Investigation of Placed Fiber Fabrication Process for Manufacture of Integrated Structures for Interceptor Applications

"A program is proposed to investigate and demonstrate an innovative approach to the production of integrated structures for interceptor applications such as the Theater High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) System. Currently, the THAAD shroud consists of atape wrapped quartz/phenolic (Q/P) heatshield bonded to an aluminum substrate. The aluminum substrate requires considerable machining to prepare, and the tapes require preparation of a woven fabric and a resin impregnation step. It is proposed that theplaced fiber process can be used to spray a composite substrate with carbon-fiber and bismalemide-resin (C/BMI), and to then spray Q/P panels from which tapes are cut, wrapped, and then cured directly on the C/BMI substrate, creating a single integratedshroud. One or more production steps would be eliminated.Phase I efforts will verify that placed fiber processes for C/BMI and Q/P materials respectively, can be used to create a single, integrated composite. In a Phase II program, an integrated shroud would be fabricated to the THAAD design using C/BMI placedfiber for the substrate Q/P placed fiber for the outer heatshield. The integrated shroud would be fully characterized to show that physical, mechanical and thermal properties required by the shroud requirements are met. The direct benefit will be a single, integrated shroud that can be used in DoD interceptor applications as well other applications where heatshields and thermal protec