Experimental investigation on mechanical property of an integrated thermal protection structure

A new Integrated Thermal Protection Structure (ITPS) was prepared for flight vehicles to provide thermal protection as well as structural load bearing capabilities. Experiments were carried out to investigate mechanical properties of the ITPS, including flatwise tension, flatwise compression, edgewise compression and shear test. It is found that the stitched structure can overcome the insulation’s shortcomings: low strength and modulus. Inner configurations of the ITPS were investigated by X-ray computed tomography system and Scanning Electron Microscope analysis. Mechanical modelling was conducted to investigate the contribution of panel, core and stitch to the load-bearing capability of the ITPS.