One of the key technological issues for future space vehicles is the availability of advanced thermal protection systems, able to withstand very high temperature (up to 2000°C) in an oxidising environment. UHTC (ultra high temperature ceramics) are candidate materials for thermal protection of the hottest structures, such as wing leading edges and nose tips. An innovative, proprietary and patented methodology to deposit ZrB2 based coatings by plasma spraying has been developed. In the present work, the influence of coating composition on oxidation resistance and mechanical properties has been investigated. In particular, coatings constituted by different amounts of SiC and MoSi2 particles dispersed in a ZrB2 matrix were produced and tested. Oxidation resistance and mechanical tests were carried out. Results showed that MoSi2 addition improves oxidation resistance with respect to ZrB2 - SiC samples, without affecting mechanical properties. Demonstrative components were manufactured and tested by means of a plasma wind tunnel in simulated operative conditions. Preliminary results showed that thermal sprayed ceramics are well suited to be used as thermal protection systems in space re-entry vehicles. Copyright © 2009 ASM International® All rights reserved.
Ultra high temperature resistance coatings for thermal protection of space vehicles / M., Tului; S., Lionetti; G., Marino; R., Gardi; Valente, Teodoro; Pulci, Giovanni. - 1:(2009), pp. 634-638. (Intervento presentato al convegno Expanding Thermal Spray Performance to New Markets and Applications - 2009 International Thermal Spray Conference, ITSC 2009 tenutosi a Las Vegas; United States nel 4 May 2009 through 7 May 2009) [10.1361/cp2009itsc0634].
Ultra high temperature resistance coatings for thermal protection of space vehicles
VALENTE, Teodoro;PULCI, Giovanni
2009
Abstract
One of the key technological issues for future space vehicles is the availability of advanced thermal protection systems, able to withstand very high temperature (up to 2000°C) in an oxidising environment. UHTC (ultra high temperature ceramics) are candidate materials for thermal protection of the hottest structures, such as wing leading edges and nose tips. An innovative, proprietary and patented methodology to deposit ZrB2 based coatings by plasma spraying has been developed. In the present work, the influence of coating composition on oxidation resistance and mechanical properties has been investigated. In particular, coatings constituted by different amounts of SiC and MoSi2 particles dispersed in a ZrB2 matrix were produced and tested. Oxidation resistance and mechanical tests were carried out. Results showed that MoSi2 addition improves oxidation resistance with respect to ZrB2 - SiC samples, without affecting mechanical properties. Demonstrative components were manufactured and tested by means of a plasma wind tunnel in simulated operative conditions. Preliminary results showed that thermal sprayed ceramics are well suited to be used as thermal protection systems in space re-entry vehicles. Copyright © 2009 ASM International® All rights reserved.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
