Non-contact Creep-Resistance Measurement for Ultra-High-Temperature Materials

摘要

Continuing pressures for higher performance and efficiency in propulsion are driving ever more demanding needs for high-temperature materials. For applications in rocketry, the combination of high stresses and high temperatures make the characterization of creep properties very important. Creep is even more important in the turbomachinery, where a long service life is an additional constraint. Conventional techniques for measuring creep are limited to about 1,700℃, so new technique is required for higher temperatures. This technique is based on electrostatic levitation (ESL) of a spherical sample, which is rotated quickly enough to cause creep deformation by centrifugal acceleration. Creep of samples has been demonstrated at up to 2,300℃ in the ESL facility at NASA MSFC, while ESL itself has been applied at over 3,000℃ and has no theoretical maximum temperature.