High Temperature Zero Erosion Ablative Combustion Liner

"In this proposed MDA Phase I SBIR program, HfCN fused fiber mat is to be synthesized from preceramic polymer derived HfCN fibers and then impregnated with polyethylene to form a novel high temperature ablative combustion liner insulation required for>4000oF combustion temperatures in solid rocket motor (SRM) applications to meet the demands of the new generation of kill vehicles. The MATECH/GSM concept eliminates "char" loss by directly designing the "char" layer prior to forming theablator/insulator. This is accomplished by melt spinning and winding HfCN preceramic fiber and fusing the fibers at the fiber junctions to form a contiguous porous fiber mat. After winding on a mandrel, the green fiber structure is sintered to ceramic andinserted into the motor housing and impregnated with a thermoplastic, such as high-density polyethylene or polypropylene. The thermoplastic polymer is selected to produce no char, possess low thermal diffusivity, and pyrolyize into a high-energy capacitygas. We expect to achieve a section weight at the aft end of the motor of 1/2 to 2/3 of existing ablator designs. The active participation and support of Aerojet bodes well for a successful Phase I program, Phase II program, and Phase III Commercializationand manufacturing. Advances in materials performance and manufacturing cost reductions could lead to reduced cost per pound of payload to reach orbit. Reductions in this significant cost will result in ex