Thermal Testing of the Sharp Leading Edge of SHEFEXII

Abstract

The octahedral sharp leading edge of SHEFEXII is made from C/C-SiC fiber reinforced ceramic. It is instrumented by three thermocouples and eight pressure ports. A duplicate was ground-tested in arc-heated wind tunnel L3K. Transient thermal response of the material to the load was also determined by the heat-balance method HEATS and compared to the measurement data. During ground-testing, the hermocouples measured 1179°C, whereas the maximum temperature recorded during flight was measured at 30km altitude with 848°C. The simulated data corresponds well to both thermocouple data and data from an external infrared camera. During ground-testing, the very tip of the leading edge reaches 1635°C. The nose was in good order after ground testing.