Materials Science Ph.D. student Emily Anne Vargas was awarded 1st Place for her Technical Poster titled “Preform Processing of Oxide-Oxide Ceramic Matrix Composites (Ox-Ox CMCs)” at the National Space & Missile Materials Symposium + Commercial and Government Responsive Access to Space Technology Exchange (NSMMS + CRASTE) Joint Symposia in Madison, WI June 24-27th, 2024. Emily Anne represented the University of Southern California and the M.C. Gill Composites Center (Director and PI Dr. Steve Nutt).
Emily Anne’s presentation showcased how process-structure relationships for ox-ox CMCs can be enhanced to improve composite performance in high temperature environments found in aerospace and space applications. More specifically, her work investigates the effects of sintering parameters (temperature and time) on porosity, interface microstructure, and phase distribution in Al2O3 fiber-Al2O3/SiO2 CMCs produced by pressureless sintering for applications such as engine exhaust mixers, heat shields for rockets, and rocket nozzles. This work is imperative towards enhancing the scalability and cost of the fabrication process while minimizing environmental impact and hazards by using aqueous slurry infiltrated ox-ox prepregs. Other efforts are focusing on ox-ox CMC slurry development and implementing various sintering approaches in the fabrication process.
This ongoing research is supported by Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, Axiom Materials, The National Science Foundation, The Air Force Research Laboratory, 3M, and Aerospace Corporation.
