Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation: The Future of Lightweight Designs in Aerospace and Defense

Aerospace and defense (A&D) components face a range of extreme conditions for prolonged periods. Their lifespan quickly becomes diminished as a result and become susceptible to critical faults. Because of this, vital components have traditionally consisted of heavy alloys due to their tensile/yield strength, high thermal resistance and corrosive protection. Moving into next generation designs, the light-weighting of aircraft design has become a priority to improve fuel efficiency, enhance speed, and provide more available carry weight for vehicles in action.

To support the advancement of using lighter metals in A&D designs, metal coating technologies have been developed to protect and extend the lifespan of critical components; especially those facing strenuous conditions. That said, traditional coatings can often fail to provide suitable protection to replace heavy metals, and also produce waste materials that are harmful to the environment.