From the 63rd International Symposium and Exhibition of AVS

Aircraft Topcoat Degradation

Researchers used a combination of a surface analysis technique, spectroscopy and microscopy to better understand how the coatings on aircraft surfaces physically and chemically degrade.

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Newswise — Washington, D. C. November 09, 2016— Aircraft coatings are exposed to high humidity, extreme temperature and solar radiation all of which can break down the coating.

During the AVS 63rd International Symposium and Exhibition being held November 6-11, 2016 ,in Nashville, Tennessee, Taraneh Bozorgzad Moghim and a team of researchers from the University of Surrey in the U.K. used a surface analysis technique called time of flight-secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and an atomic force microscopy to better understand how the high-performance organic coatings used on aircraft surfaces physically and chemically degrade after exposure to ultraviolet light and ozone at high altitudes.

"The major source of degradation comes from ultra-violet (UV) radiation," Moghim said. 'With commercial aircrafts flying at altitudes between 9 and 13 km, their exposure to UV radiation and ozone significantly increases."

The coating was subjected to UV and ozone exposure for varying lengths of time and then was analyzed using ToF-SIMS. “ToF-SIMS, which removes surface molecules with a pulsed ion beam, allowed us to characterize the coating before and after exposure to UV and ozone,” Moghim said. “Combining this data with principal component analysis — which helped us isolate and observe the organic molecules responsible for coating degradation — we were able to establish a mechanism by which we believe the breakdown occurs.”

###Presentation AS+SS-WeM6, "ToF-SIMS Analysis of Aerospace Top Coat Degradation," by Taraneh Bozorgzad Moghim is at 9:40 a.m. CST, Nov. 9, 2016, in Room 101B MORE ABOUT THE AVS 63rd INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM & EXHIBITIONThe symposium is being held November 6-11, 2016, in Nashville, Tennessee

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ABOUT AVS As an interdisciplinary, professional Society, AVS supports networking among academic, industrial, government, and consulting professionals involved in a variety of disciplines - chemistry, physics, biology, mathematics, all engineering disciplines, business, sales, etc. through common interests related to the basic science, technology development, and commercialization of materials, interfaces, and processing area.

Founded in 1953, AVS is organized into technical divisions and technical groups that encompass a range of established as well as emerging science and technology areas. There are also regional chapters, international chapters and affiliates, and student chapters that promote communication and networking for professionals and students within a geographical region. AVS is comprised of approximately 4,500 members worldwide.

AVS is a member society of the American Institute of Physics with additional benefits for our members. For more information about AVS, visit our website at http://www.avs.org