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Graded-Composition Refractory Coatings for Protection of Cu-Rails for Electromagnetic Launchers

Award Information
Agency: Department of Defense
Branch: Navy
Contract: N00014-10-M-0339
Agency Tracking Number: N10A-025-0647
Amount: $69,999.00
Phase: Phase I
Program: STTR
Solicitation Topic Code: N10A-T025
Solicitation Number: 2010.A
Timeline
Solicitation Year: 2010
Award Year: 2010
Award Start Date (Proposal Award Date): 2010-06-28
Award End Date (Contract End Date): 2011-04-30
Small Business Information
P.O. Box 4782
Grand Junction, CO 81503
United States
DUNS: 840927110
HUBZone Owned: No
Woman Owned: No
Socially and Economically Disadvantaged: No
Principal Investigator
 Frank Kustas
 President
 (970) 243-8828
 fkustas.eci@gmail.com
Business Contact
 Frank Kustas
Title: President
Phone: (970) 243-8828
Email: fkustas.eci@gmail.com
Research Institution
 Institute for Advanced Technology
 Jeanette Holmes
 
101 E. 27th St. Suite 4.300
Austin, TX 78713
United States

 (512) 471-6424
 Nonprofit College or University
Abstract

The Navy is developing an electromagnetic (EM) launcher for long-range naval surface-fire-support. Severe operating conditions of the EM system place stringent requirements for materials, including high current and magnetic fields, high temperatures, contact with liquid metals, high stress/gouging from balloting contacts and high-speed-sliding electrical-contact with an Al armature. Engineered Coatings Inc., Southwest Research Institute, and the Institute for Advanced Technology, University of Texas, will demonstrate thick Plasma-Enhanced Physical Vapor Deposited coatings to protect copper rails with: 1) graded composition Cu-refractory metal (e.g., Ta, W or Cr) coatings; 2) solid-lubricating nanomultilayer nitride coatings (e.g., TiAlCrN / TiN bilayers); and 3) nanostructured (nm crystal size) nitride coatings. Basic coating properties; electrical resistivity/conductivity, indent-adhesion/toughness, hardness after thermal exposure, oxidation resistance, and sub-scale rail gun experiments, will be determined for these coating groups. A down-selected coating will have additional rail-gun tests in the Phase I option to assess coating reliability and reproducibility.

* Information listed above is at the time of submission. *

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