Paint That Can Prevent Plane Crashes

Reported July 2008

ROANOKE, Va. (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Airplanes are visually inspected everyday, but tiny cracks and flaws on planes can be easily missed. Now, a new kind of paint could expose hidden damage on planes.

Flying a plane is a lifelong passion for Doug Juanarena. "And just the freedom and you're alone up there … its got that element of excitement," Juanarena told Ivanhoe.

Whether you're a passenger or a pilot, on a private plane or a commercial jetliner, the excitement of flying can turn dangerous if the aircraft is damaged. "My airplane for example was pulled into a hanger door by the ground crew, they didn't report the damage … had I not caught it, it could have again caused a potentially bad situation in the air," Juanarena said.

Undetected damage, like tiny cracks, flaws or weak points, is a big problem on airplanes. Now, chemists are testing a new paint that changes color to instantly reveal damage on planes.

"So, it's tuned to be able to release a dye to be able to change different color based on the level of impact," Bryan Koene, Ph.D., chemist at Luna Innovations told Ivanhoe.

Microcapsules containing a colored dye are mixed together with aircraft paint. If the paint is scratched, dented, or struck the capsules break, releasing the dye. The change in color pinpoints damage. Visual inspections are easier and more accurate.

"This technology is important to be able to detect damage very simply and cheaply,"Dr. Koene said.

The new paint is being developed first for the military. Next, it will be used on commercial and private planes. Until then, Juanarena will rely on his own eyes for damage control. "In my case I have a pretty good eye for detail, and just saw it, and when I did find it, of course the ground crew owned up to it," said Juanarena.

Another potential use for the color changing paint -- tamper resistant packaging.

The Materials Research Society contributed to the information contained in the TV portion of this report.

Click here to Go Inside This Science or contact:

Karin Clark
Director of Marketing and Communications, Luna Innovations
Roanoke, VA
(540) 769-8448 x 1502
kclark@lunainnovations.com

Materials Research Society
Warrendale, PA 15086-7573
(724) 779-3003
webmaster@mrs.org

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