Ti3AlC2-MoSi2-SiB6 and Ni Coating Synergistic Reinforced Ceramizable Composite With Excellent Oxidation Resistance, Dimensional Stability and Reusability

Reusable hypersonic vehicles require large area thermal protection materials with high resistance to oxidation corrosion. Conventional carbon fiber/phenolic resin composites suffer from poor oxidation corrosion resistance and are limited to single use. Here we develop a novel ceramizable composite consisting of Ti 3 AlC 2 -MoSi 2 -SiB 6 modified Ni coated carbon fiber reinforced boron phenolic resin. After 1 to 15 thermal cycles at 1200°C for 15 min each, the composite shows excellent dimensional stability. The changes in mass, thickness, and density after 15 cycles are all within 7% of the initial heat-treated sample. Flexural strength reaches 28.0 MPa after 10 cycles and remains 19.4 MPa after 15 cycles. The superior oxidation corrosion resistance arises from the synergistic effects of oxygen consumption, oxygen barrier, and self-healing functions provided by the ceramizable fillers and Ni coating. In situ formed ceramic phases preserve the fiber skeleton integrity. Ni catalyzes pyrolytic carbon (PyC) graphitization and together with ceramization products forms a dense multiphase ceramic layer that protects against oxidative attack. These synergistic effects endow the composite with outstanding reusable performance for hypersonic vehicle applications. Highlights A novel reusable ceramizable composite is fabricated by a dual-modification synergistic reinforced strategy involving ceramizable fillers and fiber coatings. It exhibits satisfactory oxidation resistance, dimensional stability, and reusability. The flexural strength after 10 thermal cycles reaches 28.0 MPa.