Effect of SiC/ZrC ratio on the mechanical and ablation properties of C/C-SiC-ZrC composites

The effect of SiC/ZrC weight ratio on the mechanical and ablation properties of carbon/carbon composites modified by SiC nanowires reinforced SiC-ZrC ceramics (C/C-SiC-ZrC) was studied. Results showed that C/C-SiC-ZrC composites with a SiC/ZrC ratio of 1:1.5 exhibited good mechanical and ablation properties. The flexural strength and modulus were 201 ± 20 MPa and 18 ± 1 GPa, respectively. After ablation for 120 s, the linear and the mass ablation rate were 0.012 mm/s and 0.0019 g/s. The good performance is attributed to a higher density, the reinforcing effect of SiC nanowires and the proper SiC/ZrC ratio.