February/March_AMP

FEATURE ARTICLE

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A D V A N C E D

M A T E R I A L S

P R O C E S S E S | F E B R U A R Y / M A R C H

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SUMMARY

Through this study, it was possible to identify both the

degradation product and the increase in the carbonyl com-

ponents. However, monitoring changes to the topcoat on

a mass scale is a greater challenge. Due to the nature of the

changes, a UV lamp was used to irradiate the samples to ex-

amine if changes to the fluorescence could be observed.

Figure 6 depicts drastic changes to the fluorescence with in-

creasing exposure time. Using the luminescence values of

the images provides an isolated degradation scale, which

could be used as a way of assessing coating lifetime. Hyper-

Test has proven to be a highly efficient way of testing topcoat

degradation and UV irradiation is a seemingly simple, cost ef-

fective way of monitoring the topcoat used within this study.

Nevertheless, more research is currently being undertaken to

explore the possibilities of this technique and its potential for

wider application.

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Fig. 6 —

UV lamp irradiated samples exposed to UV/ozone from 0 to 120 minutes.

Fig. 5 —

Carbon 1s high resolution spectra of (a) UV/ozone exposed for 120 minutes, (b) UV exposed for 56 days, and (c) unexposed topcoat.

(a)

(b)

(c)

For more information:

Taraneh Bozorgzad Moghim is a post-

graduate researcher in the Department of Mechanical Engi-

neering Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2

7XH, UK, +44.1483.300800,

Reference

T.B. Moghim, et al., A Novel Approach to the Assessment of Aero-

space Coatings Degradation: The Hypertest,

Prog. Org. Coat.,