Integral Textile Ceramic Structures

A new paradigm for ceramic composite structural components enables functionality in heat exchange, transpiration, detailed shape, and thermal strain management that significantly exceeds the prior art. The paradigm is based on the use of three-dimensional fiber reinforcement that is tailored to the specific shape, stress, and thermal requirements of a structural application and therefore generally requires innovative textile methods for each realization. Key features include the attainment of thin skins (less than 1 mm) that are nevertheless structurally robust, transpiration holes formed without cutting fibers, double curvature, compliant integral attachment to other structures that avoids thermal stress buildup, and microcomposite ceramic matrices that minimize spalling and allow the formation of smooth surfaces. All these features can be combined into structures of very varied gross shape and function, using a wide range of materials such as all-oxide systems and SiC and carbon fibers in SiC matrices. Illustrations are drawn from rocket nozzles, thermal protection systems, and gas turbine engines. The new design challenges that arise for such material/structure systems are being met by specialized computational modeling that departs significantly in the representation of materials behavior from that used in conventional finite element methods.