Customer Applied Super-black Coating for Space and Defence

萨里纳米系统公司是世界上第一家开发和商业化喷涂超级黑色涂层的公司，这种涂层可以在近地轨道(LEO)和深空环境中生存下来。在太空领域，VantaBlack涂层非常重要，因为其独特的从各个角度高效捕获光线的能力使空间仪器设计者能够制造更紧凑的仪器，重量更轻，在卫星上占用更小的体积。航天工业的关键驱动因素是降低成本、尺寸和重量，同时保持或提高卫星性能。将我们的超级黑色太空涂层应用于卫星部件需要多个步骤、资本密集型真空处理和复杂的喷涂系统，这意味着空间客户必须将部件送到我们的英国工厂进行涂层。由于我们使用真空处理，我们也仅限于涂覆能适应反应堆工作空间的较小部件。由于空间部件经常受到各国政府的出口管制，这意味着我们的空间业务严重受阻，因为希望发送部件给我们的客户被阻止这样做。这方面的一个例子是美国的ITAR(国际武器贩运条例)。由于外国公民不允许看到硬件或设计或与硬件或设计互动，因此将列出ITAR的太空部件送到英国进行涂层是极其困难的，如果不是不可能的话。2016年，我们为汽车行业开发了一种名为VantaBlack VBx2的喷涂超级黑色涂料。VBx2作为一种湿“油漆”提供给客户，重要的是在自动化生产线上使用传统的喷枪技术来应用涂层。不幸的是，由于辐射和紫外线造成破坏，涂层无法承受在太空中发现的恶劣环境。该项目将修改VBx2中使用的技术，以创建一种喷涂超级黑色涂层，该涂层将在空间环境中幸存下来，同时允许我们的全球空间客户在其制造地点通过传统方法应用该涂层。这一步改变了将超级黑色涂层技术应用于空间项目的做法，将消除海外出口管制限制和客户向国外运输零部件的需要，并将使我们能够从&lt；在包括挡板、黑体和航天器冷却系统在内的快速增长的GB 100M市场中，我们建议的光学性能的超级黑色涂层还将使挡板、热空间辐射器和黑体系统具有更简单的设计，从而降低卫星上的发射质量和仪器空间。

Surrey NanoSystems was the first company in the world to develop and commercialise spray applied super-black coatings that survive the environment found in low earth orbit (LEO) and deep space. In Space, Vantablack coatings are important as their unique ability to trap light efficiently from all angles allows space instrument designers to build more compact instruments that weigh less and occupy smaller volume on the satellite.Key drivers for the space industry are reduction in cost, size and weight whilst retaining or improving satellite performance.Applying our super-black space coatings to satellite parts requires multiple steps, capital-intensive vacuum processing and complex spray systems which means that space customers must send parts to our UK facilities for coating. Because we use vacuum processing, we are also limited to coating smaller components that can fit with in the reactor working space.As space components are often export controlled by National Governments it means that our space business is severely hampered as customers wishing to send us parts are prevented from doing so. An example of this is the US ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations). ITAR-listed space parts are extremely difficult if not impossible to send to the UK for coating as foreign nationals are not allowed to see or interact with the hardware or designs.In 2016 we developed a spray super-black coating for the automotive industry called Vantablack VBx2\. VBx2 is supplied to customers as a wet "paint" and importantly uses conventional spray gun technology to apply the coating in automated production lines. Unfortunately, the coating cannot withstand the harsh environment found in space as radiation and ultraviolet light cause damage.This project will modify the technology used in VBx2 to create a spray applied super-black coating that will survive the space environment whilst allowing our global space customers to apply the coating through conventional means at their manufacturing locations.This step change in the application of super-black coating-technology to space programs will remove overseas export control restrictions and the need for customers to ship parts abroad and will allow us to increase our market position from <1% to over 12% in a rapidly growing £100m market that includes baffles, blackbody and spacecraft cooling systems.A super-black coating of our proposed optical performance will also allow baffles, thermal space radiators and blackbody systems to have a simpler design thereby lowering the launch mass and instrument real-estate on the satellite.