The Elements of Innovation Discovered
The Elements of Innovation Discovered
Graphene-based paint to be tested by another third-party Metal Tech News - June 28, 2023
ZenARMOR shows the potential to protect aircraft paint jobs.
Known for its ZenGUARD graphene air filters developed to help mitigate bacterial spread during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Zentek Ltd. recently announced it has been awarded a research and development contract through Innovation Solutions Canada to help develop ZenARMOR, a novel graphene-based corrosion protection technology that offers self-healing properties.
As a mining company that began its technology journey amid the COVID-19 pandemic to develop solutions to prevent the spread of the virus, Zentek began using the graphite from its Albany project in Ontario to produce graphene coatings – which has been proven to be 99% effective at killing a broad range of bacteria and viruses, including the SARS-CoV-2 virus responsible for the coronavirus.
Keeping in line with its coating endeavors, Zentek has been creating a graphene-based coating that helps prevent ice from building up on green energy-producing wind turbines and drones.
You can read more about Zentek's coating endeavors at Zentek icephobic coatings undergo testing in the September 21, 2022 edition of Metal Tech News.
Corrosion is a costly issue that significantly impacts naval and marine infrastructure, bridges, buildings, pipelines, and many other industries. To help combat this problem, corrosion-protective coatings can extend the life of existing infrastructure and equipment.
"The economic cost of corrosion is significant. According to a United States Congressional Briefing on May 31, 2012, corrosion-related costs amounted to US$452 billion per year in the US, including US$22 billion for the Department of Defense. The global anti-corrosion coating market was estimated to be US$27.4 billion in 2019 and expected to grow to US$63.7 billion by 2030 according to Business Wire." said Zentek CEO Greg Fenton. "To help address this issue, corrosion protective coatings are used to extend the life of existing infrastructure and equipment, generally providing a high return on investment. With ZenARMOR, our team has developed a nanomaterial-based technology that has the potential to further enhance this return on investment by not only improving the performance of existing corrosion protection solutions but doing so in a way that reduces environmental impact."
To develop and test ZenARMOR, Zentek has been collaborating with Quantum Chemical, a division of Quantum Technical Services Ltd., a manufacturer of high-performance primers and coatings.
Testing by Quantum Chemical of ZenARMOR in an epoxy system following ASTM B-117 Salt Spray Testing demonstrated excellent corrosion resistance with no blisters or any other signs of corrosion after 1,500 hours with the addition of a very low dose of ZenARMOR versus the same corrosion protection epoxy without ZenARMOR, which started breaking down at the 1,000-hour mark.
ZenARMOR is also comprised of fewer active ingredients compared to other products in the market, which offers potential environmental benefits versus other corrosion protection products.
To further test the corrosion resistance and environmental benefits, Zentek has been awarded a research and development contract through Innovative Solutions Canada to test ZenARMOR in military-grade, chromate-free, corrosion-protection aerospace paint systems.
"We are grateful to have been selected for this ISC-TS (Innovative Solutions Canada-Testing Stream) by our partners at the National Research Council of Canada, which we believe is an important step in continuing to prove out the efficacy of our ZenARMOR technology in corrosion protection paints. This is an area that has taken on heightened importance due to the high cost of corrosion. This award confirms the Government of Canada's commitment to working with innovative domestic companies to help address this challenge," said Fenton. "Importantly, we see this as a potential precursor to commercialize our technology not only within the Canadian Government, but with other interested parties, as well."
The objectives of this latest testing will be to confirm the use of ZenARMOR to meet required aviation standards; optimize the concentration of ZenARMOR in aviation paint systems; and compare the corrosion protection of ZenARMOR to chromate-based paint systems.
The testing will be conducted under the supervision of Dr. Qi Yang and Dr. Naiheng Song, Research Officers at the National Research Council of Canada Aerospace Research Centre's Aerospace Manufacturing Technologies Centre.
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