ULTRALIGHTWEIGHT HEAT TEMPERATURE STRUCTURAL MATERIALS

THE CHEMICALLY-BOOSTED KINETIC KILL VEHICLE (KKV) WEAPON IS A NECESSARY COMPONENT OF STRATEGIC DEFENSE. NEW SYSTEMS BASED ON ADVANCED SOLID PROPULSION CONCEPTS ARE CURRENTLY BEING INVESTIGATED. THEIR ULTIMATE POTENTIAL CAN BE REALIZED ONLY BY THE DEVELOPMENT OF ULTRALIGHTWEIGHT, HIGH TEMPERATURE, HIGH PERFORMANCE MATERIALS. ONE APPROACH IS THE USE OF SHEATHED FOAM COMPOSITES, THE TECHNOLOGY OF WHICH IS NOT WELL ADVANCED. DENSITY MUST BE REDUCED WHILE STILL MAINTAINING ADEQUATE STRENGTH AND OXIDATION/EROSION RESISTANCE AND IMPROVED WEAR/EROSION SHEATHS MUST BE INCORPORATED. BY AN INNOVATIVE APPLICATION OF CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION, THE FEASIBILITY OF FABRICATING A NEW CLASS OF MATERIALS (LOWER DENSITY HAFNIUM CARBIDE SHEATHED RHENIUM-FOAM COMPOSITES) IS BEING DEMONSTRATED AS IS ITS PERFORMANCE. IF SUCCESSFUL, THIS MATERIAL WILL BE EMPLOYED EXTENSIVELY IN KKV WEAPONS AND WILL ENHANCE THEIR VIABILITY. OTHER APPLICATIONS WOULD INCLUDE MILITARY ROCKETS AND PROTECTION IN COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT ENGINES.