Propulsor Blade Advanced Composite Materials

The U.S. Navy has significant interest in the development of composite materials that substantially improve the performance of composite propulsor blades. Improvements in erosion resistance (e.g., cavitation, rain, and sand), impact durability and high-cycle fatigue are of particular interest. During Phase I, Composite Technology Development (CTD) pursued a multidisciplinary approach to develop and qualify new classes of composite materials for propulsor blades which possess significant erosion resistant and impact durable characteristics. Under the proposed Phase II program, CTD will expand on the Phase I results to develop, demonstrate and qualify composite materials for propulsor blade applications. Extensive static and dynamic material testing will be performed in combination with cavitation testing to establish greater insight into the cavitation erosion, high-rate impact and high-cycle fatigue behavior of composite materials. Furthermore, these efforts will used to guide the development efforts toward composite materials meeting the requirements of propulsor blades. The latter stages of the proposed Phase II program will focus on development and manufacture of composite propulsor blade breadboard models. Evaluation of this breadboard model in a relevant environment showcasing technology capability is envisioned as the program’s capstone effort.