Researchers with the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Sierra Space Corporation have developed a new silicon-carbide-based thermal protection system, or TPS, for reusable commercial spacecraft. The TPS is composed of a tile face made from advanced materials and an insulative tile backing that, when installed on a space vehicle, will be able to withstand multiple launches and the extremely high temperatures of atmospheric re-entries over short periods of time.
The TPS composite material merges the high temperature and corrosion stability properties of silicon carbide with the high strength and high temperature consistency of carbon fiber. The two materials are combined into a low-density, low-profile composite thermal barrier that is critical for providing both insulative protection and stable flight dynamics.
The team leveraged 30 years of lessons learned from NASA’s Space Shuttle program to develop the new TPS. First used in 1981, the NASA shuttle orbiter’s TPS is still considered state-of-the-art thermal protection technology for space vehicles. The design called for each shuttle to be fitted with more than 24,000, six-inch by six-inch silica-fiber thermal barrier tiles – every piece custom made to fit an exact location on the surface of the lower portion of the spacecraft. The tiles were formed in a labor-intensive process by pouring water and chemicals into a mold and sintering the mixture at a temperature of up to 2,350 degrees Celsius to create the final shape. Technicians used a special adhesive to attach the individual tiles to the outer skin of each orbiter.
ORNL and Sierra Space have completed the first material-development phase of the project and have jointly applied to patent the new material. The second phase of the project will focus on developing an enhanced manufacturing process that will produce the insulative tile backing.
Sierra Space plans to use the new TPS on the Sierra Space Dream Chaser, the first-ever winged commercial spaceplane. The multi-mission spaceplane fleet is designed to transport crew and cargo to low-Earth orbit. The company plans to use the new TPS on the DC100 Dream Chaser that will carry critical supplies and science experiments to and from the International Space Station under a NASA Commercial Resupply Service contract.
TPS research is being performed at DOE’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility at ORNL. The MDF, supported by DOE’s Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office, is a nationwide consortium of collaborators working with ORNL to innovate, inspire, and catalyze the transformation of U.S. manufacturing.
