Low Thermal Conductivity Fiber for Solid Rocket Nozzle Insulation

MATECH proposes to demonstrate rapid, low-cost 500-750 filament manufacturing capability for production of carbon fibers from any ionic liquids (ILCF), providing a drop-in replacement for traditional viscose rayon-based carbon fibers for extreme environment composites in Solid Rocket Motors (SRM). Use of ionic liquids for cellulose dissolution/regeneration has been practiced in university settings and optimized by industrial chemical producers for over a decade. The SRM industry identified rayon fiber as a critical material for continued long-term production and development of SRM systems due to lower conductivity, predictable erosion and superior fiber matrix interfacial bonding. Currently no domestic equivalent nor commercially viable process to make these cellulosic fibers exists without the use of polluting, toxic chemicals. In the Phase I program, MATECH, with partners, synthesized and characterized ILCFs thermo-mechanical properties with direct comparison to retired legacy NARC fibers, benchmarked laboratory-scale methods to produce regenerated cellulose carbon fibers, and identified a low risk path to demonstration of pilot-scale production in an environmentally compliant, economically competitive trade space. MATECH, in partnership with corporate partners Lockheed Martin (Palo Alto, CA) and Aerojet- Rocketdyne (Sacramento, CA), shall apply these methods to deliver ILCF feedstock critical to the manufacture of SRM components for ARMYs PAC-3 and GMLRSs.