Research Projects

special Thermal Protection systems (TPs) are used to protect rocket hardware and re-entry capsules from extreme thermal environments. Fiber reinforced ablative composites are cost-effective and well-proven candidates for such applications. However, processing, characterization, and qualification of ablatives are complex and involve long cycle times. Ablative composites must withstand temperatures of 2500ºC due to high heat flux on the external surface of space vehicles. Researchers have worked on single-hybrid nano-filled ablative composites to enhance properties, but few have reported on channeling nano-fillers synergic effect to targeted enhanced properties with controllable ablation phenomena. To address these limitations, modelling and simulation can be a viable option. This proposal aims to develop process models and simulation environments predicting synergic effects to control ablation processes. Researchers are working on incorporating hybrid fillers to enhance thermal erosion properties under aerodynamic loading. However, there are no simulation packages reporting synergistic ablation behavior due to hybrid fillers-composite ablators. Research on combinatorial approaches to predict synergistic ablation behavior through experimentations and process model simulations will help channelize use of synergic effects in targeted thermal erosion rates via controllable ablative mechanisms with enhanced properties.