Ultra-high temperature performance of carbon fiber composite reinforced by HfC nanowires: A promising lightweight composites for aerospace engineering

Lightweight composites with excellent high-temperature performance are attractive as thermal structural components in extreme environment. In general, the excellent properties depend on both their microstructures and intrinsic properties of their counterparts. Herein, we report a lightweight carbon fiber composites reinforced by hafnium carbide nanowires (HfC_NWs) and the corresponding high temperature performance. The evolution of the microstructures and compositions after treated at high temperature are analyzed. As suggested from the results, with the presence of HfC_NWs, the interlaminar shearing strength (ILSS), out-of plane compression strength (OCS) and flexural strength (FS) increased by 81.36%, 87.96% and 78.38%, respectively. Although the mechanical performance deteriorated after treated at high temperatures, the mechanical strength retention rate (MSR) of HfC_NWs reinforced C/C (HfC_NWs-C/C) composites is superior to that of pure C/C composites. Besides, the excellent ablative resistance of HfC_NWs-C/C composites provide potential possibility to be applied in extreme conditions.