Arc-Jet Tests of Carbon–Phenolic-Based Ablative Materials for Spacecraft Heat Shield Applications

We developed and tested two carbon–phenolic-based ablators for future Korean spacecraft heat shield applications. The ablators are developed with two layers: an outer recession layer, fabricated from carbon–phenolic material, and an inner insulating layer, fabricated either from cork or silica–phenolic material. The ablator specimens were tested in a 0.4 MW supersonic arc-jet plasma wind tunnel at heat flux conditions ranging from 6.25 MW/m² to 9.4 MW/m², with either specimen being stationary or transient. Stationary tests were conducted for 50 s each as a preliminary investigation, and the transient tests were conducted for ~110 s each to stimulate a spacecraft’s atmospheric re-entry heat flux trajectory. During the tests, each specimen’s internal temperatures were measured at three locations: 25 mm, 35 mm, and 45 mm from the specimen stagnation point. During the stationary tests, a two-color pyrometer was used to measure specimen stagnation-point temperatures. During the preliminary stationary tests, the silica–phenolic-insulated specimen’s reaction was normal compared to the cork-insulated specimen; hence, only the silica–phenolic-insulated specimens were further subjected to the transient tests. During the transient tests, the silica–phenolic-insulated specimens were stable, and the internal temperatures were lower than 450 K (~180 °C), achieving the main objective of this study.