Innovation

1. Colorless, Atomic Oxygen Resistant Polymers for Space Applications Triton Systems, Inc.Chelmsford, MA Innovation Invented a new space durable thermal control film for spacecraft thermal control application. • Accomplishments • Thermal control films exhibit outstanding combination of thermal-optical properties and are more space durable than their competing counterparts in use. • Triton has formed a major partnership with a key manufacturer with ~$1M of total matching funds offered by this partnership. • Triton has invested in excess of $500K of its own funds to commercialize this technology. • Triton’s industrial partner has invested about $500K of in-kind matching funds to commercialize this technology. • Commercialization • Product name: PAE-TOR and PAE-COR Polymers • Triton has four US Patents and patent applications. • The primary target/potential market sector is its use in the thermal management of spacecrafts including emerging ComSats. • Product is currently offered for sale. Advertisements are being placed in leading space publications. • PAE-TOR and PAE-COR offer exceptional resistance to the harsh space environment. No other competing polymeric material offers similar combination of properties. PAE-TOR and PAE-COR Thermal Control Films • Government/Science Applications • PAE-TOR and PAE-COR have already found applications in several space missions. The most near term application is the expected flight of the material as a protective coating for ProSEDS electrodynamic tether project managed by MSFC. These materials are also strong candidates for inflatable structures. • If used as expected, the service life of most spacecraft surfaces in low earth orbit (LEO) could be extended by a factor of two. This step alone will save millions of dollars. Points of Contact: - NASA (Denise Swain; 256/544-8112) - Triton Systems, Inc. (Ross Haghighat; 978/250-4200) 1994 SBIR Phase 2; NAS8-40635 Marshall Space Flight Center Date of Update: 1/5/99 Success Story #: 8-029