3-star: Forget paint chipping. There's a laser for that.: Ship repair may not seem a likely place for the latest and greatest technology breakthroughs, but three are in the works that could make deckplate life a little easier.
Vice Adm. William Hilarides, who heads Naval Sea Systems Command, said rust, non-skid, and aluminum are the "big problems" he faces. His team is testing solutions; on Thursday, he challenged industry and academia attending the Naval Future Force Science and Technology Expo to help him in this endeavor.
The three-star described a laser ablation system that removes paint, eliminating the gritty sandblast that is the bane of shipyard life. Hilarides said the paint laser shows "great potential," although there are still questions about how the laser affects molecular structure, and how the user will control the temperature. He hopes it'll be a proven technology in the next six months, he added.
A thermally-sprayed aluminum is being tested as a replacement for the epoxy non-skid sailor boots have tread on for the past 30 years. This is especially important for big-deck amphibs. The epoxy non-skid starts to breakdown around 300 degrees; operational exposures from the Marine variant F-35B Joint Strike Fighter will far exceed this limit. The new coating has been on the amphibious assault ship Wasp for three years with no problems, Hilarides said. The only downside: it costs five times as much as epoxy non-skid.
