Applications of carbon-carbon composites to an engine for a future space vehicle

Feasibility studies were carried out aiming at the application of carbon/carbon (C/C) composites to a turbine disk, heat exchangers, and a plug nozzle for an engine intended for use in a future reusable space vehicle. In these applications, the maximum temperature was estimated to be about 1500°C. In order to withstand this high temperature, attempts were made to utilize three-dimensionally reinforced C/C composites. The most serious problem encountered in the application of C/Cs to the turbine disk was the loss of fragments of the composite located near the outer periphery due to strong centrifugal force, which resulted in severe vibration due to rotational imbalance. The heat exchangers and plug nozzle have complex shapes in order to realize a large heat exchanging area. Joined structures were explored for these components. The principal effort in these applications has been placed on finding structures requiring low joining strength and developing materials with low gas leakage.