Abstract It is well known that the reliability of polyethylene scientific balloons has been erratic in the past several years. It is generally conceded that most of the problems are related to materials' properties, but with at least a few selected incidents more directly tied to manufacturing procedures. This paper will describe some of the more significant steps Raven Industries, Inc. has taken over the past few years to improve balloon performance and reliability. As is true with most products, balloons may be improved by 1) innovative design, 2) increasing the physical properties of the materials used, and 3) refining the manufacturing process. Raven continually works on all three of these areas, but the developments of most recent interest relate more to materials and manufacturing. In the manufacturing area, polyethylene heat sealing machines have been refined to permit much greater uniformity in manufacture. Films development has been an ongoing process at Raven for over a decade, with most activity and achievements concentrated in the last four years.
Progress in scientific balloon materials and manufacturing technology
Advances in Space Research ; 7 , 7 ; 25-32
1987-01-01
8 pages
Article (Journal)
Electronic Resource
English
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