Thermophysical Analysis of High Modulus Composite Materials for Space Vehicles

Abstract

High modulus composite materials are used extensively in aerospace vehicles mainly for the purpose of increasing strength and reducing weight. However, thermal properties have become essential design information with the use of composite materials in the thermal design of spacecraft and spacecraft electronics packages. This is because the localized heat from closely packed devices can lead to functional failure of the aerospace system unless the heat is dissipated.In this study, thermal responses of high modulus advanced materials are considered for aerospace thermal design. The advanced composite material is composed of a continuous high modulus pitch based fiber and epoxy resin. In order to compare this advanced composite material with conventional aerospace composite materials, the thermophysical analysis of both materials was performed. The results include thermal conductivity measurements of composite materials and various thermal analytical techniques with DSC, TGA, TMA and DMA.