Low-temperature preparation of C/C-W-Cu composites with enhanced particle impact and ablation resistance

Herein, C/C-W-Cu composites were innovatively developed by a molten salt assisted reactive infiltration method, with the preparation temperature of only 1300 ℃, far lower than the traditional infiltration temperatures. The as-prepared C/C-W-Cu composites exhibited better particle erosion and high-temperature ablation resistance than C/C composites, with a linear variation rate decrease of 99.5 % and 80.3 % under particle impact (70 m/s, 10 s) and oxyacetylene ablation (2.4 MW/m², 120 s) conditions, respectively. The improved protection performance can be attributed to the synergistic effects of ductile deformation of the surface W-Cu metal layer and transpiration cooling of the filled Cu phase, which prevents serious carbon fiber damage and ensures a low response of surface ablation temperature (∼1400 ℃).