Customer Applied Super-black Coating for Space and Defence

Surrey NanoSystems是世界上第一家开发和商业化喷涂超黑涂料的公司，该涂料可在低地球轨道（LEO）和深空环境中生存。Vantablack涂层在太空中非常重要，因为其独特的从各个角度有效捕获光线的能力使航天仪器设计人员能够制造重量更轻、在卫星上占用更小体积的更紧凑的仪器。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。将我们的超黑太空涂料应用于卫星部件需要多个步骤，这意味着航天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，我们也仅限于涂覆可以安装在反应堆工作空间中的较小部件。由于空间部件通常受到国家政府的出口管制，这意味着我们的空间业务受到严重阻碍，因为希望向我们发送部件的客户无法这样做。这方面的一个例子是美国的ITAR（国际武器贸易条例）。在ITAR中列出的空间部件如果不是不可能的话，也是非常困难的，因为外国人不允许看到或接触硬件或设计。2016年，我们为汽车行业开发了一种名为Vantablack VBx 2\的喷涂超黑涂层。VBx 2作为湿“涂料”提供给客户，重要的是使用传统的喷枪技术在自动化生产线上喷涂。不幸的是，该涂层无法承受太空中的恶劣环境，因为辐射和紫外线会造成损坏。该项目将修改VBx 2中使用的技术，以创建喷涂的超黑涂层，该涂层将在太空环境中生存，同时允许我们的全球太空客户在其制造地点通过传统方式涂覆涂层。超黑涂层应用的这一步骤改变-将技术应用于太空计划将消除海外出口管制限制，并使客户无需将部件运往国外，并将使我们能够在快速增长的1亿英镑市场中将我们的市场地位从<1%提高到12%以上，该市场包括挡板，黑体和航天器冷却系统。空间热辐射器和黑体系统的设计更加简单，从而降低了发射质量和卫星上的仪器空间。

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.