Recent Advances and Emerging Challenges in Functional Coatings

Dear Colleagues,

Increasingly advanced technological applications have led to the development of new classes of materials, whose properties are fully tailored to the requirements of utilization. Above all, the necessity for components whose characteristics vary from the bulk to the surface has arisen. As a result, the functionalization of surfaces has become a prominent challenge in both academic research and the industrial landscape. The term "surface functionalization" refers to the act of changing the biological, chemical, or physical qualities of a surface enhancing its ability to interact with the surrounding environment. While conventional coatings merely protect or alter the surface appearance, the requisite of multiple synergistic properties has led to the development of "functional coatings". 

In order to push the boundaries of knowledge concerning the present techniques, materials, and applications of functional coatings, the purpose of this Special Issue is to address obstacles and critical topics to advance the state of the art of theoretical, numerical, and experimental methodologies. Topics that could be covered include, but are not limited to:

• Advancement in coating processes and technologies;
• Novel coating application techniques;
• Deployment of analytical instruments in coating manufacturing;
• Development of novel coatings materials.

Dr. Alessia Serena Perna
Dr. Antonio Viscusi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.