as radiant, conductive or convective heating. This
new coating allows significant thermal protection with only minimal
weight gain.
Zircotec’s range of plasma sprayed coatings is already successfully
applied to metallic components reducing surface temperatures by over
170ºC in some applications. The UK based firm, formerly part of the
UK’s Atomic Energy Authority, has been developing its composite
coatings for some time now, and has supplied examples of these
coatings to a number of Formula 1 teams for race applications. The
Zircotec “engineered” multi-layer solution can now be adjusted to suit
the operating environment, preventing delamination or structural
failure. Still based on Zircotec’s proprietary ThermoHoldTM technology,
the coating is designed to be robust and is highly resistant to
vibration and mechanical damage. The coating is extremely well
adhered to the underlying composite structure.
“The thermal environment in motorsport and aerospace applications is
not always conducive to the use of composites,” says Zircotec’s sales
manager Peter Whyman. “This results in the use of heavier materials or
bulky heat shields, which can reduce overall performance. Our
solution allows engineers to access a range of materials
previously unavailable.” To ensure optimum results the
Zircotec technical team prefers to work alongside the customer to specify the coating arrangement that is most appropriate
for the application. Drawing from a range of |
