optimal selection of application equipment paired with each of the recommended
coating alternatives and a generic economic analysis of each paired selection.
At the end of any CAGE session, a detailed report can be prepared and written to a hard
disk file, reviewed on the screen, or simultaneously written to hard disk and reviewed on the
screen. A glossary of terms common in the coatings industry is also available for the report.
We do not recommend reviewing the detailed report on the screen due to the length of
most reports. The report generation process may take several minutes so please be patient. We
have attempted to accelerate the process, but it may take 5 minutes or more to generate a report.
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3.0 COATING ALTERNATIVES
The possible coating alternatives in CAGE are:
Autophoretic
Electrocoat
100 percent Solids (Plastisols)
Powder:
Acrylic
Epoxy
Epoxy-polyester Hybrid
Fluorocarbon
Polyester
Polyurethane
Radiation-cured
Solvent-borne, Air/force-dried:
Alkyd
Epoxy Ester
One-component Urethane
Silicone
Two-component Epoxy
Two-component Urethane
Solvent-borne, Baked Alkyd
Water-reducible, Air/force-dried:
Acrylic Epoxy
Acrylic Latex
Alkyd
Two-component Epoxy
Urethane Dispersions
Water-reducible, Baked Alkyd, Modified Alkyd, and Acrylic.
4.0 APPLICATION EQUIPMENT ALTERNATIVES
The possible application equipment alternatives in CAGE are:
Air-assisted A irless A tomization
Airless Atomization Spray
Conventional Air Atomization
Dip Coating
Dip-spin Coating
Electrostatic Spray
Flame Spray Coating
Flow Coating
FluidizedBed
High-volume, Low-pressure (HVLP) Air Atomizing Spray
Roll Coating (Direct and Reverse)
Rotary Atomization.
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Please feel free to call the program developers or the U.S. EPA Project Officer (see
Section 13.0 of this guide or the README.TXT file) with any suggestions for future
improvement. In addition, if you have a well-documented case study that you are willing to
share, we would welcome the information.
5.0 INSTALLATION
The minimum system requirements for the DOS version of CAGE are:
PC-AT (286) or compatible personal computer with hard disk,
MS-DOS 3.3 or higher,
an EGA/VGA Monitor, and
5 megabytes (MB) of free hard disk space.
The CAGE directory size is approximately 2.5 MB. All of the necessary files are
contained in a compressed, self-extracting file called "CAGE.EXE." You will want to copy the
version of the readme file most suitable to your word-processing and the CAGE.EXE files to a
separate directory for CAGE on your computer's hard drive. The readme file is this user's guide
describing how to load the program onto your computer, how to decompress the self-extracting
CAGE.EXE file, and how to navigate the CAGE program. All of the files contained in the
CAGE.EXE file will require approximately 3 MB of hard disk space.
After decompressing CAGE.EXE, enter at your computer's screen prompt.
Follow the instructions on the screen to maneuver through the program. Since CAGE is a
DOS-based program, it is best to execute the program outside of any Windows-based
environment.
The following command sequences will create a directory named "CAGE," place the
appropriate files in the directory, and decompress the files. If you are downloading CAGE from
the CAGE Internet web page (see Section 13), then do the following from your hard drive
prompt, which is typically C:
1) MD C:\CAGE,
2) MOVE C:\CAGE.EXE C:\CAGE, and
3) CD C:\CAGE.
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If you obtained CAGE on a floppy disk, then perform the following:
1) MD C:\CAGE,
2) Insert disk into the floppy drive (typically A:),
3) MOVE A:\CAGE.EXE C:\CAGE, and
4) CD C:\CAGE.
The files in the CAGE directory must include the following:
cage, bat
ltr.exe
Itrhelp.msg
Iterrs.msg
fdcmst.dcl
fdctre.dcl
fdcstr.dcl
fdcxid.dcl
Itgraph.pre
*.tpf (115 files with the extension "tpf')
*.frg (116 files with the extension "frg")
*.tp (56 files with the extension "tp").
You will have a total of 296 files after the files are decompressed, excluding the
appropriate readme file.
Your "CONFIG.SYS" file needs to have the files and buffers set to at least 20:
files = 20
buffers = 20.
These are minimum values. If your settings are already at higher values, do not change them.
Use a standard text editor or word processor to modify your "CONFIG.SYS" file as required
before running CAGE.
6.0 STARTING CAGE
If you are operating in a DOS environment, switch to the CAGE directory on your hard
drive. Type the command "CAGE". This will bring up the first CAGE screen, a graphics screen.
Depress the "ENTER" key twice. This will place you at the first function screen for CAGE.
