Rain Repellency for Shipboard Aircraft Transparency

GVD Corporation (GVD) proposes to develop permanent, rain-repellent aircraft canopy coatings based on its novel, solvent-free PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) technology. Commercial off-the-shelf rain repellents possess neither the required durability nor the needed uniformity for use on high speed aircraft. In addition to its well-known water-shedding capabilities, PTFE exhibits exceptional chemical resistance and temperature stability, both of which are required for successful canopy coatings. Notably, GVD’s PTFE coatings are also optically-transparent, chemically-pure, and well-adhered, and can be deposited uniformly from the vapor phase. Unlike conventional PTFE coatings, GVD’s PTFE coatings require no post-processing (e.g., high-temperature sintering), and are immediately ready to use. In Phase I, GVD will screen multiple PTFE coating formulations using a series of tests designed to simulate environmental exposure. Promising coatings will be downselected for rain erosion and other advanced testing. The most promising coatings will then be further developed in Phase II with an eye toward coating scale-up and manufacturing.