Ablation and mechanical properties of ZrC-reinforced PBI resin matrix composites

Abstract

With the rapid development of laser technology, there is an increasing demand for laser protective materials. Thus, the mechanical and ablation properties of composite materials need to be further enhanced. Herein, solution impregnation and hot-press molding were used to develop composites containing various mass ratios of ZrC to polybenzimidazole (PBI) resin (thickness = 3 mm) for laser ablation applications. The results showed that adding short carbon fiber (SCF) to ZrC/PBI composites improves the ablation and mechanical properties. The ZrC/PBI/SCF composites were ablated using a high-energy continuous laser (7 kW cm−2), and the composites did not burn through. The composites did not peel off or split as the ablation process progressed. With the increase in the ZrC content in the composites, dense oxide layers are formed, enhancing the ablation properties of the composites. The ZrC/PBI/SCF composite (the ZrC/PBI mass ratio = 2:1) exhibited the lowest mass loss (2.24%), mass ablation rate (0.119 mg s−1) and linear ablation rate (0.032 mm s−1). This indicates that ZrC/PBI/SCF composites can be used as protective materials in high-energy continuous laser applications.