Ablation behaviors of SiC nanowire-reinforced ZrC-SiC coating-matrix integrated C/C composites with different ratios of precursors

A novel method to prepare a coating on the C/C composite is discussed. The precursor infiltration pyrolysis method is usually applied to prepare interior ceramic matrix, thus SiC nanowires that can absorb the surficial precursor are added to prepare surficial ceramics. The method accomplishes the integration of the coating and the matrix so that no coating peels off after ablation. Moreover, the material with a ZrC/SiC precursor ratio of 5:1 (Z5S1), whose mass and linear rates are 0.47 mg/s and 0.95 µm/s, exhibits the highest overall resistance to ablation. The results demonstrate that higher ZrC content and more uniform phase distribution are beneficial to keep ZrO₂ in solid and form a denser and firmer oxide layer, which is more effective in improving the ablation resistance of the C/C composite.