Rapid Manufacturing of Durable, Cost-Effective Ceramic Matrix Composites for High Temperature Structures

Hypersonic vehicles require durable and cost-effective hot structures that do not impose weight penalties such as those associated with the use of non-structural thermal protection systems. In previous work for NASA and DoD, Ultramet demonstrated the fabrication of carbon fiber-reinforced refractory carbide matrix composites for missile and railgun projectile nosetip and aeroshell applications using a rapid, low-cost melt infiltration process. The composite materials underwent extensive high temperature testing under laser and arcjet heating conditions and exhibited low or no erosion when tested to nearly 2900�C. The composites also exhibited extremely high toughness and thermal shock resistance and have good potential for operation in adverse weather. Stability in rain, snow, and hail is a critical issue for hypersonic vehicles, and Ultramet composite materials have performed very well in hydrometeor and nylon bead impact tests conducted by NASA MSFC. In this project, Ultramet will advance the state of the art in melt infiltration processing by developing innovative process improvements to optimize the refractory carbide matrix, resulting in enhanced in-plane and through-thickness mechanical properties for operation over the temperature range from 1500 to 3000�C in the hypersonic vehicle environment. Melt infiltrated carbide matrix composites contain residual unreacted metal within the matrix which provides enhanced toughness but, if excessive, can lead to low elevated temperature mechanical properties. This work will further reduce and optimize the percentage of residual metal in the matrix to produce composites with an optimal balance of toughness/impact resistance and elevated temperature interlaminar and through-thickness mechanical properties. A demonstrator article will be fabricated and subjected to high temperature oxidation testing at the Air Force LHMEL facility.

The proposed use of rapidly manufactured high temperature CMC hypersonic vehicle hot structure components can play a key role in achieving hypersonic vehicle manufacturability and cost goals as well as weight and performance objectives. Readily available materials that require little development time are critical. In addition to monolithic CMC structures such as nosetips, fins, leading edges, aerosurfaces, and propulsion flow path structures, the potential exists to combine the CMC with Ultramet's structural foam insulation to produce integrated airframe/TPS aeroshell structures. Ultramet CMCs, produced by a rapid, low-cost melt infiltration process, have demonstrated outstanding performance in multiple test series, including those performed under the Composites and Advanced Materials (CAM) and Hypersonic Flight Demonstration (HyFly) programs among others. Other potential aerospace applications include launch vehicle propulsion systems and aerobraking structures for planetary exploration.

Potential commercial applications include high temperature, low-mass insulating structures for heat cycle and gas turbine engines, scramjet and ramjet engine components, and furnace heat recovery units (recuperators).

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