Hughes Aircraft Company

Albert J Jicha

David B Chang

I-Fu Shih

Slava A Pollack

Selective emissivity coatings are disclosed for temperature reduction of enclosures such as vehicles and building structures. The coating includes a selective emissivity material such as silicon-oxy-nitride having a desired thermal emissivity function which is high in the 8-13 micron wavelength region, and low elsewhere except in the visible wavelength region. The material provides a mechanism for radiative cooling of the enclosure by converting the blackbody radiation of the enclosure, which would be reflected by the earth's atmosphere, into far infrared radiation which is transmitted by the atmosphere. According to another aspect of the invention, the coating further comprises a semimetal which is reflective of radiation in the near infrared region, thereby reducing the solar heat load on the enclosure. One suitable semimetal is LaB.sub.6. The coating may be applied to the exterior surface of vehicle and building windows, or to the exterior, non-window surfaces of building structures. For the latter, the coating may take the form of a conventional paint to which is added tiny particles of the semimetal and selective emissivity materials to achieve the radiative cooling and reflection of incident infrared radiation.

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Torrance, CA, United States of America

Albert J Jicha