Electrically conductive thermal control coatings

A coating characterized by low thermal absorption, high thermal emittance and high electrical conductivity comprises: (1) a fired oxide pigment comprising a minor amount of aluminum oxide and a major amount of zinc oxide; (2) sufficient water to provide a mixture suitable for application to a substrate, is presented. The fired oxide pigment may further include a minor amount of cobalt oxide. The resulting coating is particularly useful for coating the surfaces of spacecraft and similar objects

Formulation of electrically conductive thermal-control coatings

The development and formulation of electrically conductive thermal control coating was undertaken for use on the International Sun Earth Explorer spacecraft. The primary effort was to develop a coating with a bulk resistivity of less than 100,000 ohm/sqm, an optical absorptance of approximately 0.55, and a normal emittance of 0.90. The required stability in space called for a bulk resistivity of less than 100,000 ohm/sq m, an absorptance of less than 0.67, and a normal emittance of 0.90 after exposure to approximately 4 x 10 to the 16th proton/sq cm of solar-wind particles and 5300 equivalent sun-hours. These exposures represent 2 years of ISEE flight conditions. Both the unsuccessful formulation efforts and the successful use of oxide pigments fired at 1448 K are described. Problems relative to the reactivity of specific coating vehicles exposed to high humidity are discussed

Diffusely reflecting paints including polytetrafluoroethylene and method of manufacture

The invention pertains to a high diffuse, reflective paint comprising an alcohol soluble binder, polytetrafluoroethylene (TFE) and an alcohol for coating a substrate and forming an optical reference with a superior Lambertian characteristic. A method for making the paint by first mixing the biner and alcohol, and thereafter by mixing in outgassed TFE is described. A wetting agent may be employed to aid the mixing process

Formulation of MS-74 white thermal-control coating and revised application procedures

Procedures are given for formulating, blending, and applying MS-74 white thermal-control coating and CC-1 primer to spacecraft structures. Improved ultraviolet stability, higher emittance and low absorptivity, and enhanced adhesion characteristics result from the revised procedures

Alkali metal silicate protective coating Patent

Composition and production method of alkali metal silicate paint with ultraviolet reflection propertie

Black silicate paints: Formulation and performance data on OSO-H

Formulations and general procedures are given for making and applying space environmentally, as well as atmospherically stable black silicate paints. Compositions are given which meet spacecraft self-contamination requirements, have excellent heat resistance, and are strongly semiconductive

Formulation procedures, rationale, and preliminary IMP-H flight data for silicone paints with improved stability

Results are given of a class of silicone paints undergoing space qualification on IMP-H. In addition to ultraviolet irradiation, samples are presently reclining about 10 to the 16th power solar wind protons per year. Preliminary data, covering the time span of the first anniversary, give incremental solar absorptances of 0.03 for two white paints, and 0.01 for leafing aluminum and a green tinted white paint. Complementing these data are complete descriptions of techniques used in making these paints, stabilizing the zinc oxide pigment, and choosing a solvent. Outgassing characteristics of finished coatings are also included. An attempt toward unification of these various aspects of the aerospace paint problem is provided through documented photochemical reactions, and a generalized band representation of the problem and its solutions

Formulation procedure and spectral data for a highly reflecting coating from 200 nm to 2300 nm

Composition and spectral reflectance data of barium sulfate polyvinyl alcohol coatin

Investigation of conductive thermal control coatings by a contactless method in vacuo

A technique for determining the conductance per unit area of thermal control coatings for electrostatically clean spacecraft is described. In order to simulate orbital conditions more closely, current-density-voltage (j-V) curves are obtained by a contactless method in which the paint on an aluminum substrate is the anode of a vacuum diode configuration with a tungsten filament cathode. Conductances per unit area which satisfy the International Sun Earth Explorer (ISEE) requirement were observed on black paints containing carbon and in white and green paints filled with zinc oxide which were fired in order to induce defect conductivity. Because of surface effects and the nonhomogeneous nature of paints, large discrepancies were found between measurements with the contactless method and measurements employing metallic contacts, particularly at low current densities. Therefore, measurements with metallic contacts are considered to be of questionable value in deciding the suitability of coatings for electrostatic charge control