At 12:41 on the 23rd, the "Tianwen-1" probe, which undertook China`s first Mars exploration mission, was successfully launched at the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan. This is not only China`s first fully autonomous Mars exploration mission, but also China`s deep space field. A brand new milestone in it. So, behind the successful launch of the "Tianwen-1" detector, what high-performance materials played an important role?
The cloak of escort: heat-resistant composite material
The Institute of Aerospace Materials and Technology has developed three types of heat-resistant composite materials based on the shape of the detector, the aerodynamic load on different parts and the heat flux density. They used ultra-light honeycomb reinforced low-density ablation and heat-proof materials for the Mars probe on the outsole structure and the corners of the outsole that are the most aerodynamically heated; used at the upper and lower edges and structural support parts that need to maintain the overall shape of the probe Continuous fiber-reinforced medium-density heat-resistant material is used; heat-resistant coating material is used for the back cover part where the aerodynamic heating is relatively gentle.
Honeycomb reinforced low-density ablation and heat-proof materials are commonly used materials for space detectors. The new ultra-lightweight honeycomb reinforced low-density ablation heat-proof material is used on the Mars rover. This material has higher strength and lower density. It can be optimized according to the aerodynamic load distribution, and it can be lighter while ensuring that the detector can withstand more severe aerodynamic loads. The integrated molding technology makes the entire probe outsole structure have a very good integrity, ensuring its structural stability to withstand high and low temperature alternations during the process of running to Mars.
The mass of the "Tianwen No. 1" detector cannot be too large, which means that the quality of the heat-resistant structure and materials needs to be compressed as much as possible. Here is where continuous fiber reinforced medium-density heat-resistant materials come in. The material is mainly used as the hatch cover, edge sealing ring, embedded parts, screw plug and other parts of the heat-proof structure of the detector outsole and back cover. It has higher strength than low-density materials, and takes into account ablation resistance and bearing capacity. The material uses the SPQ fiber cloth reinforcement system composed of ternary long fibers, and introduces lightweight fillers into the continuous fiber reinforced prepreg to realize the lightweight of the continuous fiber reinforced ablation and heat protection material.
Unlike the probe's outsole facing the Martian atmosphere directly, the back cover structure is on the side of the lander, and the heat flow is relatively lower. The ultra-low-density heat-resistant coating material developed by the Institute of Aerospace Materials and Technology has basic thermophysical properties reaching the international advanced level. This material not only has excellent thermal insulation properties, but also plays an important role in the weight reduction of the lander.
The structural thermal matching between the above materials should also be considered. The three kinds of heat-proof materials need to maintain good structural thermal matching and integrity with the internal structure of the detector. Through engineering calculations, numerical simulations and necessary ground tests, the researchers analyzed the structural changes of these three materials in extremely low temperature and high and low temperature alternating space environments, and then optimized and corrected them based on the experimental results to ensure the matching of the three materials And integrity, so that they can "cooperate" in the boundless space, and escort the detectors to arrive safely and land smoothly.
The production of thermal insulation materials has been strongly supported by materials technology companies. In the process of cooperating with the development of China`s first Mars rover, HNLY Advanced Materials Technology Group has strengthened research and development, strengthened production process control, and increased the frequency of quality control testing to ensure product quality in accordance with specific indicators such as lighter materials and more stable performance required by the project. Strictly control at 6~7 kg/m3, which reduces the weight by 30% compared with conventional products. The material's sound absorption, heat insulation, porosity and other indicators are all superior to the specified standards. The reliability of performance and the professionalism of application support have been recognized by the partner China Southern Airlines Super Insulation Material Laboratory and aerospace equipment contractors. Provide guarantee for the partner to further modify the product, reduce the thermal expansion coefficient of the material, and improve the dimensional stability in a wide temperature range.
About HNLY Advanced Materials Technology Group
HNLY Advanced Materials Technology Group is a listed company invested by the world's top 500 HNNY Energy and Chemical Group. It was listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in 2018.
HNLY has specialized in research and development since 2004, and has produced special lightweight and high-tech foam materials such as amine-based sound-absorbing and heat-insulating cotton and polyimide special foam, breaking the technological monopoly of multinational companies in this field for a long time. There are two existing production lines, the core equipment is imported from Germany, the annual production capacity is 150,000 cubic meters, and it has completely independent intellectual property rights. It has successively won the provincial science and technology progress award and a number of provincial science and technology achievement awards. A "Provincial Noise Control Technology Engineering Research Center" has been built.
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Amine-based heat-insulating sound-absorbing cotton and polyimide special foam have excellent sound absorption, flame retardancy, heat insulation, humidity and heat stability, sanitary safety, and good secondary processing properties. These characteristics make the product widely used in the construction industry, industry, vehicle manufacturing, factory construction, thermal engineering, equipment installations, air conditioning systems, aerospace and navigation fields, electronic products, daily cleaning and other fields.