Smith Christopher T G, Delkowki Michal, Anguita Jose V, Cox David C, Haas Catherine, Silva S Ravi P
Advanced Technology Institute, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7XH, United Kingdom.
Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Claude-Dornier-Straße, 88090 Immenstaad, Germany.
ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2021 Feb 10;13(5):6670-6677. doi: 10.1021/acsami.0c21552. Epub 2021 Feb 1.
With the realization of larger and more complex space installations, an increase in the surface area exposed to atomic oxygen (AO) and ultraviolet (UV) effects is expected, making structural integrity of space structures essential for future development. In a low Earth orbit (LEO), the effects of AO and UV degradation can have devastating consequences for polymer and composite structures in satellites and space installations. Composite materials such as carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) or polymer materials such as polyetherimide and polystyrene are widely used in satellite construction for various applications including structural components, thermal insulation, and importantly radio frequency (RF) assemblies. In this paper, we present a multilayered material protection solution, a multilayered protection barrier, that mitigates the effects of AO and UV without disrupting the functional performance of tested assemblies. This multilayered protection barrier deposited via a custom-built plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) system is designed so as to deposit all necessary layers without breaking vacuum to maximize the adhesion to the surface of the substrate and to ensure no pinhole erosion is present. In the multilayer solution, a moisture and outgassing barrier (MOB) is coupled with an AO and UV capping layer to provide complete protection.
随着更大、更复杂的太空设施的实现，预计暴露于原子氧（AO）和紫外线（UV）影响下的表面积会增加，这使得太空结构的结构完整性对未来发展至关重要。在低地球轨道（LEO）中，AO和UV降解的影响可能会对卫星和太空设施中的聚合物和复合材料结构产生毁灭性后果。诸如碳纤维增强聚合物（CFRP）之类的复合材料或诸如聚醚酰亚胺和聚苯乙烯之类的聚合物材料广泛用于卫星建造中的各种应用，包括结构部件、隔热材料，以及重要的射频（RF）组件。在本文中，我们提出了一种多层材料保护解决方案，即一种多层保护屏障，它可以减轻AO和UV的影响，同时又不会破坏测试组件的功能性能。通过定制的等离子体增强化学气相沉积（PECVD）系统沉积的这种多层保护屏障，其设计目的是在不破坏真空的情况下沉积所有必要的层，以最大化对基板表面的附着力，并确保不存在针孔侵蚀。在多层解决方案中，防潮和除气屏障（MOB）与AO和UV覆盖层相结合，以提供全面保护。
