Measuring the temperature with coatings
A British start-up was recently awarded for developing a coating that is able to measure temperatures in inaccessible components. This technology could be used in power plants, aviation engines or the automotive industry.
Measuring the temperature over a wide range and in difficultly accessible spots is challenging. Especially during the development of new combustion engines or turbines of power plants temperature measurement can be difficult. Sensor Coating Systems Ltd now was awarded the second place of the Royal Society of Chemistry price. They developed a thermal history coating that can measure the temperature between 150 to 1,400 °C.
They use a phosphorus material, with rare earth or transition materials, which is applied to the target surface by atmospheric plasma spray technology. The material has luminescent properties which permanently change when exposed to high temperatures.
By measurement of the luminesce, it is possible to determine the maximum temperature the coating was exposed to during any experiment. According to Sensor Coatings Systems, the temperature can be determined within a scope of 5 to 10 °C accuracy over the dynamic measuring range.
In contrast to existing thermal paints, the newly developed system also does not contain any hazardous materials that would be regulated under REACH.
Surfaces are interrogated at room temperature after exposure. The readout is done by using optical instrumentation developed by Sensor coating systems. The readout is objective and can be automated for full 2D profiling of complete, complex individual components or assemblies.
The company has currently partnered up with several big companies from the coatings and chemistry sector like Unilever, Croda, Diageo, GE Life Sciences, Astra Zeneca, Schlumberger, Akzo Nobel, Johnson Matthey and Mondelez.
