3388. Incorporating Weight-Saving Thermally Insulated Multifunctional Structures (TIMS) into Future Fast Air Vehicle Designs

Paper

Abstract

For some proposed flight vehicles experiencing significant external heating, the use of lower conductivity structural assemblies will translate into lighter structures. In certain cases, such lower conductivity structures are not just preferred, they actually represent enabling technology. In these cases, traditional structural solutions are likely to either be too heavy or simply unable to manage the heat loading effectively. Or both. Whether one intends to fly at supersonic (i.e., Mach 2-5), hypersonic (i.e., Mach 5+), or re-entry (e.g., Mach 7 boosters and Mach 25+ atmospheric re-entry vehicles) speeds, intermittently or continuously, at elevated altitudes or low, vehicle outer moldlines (OML) will experience significant external aerodynamic and aerothermodynamic heating. This fact has direct and significant implications for vehicle design, weight, cost, and performance. Short of inventing specific new materials that effectively and simultaneously perform all required structural and thermal functions (not likely any time soon), innovative multi-functional structures will be required. Successful such multifunctional structures will effectively combine non-structural, low- conductivity materials with relatively high conductivity durable and damage tolerant structural materials that best satisfy a host of system requirements. For many future DoD (Department of Defense) and NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) vehicles, one critical discriminator among competing designs will certainly be system weight. As such, the development of improved thermally insulated multifunctional structures will certainly play a vital role.