Approximatelly 100 different material/process combinations, most of which are candidates for use in solar arrays having high power-to-weight ratios, were exposed to the low-Earth-orbit (LEO) environment in long-duration exposure facility (LDEF) Experiment A0171, the Solar Array Materials LDEF Experiment, or SAMPLE. The passive experiment was designed to permit the evaluation of the synergistic effects of the LEO environment on the materials mechanical, electrical, and optical properties. Among the solar-array materials now being evaluated are solar cells, cover slips with antireflectance coatings, adhesives, encapsulants, reflective materials, mast and harness materials, structural composites, and thermal-control thin films. Preliminary results of the surface-damage evaluation are presented in this article. These surface effects are dominated by atomic-oxygen erosion and micrometeroroid/space-debris impacts. A preliminary conclusion is that lightweight composite structures for long-duration-mission spacecraft in LEO will require protection from atomic oxygen and penetrating impacts. Coatings, such as the aluminized tape used on some glass-reinforced specimens, may provide a solution.
Coatings could protect composites from hostile space environment
Schutz von Verbundwerkstoffen gegen die aggressive Weltraumumgebung durch Beschichtungen
Materials Performance ; 30 , 9 ; 48-50
1991
3 Seiten, 4 Bilder
Aufsatz (Zeitschrift)
Englisch
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