Design Framework for Hierarchical Phase Change Materials for Thermal Management in Long Range Precision Fire Munitions

Long Range Precision Fire (LRPF) systems are an important class of advanced weapon systems which can engage targets at long ranges with high degrees of accuracy. The Army seeks novel material solutions such as Phase Change Materials (PCM)s for LRPF Platforms to improve thermal management and structural integrity while exposed to extreme. Corvid proposes utilizing a multi-length scale modeling and simulation strategy pioneered in the Phase I, in order to create a novel layered thick surface coating design which combines Stainless Steel (SS) with multiple solid-solid PCMs to create a surface coating that has a gradated hierarchal response to increasing temperature while maintaining strength in extreme loading conditions. Corvid has secured a LOS from American Rheinmetall Inc who is interested in incorporating the material solution proposed in this effort into an LRPF under development at Rheinmetall. The M&S framework developed under the Phase I effort spans three different length scales from the atomistic to the continuum. At the smallest length scale, Corvid will use atomistic techniques such as DFT to predict novel PCM formulations with tailored thermomechanical properties through investigations into doping of Solid-Solid PCMs Germanium Telluride, Silver Selenide, and Barium Titanate. On the meso-scale, Corvid will leverage itÆs in house topology optimization code to create novel PCM meta material designs which will optimize the homogenized mechanical strength of 3D PCM-SS metamaterials incorporating the PCMs mentioned previously. Investigations will also be conducted into optimization of heat dissipation (thermal conductivity) as a possible metric of interest. The effectiveness of the meta material will then be tested utilizing CorvidÆs coupled thermal-structural solver built into its massively parallel hydro-structural code Velodyne and the homogenized properties confirmed from the topology optimization. Those properties will then be used on the continuum length scale in Velodyne under both mild and extreme loading conditions calculated using CorvidÆs in-house computation fluid dynamics (CFD) software Raven, in order to gauge the effectiveness of the design. Corvid will also be partnering with PennState University for initial prototyping of CorvidÆs novel PCM meta-material designs as well as investigations into transition of the prototype manufacturing techniques into a production level technique that allows for onboarding of the material solution to an LRPF platform under development at Rheinmetall.