Diagnostic Tools to Characterize Plasma-Material Interactions in High-Enthalpy Facilities

A suite of diagnostic tools along with a ground test facility are proposed for development to aid in the characterization of an aerothermal environment pertaining to hypersonic flight and to evaluate the material response of ultra-high temperature ceramics that are typically used as vehicle components. The interaction between the environment and the material is evaluated through measurements of chemical species by several spectroscopic means. To accurately gauge the impact of the environment on the material response, diagnostic tools are proposed to measure concentrations of dissociated species and ions and also properties such as vibrational and rotational temperatures that reveal the non-equilibrium thermo-chemical nature of flow impacting the material surface. The proposed effort also seeks to develop ground test facilities that can generate sufficient heating environments relevant to hypersonic flight such that they can be used to evaluate and monitor the material degradation when subjected to such flows.