Development of Non-Ablative Lightweight Thermal Protection System for Planetary Exploration and Crew Space Transportation System

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24560982
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Aerospace engineering
• Research Institution: Japan Aerospace EXploration Agency
• Principal Investigator: Suzuki Toshiyuki 国立研究開発法人宇宙航空研究開発機構, 研究開発部門, 主任研究員 (20392839)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): FUJITA Kazuhisa 宇宙航空研究開発機構, 研究開発部門, 主幹研究開発員 (90281584) ; AOKI Takuya 宇宙航空研究開発機構, 研究開発部門, 主任研究開発員 (40358635)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: 非アブレーション / 熱防御システム

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this study, we propose the concept of a nonablative lightweight thermal protection system (NALT) for a Mars exploration mission currently under investigation in Japan. The NALT consists of a carbon/carbon (C/C) composite skin, insulator tiles, and a honeycomb sandwich panel. We obtained the basic thermal characteristics of the NALT by conducting heating tests in high-enthalpy facilities. We measured the thermal conductivity values of the insulator tiles as well as the emissivity values of the C/C skin to develop a numerical analysis code for predicting NALT’s thermal performance in flight environments. Finally, we developed a breadboard model of a 600-mm diameter NALT aeroshell and qualified this model through vibration and thermal vacuum tests.

Free Research Field

高温空気力学，高速空気力学，数値流体力学，熱防御システム