VKI Free Online Seminar - Spallation of Carbon Ablators in Arcjet Facility Experiments

You are invited to attend the free online seminar "Spallation of Carbon Ablators in Arcjet Facility Experiments", which will be held by Dr Felix Grigat from the University of Stuttgart on Wednesday 11 December at 3:30 PM.

Abstract:
The harsh aerothermal conditions experienced by spacecraft during atmospheric reentries require the use of thermal protection material. For the extreme heat loads during an extra-orbital reentry ablative materials, consisting of a porous carbon fiber material infiltrated with phenolic resin, are the state-of-the-art. During the reentry the material reduces the heat load on the spacecraft as the ablator is thermally decomposed through a number of strongly coupled processes like pyrolysis, oxidation and sublimation. Spallation is the mostly undesirable phenomenon where solid particles are ejected from ablative materials leaving less mass to be decomposed at the ablator surface. The exact mechanisms and conditions that promote spallation as well as the extent of it are a matter of ongoing research.
Spallation was experimentally investigated at the High Enthalpy Flow Diagnostics Group (HEFDiG) with the goal to understand its causes, its defining characteristics and its effect on the flow field. The experiments were carried out at the plasma wind tunnels of the Institute of Space Systems (IRS) at the University of Stuttgart. This seminar will cover these experimental investigations and the key findings about spallation.

Biography:
Felix Grigat obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering at Braunschweig University of Technology and a Master’s Degree in Space Science and Technology at Luleå University of Technology and Paul-Sabatier University Toulouse. He then completed a PhD at the University of Stuttgart in the field of experimental investigation of atmospheric reentries.

Please check our eligibility criteria before registering.