Surface Modification of Conductive and Nonconductive Paints for Space Durability Enhancement

摘要

A program was initiated to further improve the space durability of nonconductive polymer-based paints and of conductive thermal control paints presently under development. The results of surface modification of both types of paints, including the ground-based testing and performance evaluation, are presented. Functional properties and performance characteristics, such as thermal optical properties and surface resistivity characteristics of pristine and treated materials, were verified. Tests results revealed that the successfully treated materials did not exhibit any mass loss or surface morphology change, thus, indicating good protection from the severe oxidative environment. It was demonstrated that the developed surface modification treatment can be applied successfully to charge dissipative paints.