The International Aerospace Environmental Group (IAEG) has been engaged in a number of projects in 2021 focusing on technologies restricted by EU REACH and other global chemical regulations and investigating potential chemical and material replacement alternatives available to the aerospace industry.
IAEG’s Working Group 2 (Replacement Technologies) takes the lead in this area and, in 2021, achieved several key deliverables through implementation of innovative cross-industry collaboration methods.
- As part of the Anodize Seal Project, completed in 2021, a performance screening exercise of non-hex-chrome sealing solutions was carried out and the results summarized in a technical report which is available to non-IAEG members. The report details the performance levels of each proposed anodize seal solution against agreed criteria and includes test results communicated by project participants. In addition to the technical report, the team made a recommendation to SAE AMS Committee B to update AMS2471 to allow the option to use a trivalent chromium conversion coating as an anodic seal.
- The Bond Primer project is continuing beyond the initial statement of work that completed in 2020. In Phase 1 of this project, seven member companies collaborated to exchange information on key requirements for implementation of chromate-free bond primer and adhesive systems for aerospace applications. In 2021, Phase 2 of the Bond Primer Project was launched with fourteen member companies. This phase of the project is looking to perform testing on hex chrome-free bond primer and adhesive systems by engaging with suppliers of these products to assess their performance.
- The Cadmium Plating project team is due to launch a test campaign early in 2022 which will assess the performance of electrical connectors that are coated with alternatives to cadmium. In 2021, the project team established its test matrix and worked with suppliers to procure samples for testing. Samples of different coating types will be mated and subject to performance testing where compatibility of these different coating types sourced from different suppliers, will be evaluated.
- In 2021, the Fuel Tank Coatings project was formally launched with 11 member companies participating. The project will look to gather requirements on non-hex-chrome coatings along with information on alternatives that have already been assessed by the member companies. Like the Bond Primer project, the members will engage with suppliers of alternatives to assess their performance against a set of requirements as determined by the project team.
Results of the projects are available for individual company consideration and use, on a voluntary and unilateral basis. To learn more, visit the IAEG website at http://www.iaeg.com or contact Laura Wilkinson, IAEG Work Group 2 Lead (laura.wilkinson@rolls-royce.com).
For additional information about IAEG, please contact Christer Hellstrand, IAEG Program Director (chellstrand@iaeg.com) or Michele Lewis, IAEG Communications Officer (michele.lewis@collins.com).
