Electrically Conductive Black Optical Paint

Morris M. Birnbaum; Edward C. Metzler; Edward L. Cleland

doi:10.1117/12.934134

5 April 1983 Electrically Conductive Black Optical Paint

Morris M. Birnbaum, Edward C. Metzler, Edward L. Cleland

Proceedings Volume 0362, Scattering in Optical Materials II; (1983) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.934134
Event: 26th Annual Technical Symposium, 1982, San Diego, United States

Abstract

An electrically conductive flat black paint has been developed for use on the Galileo spacecraft which will orbit Jupiter in the late 1980s. The paint, designed for equipment operating in high-energy radiation fields, has multipurpose functions. Its electrical conductivity keeps differential charging of the spacecraft external surfaces and equipment to a minimum, preventing the buildup of electrostatic fields and arcing. Its flat black aspect minimizes the effects of stray light and unwanted reflectances, when used in optical instruments and on sunshades. Its blackness is suitable, also, for thermal control, when the paint is put on spacecraft surfaces. The paint has good adherence properties, as measured by tape tests, when applied properly to a surface. The electrically conductive paint which was developed has the following characteristics: an electrical resistivity of 5 x 10⁷ ohms per square; a visual light total reflectance of approximately 5 percent; an infrared reflectance of 0.13 measured over a spectrum from 10^-5.⁵ to 10^-3 meter; a solar absorptivity, α_s, of 0.93, and a thermal emissivity, ∈, of 0.87, resulting in an α_s/∈ of 1.07. The formula for making the paint and the process for applying it are described.

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Morris M. Birnbaum, Edward C. Metzler, and Edward L. Cleland "Electrically Conductive Black Optical Paint", Proc. SPIE 0362, Scattering in Optical Materials II, (5 April 1983); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.934134

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