Ceramic Foam Processing

In conjunction with Pratt & Whitney, students at the University of Connecticut, Storrs, have fabricated fibrous ceramic foams composed of hollow SiC fibres for high-temperature composite applications. The foams were generated by a chemical vapour infiltration (CVI) process into a low-cost graphite felt. Oxidation of the graphite core produced foams consisting of hollow silicon carbide tubules. These foams currently are being used as a lightweight core for high-temperature sandwich structure composites. The processing included both polymer impregnation pyrolysis and CVI. Further investigation includes improving the joining of the ceramic foam core to the CMC laminates. For more information email: kevin.arpin@huskymail.uconn.edu