Net shape fabrication of high temperature materials for rocket engine components

Synthesis, Microstructural Characterization, and Mechanical Property Evaluation of Vacuum Plasma Sprayed Tantalum Carbide

“…Hence, ceramics in groups IV and V such as HfC, VC, NbC, TiC, and TaC are the contesting materials as they posses high melting point (close to 4000°C), high oxidation resistance, excellent thermal shock resistance, low coefficient of thermal expansion, low vapor pressure at elevated temperatures, and good creep and fatigue properties 1,2 . Therefore, TaC stands as a candidate material for next generation thermal heat protection, space aircrafts, automotive wear resistant liners, and propulsion‐exposed components, etc 2–4 …”

“…Vacuum plasma spray formed tantalum carbide (TaC) provides an alternative to overcome fabrication hurdle of high melting point materials and their brittleness. Plasma plume reaches temperatures in excess of 10 000 K and impacts the powders in molten or semi‐molten states generating typical mechanically bonded layered structure 4,6,7 . It is important to emphasize that much of the literature research material for the applications of TaC, because of military applications, is sparingly available 4,8,9 .…”

Experimental set up for characterization of carbide-based materials in propulsion environment

“…The materials used for these applications include refractory metals, refractory-metal carbides, graphite, ceramics and fiber-reinforced plastics. 1,2 Certain classes of materials demonstrated superior performances under specific operating conditions but the choice depends on the specific application. For instance, fully densified refractory-metal nozzles generally are more resistant to erosion and thermal-stress cracking than the other materials.…”

An experimental and computational methodology for near net shape fabrication of thin walled ceramic structures by plasma spray forming

“…Radially symmetric, free-standing yttria stabilized zirconia conical structures of 1.2 mm thickness (Fogarassy et al, 2004) and thin walled tungsten (W) nozzle liner and non-eroding rhenium (Re) throat on reusable graphite mandrel (Balani et al, 2006) were manufactured using PSF technique. Free standing HfC rings of 12 mm diameter , thin walled zero erosion refractory metal/ceramic nozzles inserts for solid rocket propulsion (Hickman et al, 2001) and lightweight space based X-ray optics have also been formed by plasma spray forming.…”