Award

The ACF team is focused on developing and deploying a manufacturing process in which SiC/C fibers are fabricated into yarns capable of integration into traditional weaving or braiding systems used to produce high strength, high temperature ceramic matrix composites (CMCs). Yarns of short discontinuous SiC/C fibers originating from Stretch Broken Carbon Fibers (SBCF) will be key to this effort. ACF’s unique conversion process demonstrated in Phase I is not limited to SiC/C materials and is projected to accommodate other high temperature materials such as ZrC/C and Ta/C fibers and other base carbon fibers (PAN, Pitch, CNT) available from different source (see 3.0 Letters of Support).  Using ACF’s conversion process demonstrated in Phase I, the manufactured yarn will have sufficient strength to interface with various weaving and braiding processes used in the construction of 2D, 3D and the more complex 4D CMC preforms and textiles. In addition, ACF’s unique MC/C yarns also incorporate a unique  intrinsic interfacial debond layer that eliminates the costly interfacial coating process thereby allowing direct ceramic yarn fiber manufacturing use in composite materials. Composite materials can also include various carbides and boride matrix composite ceramics and fiber use  metals, i.e.  aluminum and titanium.  ACF’s four major PII objectives are: (1) Produce a prototype system capable of kilograms / hour for SiC/C yarn with scaled improvements to include the manufacture of advanced ZrC/C and TaC/C based yarns for UHT applications; (2) Iterate/refine the manufacturing process to improve efficiency and yarn quality while concurrently expanding the lab scale capability to make specialty SiC/C yarns with different strength, thermal, modulus and electrical properties; (3) Conduct trial runs designed to connect fiber characteristics with the manufacturing process and the through mechanical testing, imaging, and analysis with our team members MSU (test & analysis) and CPP (marine & HT corrosion); and, (4) Provide specific SiC/C yarns in kilogram spools to SSP Navy for testing and evaluation of the processes. As portions of this effort may be classified, all work shall be conducted under SSP guidance. ACF Phase II includes a 24-month (BASE – 18 month and OPTION 6-month.)