Simulation of ablation in composites via an interface tracking method

This work is an extension of a previous work where the two-dimensional computational simulation of the ablative process in composites for rocket thermal protection systems was presented. The numerical method employs an interface tracking method to simulate the moving front problem that appears in ablation. Two moving fronts were considered, the char layer formation and the pyrolysis front. A complementary model that considers temperature dependence for the reaction rate in the pyrolysis is also tested. The results are compared with some experimental data for quartz-phenolic and carbon-phenolic resin samples exposed to a plasma jet, showing a much better agreement than the traditional one-front mode, allowing a more accurate dimensioning of rocket thermal protection systems.