Development and flight qualification of the C–SiC thermal protection systems for the IXV

IXV post-flight reconstruction and analysis of the aerothermodynamic measurements along the rarefied portion of the reentry trajectory

“…The smoothed geometry used for our computations is illustrated in Figure 3. As explained by Buffenoir et al [12], the vehicle's Thermal Protection System (TPS) is Figure 4: IXV TPS components (from [12]).…”

“…In the meantime, several layers of insulation located underneath the skin are in charge of absorbing the heat load to protect the cold structure from high temperatures. The TPS structure is finally anchored to the cold part thanks to an attachment system [12]. The windward comprises a total of 30 panels while the nose assembly is made of a unique monolithic C-SiC part presented in details in [14].…”

Prediction of fatigue limit stress in C/SiC composites: Effect of stochastic load spectrum

“…At 1000°C, the torque was 3758 ± 855 N m and the torsion shear strength was 38.1 ± 8.7 MPa; and the flexural moment was 3127 ± 588 N m and the flexural strength was 63.9 ± 12 MPa. The C/SiC composite have already been applied in hot‐section components in spacecraft thermal protection systems and rocket engines, for example, nose cap, vanes, and nozzles 4–6 …”

Diffusion bonding of the C/SiC ceramic matrix composite

“…Due to the extreme refractoriness of carbon in non-oxidising environments and the very high oxidation resistance of SiC due to the lowest diffusivity of oxygen in SiO 2 , continuous carbon fibre reinforced SiC (C/SiC) ceramic matrix composite is a well known damage tolerant high temperature material for upcoming hypersonic systems. In the recent past, the nose cap and thermal protection system of the Intermediate Experimental Vehicle (IXV), 2,3 the nose cap and the open flap of the European experimental re-entry test bed (EXPERT), 4 truncated conical frame of Unmanned Space Vehicle (USV-I), 5 full vehicle construction of the Sustained Hypersonic Flight Experiment (SHyFE), 6 actively-cooled composite combustion chamber for the LEA experimental vehicle, 7 the leading edges of the Sharp Edge Flight Experiment (SHEFEX) vehicle 8 are made up of C/ SiC composite. Since the C/SiC composite is used in the real structure, the most critical factor is the joining of the structure.…”