Preparation and ablation resistance of ZrC nanowires-reinforced CVD-ZrC coating on sharp leading edge C/C composites

To improve the ablation resistance of sharp leading edge (SLE) C/C composites, the ZrC nanowires reinforced ZrC coating (ZrC-ZrCnws) was prepared by two-step CVD method. The preparation of ZrC nanowires and the microstructure, bonding strength, as well as ablation resistance of the ZrC-ZrCnws coating were studied. After the severe ablation, the SLE sample with ZrC-ZrCnws coating presented an excellent ablation resistance with the mass and linear ablation rates of only 0.59 & PLUSMN; 0.06 mg/s and-0.92 & PLUSMN; 0.09 mu m/s, respectively. Such good ablation resistance was attributed to the incorporation of ZrC nanowires, which can inhibit the cracking of coating and form ZrO2 rod-like structures after oxidation, supporting the oxide layer to resist flame scouring.