Improving Aircraft Efficiency with Q+™

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With the levels of CO₂ in the atmosphere steadily increasing, there is an urgent need to reduce emissions from aircraft – especially if we want to continue to enjoy low cost flights abroad.

Over the last decade, most jet engine manufacturers have been improving the efficiency of their engines by running them at higher temperatures. At the heart of each engine are the turbine blades, which have to be protected if they are to survive the hostile conditions inside the engine. This protection is given by a thin layer of platinum which is electroplated onto the blade.

For some time, Johnson Matthey has been supplying an electroplating compound, known as Q-Salt, for this purpose. By and large, Q-Salt™ does the job very well, but it leaves an uneven distribution of platinum across the surface of the turbine blade. We have been working with a major manufacturer to find a way of achieving a more even distribution of the coating and have recently found the answer. We have developed Q+™ – a new technique which, by enhancing the Q-Salt plating bath, promises to give the same protection for each turbine blade with approximately 20% less platinum. This represents a significant saving in metal, processing costs and wastage of resources.

Customer trials on this new system are advancing well. If we can show that Q+™ delivers an even platinum coating that adheres well to the surface and is durable, it is likely to be adopted within the next 12 months.

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