If you are using any of the Windows environments, it is best if you exit to DOS and run
CAGE from there. In most cases, it is best to run CAGE in DOS mainly due to the limitations of
its programming shell.
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7.0 GETTING HELP
Limited on-line help is available from any menu, window, or warning message. Type
"ALT H" (depress the ALT key together with the "H" key) to activate the help screen.
The help screen will have an index on the left. On the right will be a message for the
selected (highlighted) topic. Use the arrow keys or a mouse to move through the help topics.
You may exit the help window at any time by depressing the "ESC" key.
8.0 MENU SELECTION
Most CAGE questions are answered by selecting items from a menu. You may use a
mouse or the arrow keys to move through the various items. The current item is always
highlighted and may be selected by depressing the "ENTER" key.
Some menus will allow you to select more than one item. Other menus will allow only
one selection to be made. The option(s) that you select will be marked with an arrow head to the
left of the selection. If you want to change a selection, place the highlight bar on the selection
and use the "+" key to select (or deselect) that item. This also will allow the selection of multiple
items; use the "+" key on each desired item in the menu. The item that the highlighted bar is on
when you leave a screen will always be selected.
9.0 EXPLANATIONS
Most questions will have explanations available. If there is an explanation for a screen,
you will see the word "EXPLANATION" on the menu bar at the top of the screen. Type "ALT
E" to activate the explanation. The explanation may hide the original question screen. When
you are through reading the explanation, use the "ENTER" key to return to the original question
screen.
10.0 RETURNING TO PREVIOUS SCREENS
You can back up for a maximum of six screens during a CAGE session. Type "ALT B"
to back up to the previous screen. This will allow you the immediate opportunity to change some
previous selections or correct mistakes.
11.0 GENERATING THE REPORT
After answering questions, CAGE will then ask you to select a destination for the detailed
report. The possible choices are 1) Screen Review Only, 2) Disk File Only, 3) Screen Review
and Disk File, or 4) No Report. You will also be asked if you would like to have a glossary of
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common coating terms provided. If you select the "NO REPORT" option, the program will
advance to the next screen.
If you request that the report be sent to a disk file, the report will be stored in a file called
"REPORT.DOC" in the same directory that contains the CAGE program. Be aware that, if you
run CAGE more than once, it will overwrite the " REPORT.DOC" file every time that you
specify that the report be written to disk.
The REPORT.DOC file is an ASCII text file. You can print it out on any printer that is
attached to your computer. It can also be imported, edited, and formatted in almost any word
processing software package.
Depending on the type of computer machine, the report may take up to 5 minutes to
generate. Please be patient.
Any report generated will have, at a minimum, generic information on each coating
technology desired, if selected by the user as part of the report. This information will contain
several subheadings divided into: General Information, Substrate, Surface Preparation,
Application Methods, Process Considerations, Curing, Performance, Environmental, Safety,
Economics, Case Studies, and References.
12.0 REVIEWING YOUR SELECTIONS
After the report selection has been made, CAGE will give you the opportunity to review
your answers to permit inclusion of additional coating parameters in the report, if you so desire.
If you do not want to review your answers, you may exit the program.
You may exit from CAGE at any point during a session by using the "ESCAPE" key.
You may need to depress the "ESCAPE" key a number of times, depending on where you are in
the program.
13.0 ASSISTANCE
Any suggestions or problems with the DOS version of the CAGE program should be
directed to:
Dean Cornstubble
Research Chemical Engineer
Research Triangle Institute
Phone: (919)541-6813
Fax: (919)541-7155
E-mail: dean@rti.org
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or
Michael Kosusko
Senior Project Engineer
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Research and Development
National Risk Management Research Laboratory
Phone: (919)541-2734
Fax: (919)541-0359
E-mail: kosusko.mike@epa.gov.
For those who have Internet access, Internet Web site version of CAGE can be accessed
at the following URL:
http://cage.rti.org.
Any suggestions or problems with the Internet Web site version of CAGE should be directed to
the cagemaster@clean.rti.org. In addition, you can download the DOS version of CAGE, the
self-extracting and readme files, from this location as well.
In the near future, CAGE will be available from the National Technical Information
Service:
5285 Port Royal Road
Springfield, VA 22161
(703) 487-4650
RTI and EPA are always looking for well-documented case studies of successful coating
substitution projects. We are especially interested in projects with good economic data and
projects that have used a "drop-in replacement" option. If you have this type of information,
please contact the EPA Project Officer, Michael Kosusko, at (919) 541-2734, or the CAGE
developer, Dean Cornstubble, at (919) 541-6813, for inclusion in revised versions of the DOS
program and updates to CAGE's Internet Web site.
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