What are the functions of different components of paint?

For normal paint application, there are mainly three main components of paint, namely primer, undercoat and finishing coat.

Primer: This is the first layer of a typical painting system and it is used to inhabit corrosion and provide a good bond for subsequent coats.

Undercoat: This component acts as a barrier to corrosion agents and even out irregularities of bonding surface. It also serves to hide the underlying background and prevent the details and colour of the area of application to affect the designed colour and finishing details of paint.

Finishing coat: This is the final layer of a typical painting system and it protects the underlying layers from the effect of adverse weather conditions (e.g. sunlight) and to provide the designed properties of paint like colour, impermeability, wearing resistance, etc.

This question is taken from book named – A Self Learning Manual – Mastering Different Fields of Civil Engineering Works (VC-Q-A-Method) by Vincent T. H. CHU.