HIGH-ENERGY PHASE-CHANGE-MATRIX COMPOSITE BRAKES

WE PROPOSE TO STUDY THE FEASIBILITY OF UTILIZING ADVANCED THERMALSTORAGE COMPOSITE MATERIALS IN HIGH-ENERGY BRAKING SYSTEMS. NOVEL GRAPHITE/PHASE-CHANGE-MATERIAL COMPOSITES, IN WHICH HIGH-CONDUCTIVITY FORMS OF GRAPHITE ARE PRECISELY DISPERSED IN SELECTED PHASE-CHANGE MATRIXES, POSSES HIGH-FLUX HEAT ABSORPTION CAPABILITIES. SEVERAL LOW DENSITY, HIGH-LATENT-HEAT MATERIALS ARE ATTRACTIVE CANDIDATES IN THE TEMPERATURE RANGE 600 - 1200 DEG C, AND NEWLY AVAILABLE, HIGHCONDUCTIVITY FORMS OF GRAPHITE ARE ATTRACTIVE CANDIDATES FOR THE CONDUCTIVE COMPONENT. HEAT ABSORPTION TESTS AT ELEVATED TEMPERATURES ARE PROPOSED, AS WELL AS CYCLING AND CORROSION TESTS TO STUDY CHEMICAL COMPATIBILITY OF THE COMPONENTS. MODELING AND ANALYSIS WILL INCLUDE TEMPERATURE DEPENDENT THERMAL PROPERTIES. THE BEHAVIOR OF DISK BRAKE ROTORS CONSISTING OF THE NOVEL COMPOSITE MATERIAL UNDER THERMAL FLUXES OF 10 - 1000 W/CM2 (2) FOR DURATIONS OF 1 - 100S WILL BE SIMULATED NUMERICALLY. THE BENEFITS FOR HIGH-ENERGY BRAKES TECHNOLOGY WILL BE ASSESSED.