Thermal Protection Performance of Metallic Honeycomb Core Panel Structures in Non-Steady Thermal Environments

Abstract

The thermal protection characteristics of metallic honeycomb core panel structures in high-temperature environments are important parameters for the structure design of thermal protection for high-speed aircraft. A self-developed transient aerodynamic thermal simulation system for high-speed aircraft is used to test the thermal protection performance of metallic honeycomb core panels in a dynamic high-temperature environment at temperatures up to 950°C. The heat transfer characteristics of metallic honeycomb core panels in transient and steady states and the heat shield effects at various temperatures are determined. By considering the internal radiation of honeycomb core panels as well as the heat transfer between a metal structure and air within a honeycomb core cavity, three-dimensional finite element models are established for numerical simulations and computations of the thermal protection properties of metallic honeycomb core panels. The experimental results agree well with the numerical simulations. The credibility and effectiveness of the numerical simulation are verified. These results provide a solid foundation for replacement of expensive thermal simulations with numerical simulations to a certain extent. Several issues are discussed, such as the changes in the heat shield efficiency of the metallic honeycomb core panel in a complex dynamic high-temperature environment, the relevance of thermal protection efficiency, the rate of heating surface temperature change, and the selection of the metal surface emissivity. These findings offer important reference values for research in metal honeycomb thermal protection structures of high-speed aircraft.