Poeton in Space - Examples of our Successes Space Shuttle doors Poeton have applied their unique skills to the hard chrome plating of the titanium locks and hinges of the Space Shuttle doors, as well as the pallet locking pins which support the satellite payload. The Poeton Tichrome plating process gives the Space Approved quality and performance required for these critical applications. Reclamation Poeton have stepped into salvage the valuable stainless steel Hooks and Mushrooms which locate the massive springs and dampers restraining the launch vehicle. Ravaged by unexpected corrosive wear, Poeton were able to apply their electrolytic nickel and hard chrome duplex coating process to rebuild the parts and forestall further damage Reaction Systems In certain confidential applications, Poeton have provided the combined coating technology of shot-peening and precision hard chrome plating for key titanium in Reaction systems. Anti Reflective Coatings The provision of non-reflective surfaces is crucial to the performance of optical devices. Poeton combined their thermal spraying, sulphuring anodising and black dye technologies to produce a matt-black coating on titanium components. As required, outgassing was zero.

For Friction and Wear Reduction in a Space Environment, Poeton has the Answer

Poeton offer a range of coatings and surface treatments for Space vacuum and launch vehicle applications, providing essential enhancement to the friction, wear and heat transfer properties of light weight materials.

As well as offering a subcontract coating service, backed by rigorous quality systems and accreditations, Poeton provide expert support through consultation in relation to Space tribology, problem analysis and solving, and their unique ISIS Expert System. This software package, which includes vacuum conditions, provides engineers with a step by step analysis of their problem and generates a ranked list of the best surface engineering solutions.

For more details, select from the list below:

Poeton Products for Space Applications 

Poeton specialise in unique composite and hybrid coatings systems which combine to provide optimised friction and wear performance. For Space related applications, our products include:

• Reducing friction and metallic galling.
  • Polymer composite anodising Apticote 350 reduces friction (µ = 0.08 to 0.1) in vacuum at temperatures in the range -60^oC to + 300^oC. The treatment is ideal for light weight aluminium parts (gears, guides, etc) that will operate with sliding contact.
  • PVD MoS₂ coatings Apticote 1000 offer exceptionally low friction (µ = 0.02) for rolling element bearings (where the coating is applied to the raceways) and for light contact sliding situations.
  • PVD diamond like carbon Apticote 1000 offers a friction coefficient of 0.1 to 0.12 combined with a high hardness and wear resistance. It is suitable for higher load sliding situations and can be tailored to give low electrical contact resistance for application on slip rings.
  • An electroless nickel/PTFE coating Apticote 450 provides a friction coefficient of 0.1 in vacuum (-60^oC to + 300^oC limit). It is ideal for precise sliding contacts under light loads.


• Reducing wear

  Poeton have a special expertise in the application of wear resistant coatings to light weight alloys in titanium and aluminium. In many cases, the coating can be combined with one of the low friction treatments above to provide both wear and friction reduction.

  • Hard chrome plate Apticote 100 provides exceptional wear resistance for heavily loaded hinges,rod - ends, linkages etc.
  • PVD TiN Apticote 1000 gives the greatest hardness and wear resistance when the loads are lighter and there is no risk of substrate deformation.
  • Hard anodising Apticote 300 of aluminium can be used to protect aluminium parts that might be subject to occasional wear, for instance due to vibration during launch.
  • Thermally sprayed cermets Apticote 800 can be applied for the ultimate wear protection and load carrying capacity, with minimal porosity which otherwise might produce unacceptable outgassing.

ISIS Expert System 

APTICOTE-ISIS is the world's first PC-based coating selection system. It includes Space vacuum conditions and applications

APTICOTE-ISIS will help you choose surface coatings for your engineering components to maximise their performance. It has been developed from the knowledge of Poeton's engineers accumulated over many years experience of real world applications. The manufacture of products of high quality and reliability is crucial in today's competitive markets. Designing to extend the life and avoid failure of critical engineering components is a problem faced by all engineering companies. Given that most component failures are surface-initiated, design engineers need access to expertise about surface coatings.

Viewing a free space-related demonstration

Download a 'ScreenCam' video (2MB) of the ISIS software.  This file includes the latest ScreenCam player and will automatically install on your hard drive according your commands.

To find out more about the full ISIS software package which includes Space vacuum conditions, click on the ISIS icon above.

The information contained on this web site is intended for guidance only. Whilst every effort is made to understand the environment in which coating is designed to work, success invariably can only be determined by trials and in service testing.