New accelerated corrosion test methods for atmospheric corrosion on aluminum aircraft

Paints and coatings play an important role in protecting aircraft from atmospheric corrosion. There are standard accelerated laboratory test methods that allow assessment of the coating corrosion protection performance before it is qualified and applied to aircraft. It is however hard to draw a direct correlation between these standard test methods and in-service material performance. Several new test methods have been developed to represent types of in-service atmospheric corrosion on aluminum aircraft. These tests complement standard corrosion test methods, such as neutral salt spray and filiform corrosion, and will possibly become a new standard for paint qualification in the future.