An area in which the team does collaborate with industry and the other military services is environmental considerations. This has included removing heavy metals from primer coatings, reducing the amount of solvent in the paint and reducing hazardous air pollutants due to ever more stringent clean air regulations. All three agree that interaction with industry is vital. We leverage private industry to maximize the small number of us you see here. The team recently patented a new advance in coating technology that permits the substitution of water for about one-half of the hydrocarbon chemicals normally used as solvent.
Hydrocarbons react with sunlight when released into the atmosphere to form ozone, a pollutant.
Substituting water cuts in half the volatile organic content of the coating making it better for the environment while providing an improved finish. It is currently undergoing field tests and the team believes it will change the life cycle process for coatings since it will last longer and not mar easily. Escarsega explains that the solvent in paint provides proper package viscosity to keep the pigments from settling and provides the flow and spray qualities desired when it is applied. When we were looking at what was coming down the road for environmental compliance, we felt we could continue making small steps with solvents, but we would forever just be meeting requirements and not really advancing the technology. The bottom line is we have developed an environmentally complaint material that has dramatically enhanced performance.