In Situ Ceramization of Nanoscale Interface Enables Aerogel with Thermal Protection at 1950 °C

Abstract

Conventional carbon fiber felt-reinforced aerogel composites are often used as lightweight thermal protection systems (TPSs) for aerospace craft. However, due to their poor oxidation resistance, they have gradually failed to handle increasingly harsh thermal environments. In this work, a nanoscale composite coating interface of SiC-ZrC ceramic precursor is first constructed on the fiber surface. Subsequently, using the coated fiber felt as a three-dimensional skeleton and through polymerization-induced phase separation, an aerogel composite with excellent thermal protection in extreme thermal environments is prepared. Owing to the in situ ceramization of this nanoscale interface at ultrahigh temperatures, the back temperature of the 12 mm thick aerogel is only 147 °C after exposure to an oxyacetylene flame at 1950 °C for 70 s. Meanwhile, the central region of the aerogel recedes by only 7%. Not only does this work provide a way to enhance aerogels by constructing a self-ceramizable nanoscale interface it is also expected that the developed aerogel composite can be applied in the ultrahigh-temperature thermal protection of future aerospace craft.

Multifunctional Integrated Organic–Inorganic-Metal Hybrid Aerogel for Excellent Thermal Insulation and Electromagnetic Shielding Performance

“…As an advanced thermal protection material, aerogel's thermal insulation and ablative resistance performances are of vital importance [23][24][25][26]. Specifically, thermal stability is a significant factor for ablative resistance [27][28][29][30][31].…”

Corrosion-Resistant Organic Superamphiphobic Coatings

“…Hou et al [3] demonstrated that anticorrosive coatings constitute the largest proportion (66.15%) of direct corrosion costs. Currently, the anticorrosive coatings in use include (1) graphene coatings [4][5][6] are primarily used on metal substrates in marine environments or those exposed to high concentrations of chloride ions [7,8]; (2) epoxy coatings [9][10][11] are mainly applied to metal substrates in industrial warehouses with lower protection needs [12]; (3) polyurethane coatings [13][14][15], due to their excellent stress-strain properties, are preferred for metal substrates in scratchprone environments [16,17]; (4) ceramic coatings [18][19][20], known for their high-temperature resistance, are primarily used on aerospace component surfaces [21,22]; and (5) superamphiphobic coatings [23,24], which act as active protective layers on substrates and can function in a variety of complex environments [25][26][27].…”