Carbon-Carbon/Carbon Foam/Aerogel Process for Integrated Aerostructure TPS

Extreme heating conditions of future MDA missions are too severe for existing low-density systems (i.e., PICA – Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator); and existing high-density systems (i.e., carbon-carbon, carbon-phenolic) are too heavy and thermally inefficient. The proposed effort seeks to demonstrate the feasibility of wrapping a lightweight, rigid carbon foam with a carbon-carbon outerlayer that serves as an integrated aerostructural TPS. To enhance the thermal performance of the carbon foam without dramatically increasing its weight, a carbon aerogel is infiltrated into the open pore structure, providing decreased radiant heat transfer. An innovative manufacturing process that involves the wrapping of a carbon fiber phenolic prepreg over a carbon foam/aerogel cylindrical mandrel will be demonstrated under the Phase I effort. Co-carbonization issues such as differential shrinkage between the carbon-carbon and carbon foam will be investigated. Also, characterization of the boundary layers will be performed along with a preliminary economic assessment for scale up.