At 06:15 PM 1/1/2016, Douglas wrote:
What sort of corrosion would you
have in space?
Would a sheet of iron rust in a near earth orbit? If so how long would it
take compared to at ocean level on the earth?
--
Douglas E Knapp, MSAOM, LAc.
Douglas,
My first reaction was "What - no oxygen, no oxidation!" but
after doing a bit of looking, found a couple of links that suggest
oxidation will occur because, at least in LEO (i.e. from around 100 miles
out to about 1200 or so miles altitude) there's enough oxygen,
particularly atomic oxygen, to make corrosion a concern, especially as
there's relatively little atmosphere to protect things from .
Apparently a major failing in early satellites was corrosion of the
stainless steel bearings; new satellites seem to have them gold-coated to
protect from this. Here're a few links that discuss it to one
degree or another (I provide the links; I neither vouch for them nor
defend them):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corrosion_in_space
https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/236ezw/does_metal_tarnishcorroderust_in_space/
(This one has some relatively academic links to support it though
I've not explored all of 'em)
https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg15520981.600-space-is-corrosive/
(a 1997 link cited in the previous link that's pretty
interesting)
http://space.stackexchange.com/questions/4154/would-unpainted-iron-or-steel-rust-in-space
(comments on this one ramble a bit but they generally get to the same
conclusion as the first link)
Enjoy!
<Returning to lurk mode>
Bill Rutherford
xxxxxx@comcast.net