Improving the thermal protection characteristics of carbon-carbon composites by coating with a low-temperature supersonic heterogeneous flow

Аuthors

Grigorovsky V. V.^*, Zubko A. A.^**, Nikitin P. V.^***, Suchkova P. I.

Moscow Aviation Institute (National Research University), 4, Volokolamskoe shosse, Moscow, А-80, GSP-3, 125993, Russia

*e-mail: grislavapro@gmail.com
**e-mail: shkuratenko.anna@mail.ru
***e-mail: petrunecha@gmail.com

Abstract

This paper presents the development of advanced technologies for the creation of heatresistant thermal protection materials based on carbon-carbon composites (CCCM). Particular attention is paid to optimizing the key performance characteristics of these materials, such as reducing catalytic activity, increasing emissivity, increasing heat resistance and expanding the limits of permissible operating temperatures of the material surface. All these indicators play a decisive role in determining the operating conditions and durability of the structural materials. However, a successful solution to this problem requires not only the development of new materials, but also a deep analysis of their numerous properties with maximum accuracy. It is important to take into account that under conditions of intense aerodynamic heating, typical for the external surfaces of aircraft (LA) and combustion chambers of jet engines, the physical and chemical properties of materials can undergo significant changes. This makes it necessary to comprehensively study the behavior of materials under extreme conditions. The proposed approach in this paper is aimed at ensuring the protection of the surface of carbon-carbon composite materials from the effects of an aggressive oxidation environment by applying special heatresistant coatings to it. The formation of protective layers is implemented by the method developed by the authors, low-temperature gas dynamics, based on the use of supersonic heterogeneous flows. Experimental data indicate that the vast majority of disadvantages of carbon-carbon composites can be overcome by creating thin-layer heat-resistant ceramic coatings on their surface with a thickness of about 50 to 100 micrometers. These coatings consist of compounds such as silicon carbide (SiC), silicon nitride (Si₃N₄), boron carbide (B₄C) and others, with the addition of strictly defined amounts of rare-earth refractory metals. This combination ensures the achievement of an ideal ratio between the catalytic and radiative parameters, which significantly improves the performance of the material. The practical significance of the results obtained lies in the possibility of applying the developed solutions in the field of design and operation of high-tech objects and systems in various industries. This opens up prospects for significant improvements in the reliability and durability of equipment operating under high temperature and aggressive environments.

Keywords:

heat-stressed structures, composite materials, heat-protective coatings, carbon-carbon and carbon-ceramic composite materials, heterogeneous flows, catalytic activity, chemically active boundary layer

References

1. Nikitin PV. Thermal protection. Moscow: MAI; 2006. 510 p. (In Russ.).
2. Nikitin PV, Sotnik EV. Catalysis and radiation in spacecraft thermal protection systems. Moscow: Yanus-K, 2013. 325 p. (In Russ.).
3. Sorokin VA, Kopylov AV, Tikhomirov MA et al. Construction of a thermal protection system made of carbon composite materials with coatings for heat-stressed aircraft engine structures. Trudy MAI. 2015;(84). (In Russ.).
4. Nikitin PV, Shkuratenko AA. Influence of a catalytically active surface on the intensity of convective heat exchange. Trudy MAI. 2016;(88). (In Russ.).
5. Nikitin PV. Heterogeneous flows in innovative technologies. Moscow: Yanus-K; 2010. 243 p. (In Russ.).
6. Shkuratenko AA. Features of thermogasodynamics and heat exchange during the flow of a blunted body by a hypersonic flow. Sbornik tezisov Vserossiiskoi konferentsii molodykh uchenykh-mekhanikov (2017; Sochi). (In Russ.).
7. Nikitin PV, Dikun YuV, Frolov YuP. The method of obtaining coatings. Patent RU 2082823. 17.06.1991. (In Russ.).
8. Reznik SV, Kalinin DYu, Denisov OV et al. Modeling of the temperature state of composite space structures. Trudy 2-oi Mezhdunarodnoi nauchnoi konferentsii «Raketnokosmicheskaya tekhnika: fundamental'nye i prikladnye problemy». (2003; Moscow). (In Russ.).
9. Zubko AA, Kozhemyako AS, Nikitin PV et al. Methods and means of optimizing the physico-chemical properties of carbon-carbon composite materials for thermal protection purposes. Thermal processes in engineering 2022;14(2):67–73. (In Russ.).
10. Shkuratenko A.A. The state and forecast of the development of composite materials based on carbon and ceramic compositions. ХХIV Tupolevskie chteniya (shkola molodykh uchenykh), tezisy dokladov uchastnikov Mezhdunarodnoi molodezhnoi nauchnoi konferentsii, 6 V. 2019. (In Russ.).