A wide range of high-temperature materials are being studied using our 50 kW ICP Torch. The materials being tested have potential application in the thermal protection systems for hypersonic vehicles that are being developed by the U.S. Army. The materials being tested include various polymer matrix composites as well as newly-developed 3D-printed materials. Under this project, the ICP Torch is being modified in two ways to achieve a greater range of conditions. The first modification is to add a nozzle that accelerates and focuses the plasma to achieve higher heat fluxes, but over a smaller area. The second modification is to exhaust the torch through a nozzle into a vacuum tank to achieve a hypersonic hot-air plume.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Lab personnel: John Murray, Chris Madden, Stewart McDougall, Mitchell van der Woude
Collaborators: Prof. Philip Varghese, Dr. Joe Koo, Prof. Eric Fahrenthold, Prof. Fabrizio Bisetti
Sponsor: Army Futures Command
___________________________________________________________________________________________