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PERMANENT PRIMER/REPLACEABLE TOPCOAT AIRCRAFT COATING SYSTEM WITH MINIMUM VOC AND CHROMIUM EXPOSURE - PHASE I
Description:
In Phase I, Foster-Miller, Inc., will develop the permanent primer replacement topcoat (PPRT), produce coated test panels, and analyze test panels for key performance properties. Topcoat stripping also will be demonstrated. The team includes coating experts and an aircraft coating manufacturer. Release of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and chromates during aircraft coating application and removal endangers personnel and the environment. Foster-Miller proposes to develop a 30+ year, PPRT aircraft coating system that provides continuous protection against corrosion while reducing VOC and chromate exposure by more than 80 percent. A standard polyurethane topcoat is applied over a low-VOC, self-stratifying aircraft primer system (SSAPS) that is designed to bond chemically to conversion coat and topcoat and exhibit high abrasion, producing the PPRT. When the topcoat requires replacement every 6 years, it is selectively stripped off without releasing chromates, leaving primer and conversion coats intact. This SSAPS avoids the danger and expense of reapplying conversion and primer coats and reduces the number of coating application/removal steps over 30 years from more than 15 to only 3 (initial primer and coating plus final removal step).
The enhanced environmental protection, improved performance, and low-service lifetime cost of the proposed PPRT low VOC (< 200 g/L) aircraft protective coating system will encourage its immediate acceptance in commercial and military aircraft, automobiles, building structures, and industrial equipment. This system should replace high VOC (> 300 g/L), conventional primer coating that currently must be stripped off along with conversion coat during topcoat removal.