DEVELOPMENT AND FABRICATION OF MULTI-INLET TUBULAR JOINT STRUCTURES FOR SPACECRAFT APPLICATION

THE AEROSPACE COMMUNITY NEEDS INTEGRALLY WOVEN, COMPOSITE-JOINT STRUCTURES. JOINING TECHNOLOGY HAS NOT KEPT PACE WITH THE IMPROVEMENTS MADE TO CURRENT AND PROJECTED SPACECRAFT TO ACCOMMODATE THE INCREASINGLY HARSH ENVIRONMENTS THAT SPACECRAFT ENCOUNTER DURING FLIGHT. THIS EFFORT WILL FOCUS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNOLOGY TO INTEGRALLY WEAVE COMPLEX MULTI-INLET JOINT STRUCTURES. GRAPHITE FIBER TOWS WILL BE USED TO FABRICATE THE WOVEN-FIBER PREFORM, AND THE RESULTING COMPOSITE SYSTEM WILLBE INFILTRATED WITH MOLTEN METAL TO FORM A METAL-MATRIX COMPOSITE. DEVELOPMENT OF THIS TYPE OF JOINT WILL OFFER THEIMPROVED MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF THE INTEGRALLY WOVEN PREFORM AND THE ENHANCED ENVIRONMENTAL STABILITY OF THE METAL MATRIX. THE RESULTING JOINT TECHNOLOGY WILL ALLOW SPACECRAFT MANUFACTURERS TO USE A WHOLE NEW FAMILY OF COMPOSITE JOINT SYSTEMS. THE AEROSPACE COMMUNITY NEEDS INTEGRALLY WOVEN, COMPOSITE-JOINT STRUCTURES. JOINING TECHNOLOGY HAS NOT KEPT PACE WITH THE IMPROVEMENTS MADE TO CURRENT AND PROJECTED SPACECRAFT TO ACCOMMODATE THE INCREASINGLY HARSH ENVIRONMENTS THAT SPACECRAFT ENCOUNTER DURING FLIGHT. THIS EFFORT WILL FOCUS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNOLOGY TO INTEGRALLY WEAVE COMPLEX MULTI-INLET JOINT STRUCTURES. GRAPHITE FIBER TOWS WILL BE USED TO FABRICATE THE WOVEN-FIBER PREFORM, AND THE RESULTING COMPOSITE SYSTEM WILLBE INFILTRATED WITH MOLTEN METAL TO FORM A METAL-MATRIX COMPOSITE. DEVELOPMENT OF THIS TYPE OF JOINT WILL OFFER THEIMPROVED MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF THE INTEGRALLY WOVEN PREFORM AND THE ENHANCED ENVIRONMENTAL STABILITY OF THE METAL MATRIX. THE RESULTING JOINT TECHNOLOGY WILL ALLOW SPACECRAFT MANUFACTURERS TO USE A WHOLE NEW FAMILY OF COMPOSITE JOINT SYSTEMS.