Seminar on Ceramic Matrix Composite (CMC) Thermal Protection Systems (TPS) and Hot Structures for Hypersonic Vehicles
Abstract: Thermal protection systems (TPS) and hot structures are required for a range of hypersonic vehicles ranging from ballistic reentry to hypersonic cruise vehicles, both within Earth’s atmosphere and non-Earth atmospheres. The focus of this seminar is on air breathing hypersonic vehicles in the Earth's atmosphere. This includes single-stage to orbit (SSTO), two-stage to orbit (TSTO) accelerators, access to space vehicles, and hypersonic cruise vehicles. This seminar will start out with a brief discussion of aerodynamic heating and thermal management techniques to address the high heating, followed by an overview of TPS for rocket-launched and air-breathing vehicles. The argument is presented that as we move from rocket-based vehicles to air-breathing vehicles, we need to move away from the “insulated airplane” approach used on the Space Shuttle Orbiter to a wide range of TPS and hot structure approaches. The primary portion of the paper will discuss issues and design options for CMC TPS and hot structure components, including leading edges, acreage TPS, and control surfaces. The current state-of-the-art will be briefly discussed for some of the components. The two primary technical challenges impacting the use of CMC TPS and hot structures for hypersonic vehicles are environmental durability and fabrication, and will be discussed briefly.
Biography: Dr. David Glass received his undergraduate degree from Wake Forest University and his PhD in mechanical engineering from North Carolina State University. He works in the area of high temperature structures and materials at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Virginia. Dr. Glass previously led the Airframe technology development in NASA’s 3rd Gen and Next Generation Launch Technology programs. He also led the government team overseeing the development of the Hyper-X Mach 10 leading edges that successfully flew in November 2004.
Notice: This event is open to public in respect with the VKI eligibility criteria.
Event Information
Event Date | 16-09-2022 2:00 pm |
Event End Date | 16-09-2022 3:00 pm |
Cut off date | 16-09-2022 11:00 am |
Location | von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics |