W. L. Gore & Associates has expanded its line of GORE™ SKYFLEX™ Aerospace Materials to improve protection against chafing and abrasion in both rotary and fixed wing aircraft surfaces. Surfaces exposed to these environments are subjected to mechanical forces that can result in damage that decreases the strength and life of panels, structures or internal floorboards. The latest addition to the family of GORE™ SKYFLEX™ Aerospace Materials, these surface protection materials ensure reliable mechanical performance in the most challenging environments.

GORE™ SKYFLEX™ Aerospace Materials for anti-chafe applications helps minimize vibration force and reduce the abrasive effects of foreign debris between surfaces. In applications such as access panels, fuel bladders, tail booms, and transmission panels, mechanical wear from vibration can cause small particles to become trapped between the interfaces, resulting in chafing, pitting, and scoring. Gore’s soft durable materials are chemically inert and resistant to aircraft fluids, thereby minimizing potential corrosive effects.

GORE™ SKYFLEX™ Aerospace Materials for edge protection are abrasion-resistant and engineered specifically to prevent abrasion and cut-through damage from composite floorboard edges and reduce the likelihood of corrosion. More durable than fiberglass tapes, these materials protect edges by isolating carbon and other components that are galvanically dissimilar. These lightweight, highly conformable materials are easy to install because of their single-component construction, and they simplify maintenance because they are easy to remove for inspection.

According to Ross Livington, Gore’s global product specialist for GORE™ SKYFLEX™ Aerospace Materials for surface protection, the mechanical properties of these materials have been engineered to withstand wear and increase the durability of their protective performance. “With decades of experience in the aerospace industry, we understand the importance of reliability and aircraft availability. Our highly conformable materials reduce downtime of the aircraft through their long-term performance, and with easy installation the aircraft availability can be improved.”