Military Composites

Products in defense applications are often exposed to harsh conditions, including extreme temperatures, strong chemicals, and high or low pressures. As such, defense products must meet strict standards to ensure their safety, reliability, and quality in demanding environments. Non-compliant products pose a risk of failure, which could have catastrophic damages.

Military Composites With Carbon-Carbon / CVI Densification

Carbon-carbon composites are well-known for their exceptional material properties, making them an ideal choice for critical components. These composites are created using chemical vapor infiltration (CVI) combined with induction heating. The CVI process facilitates more precise control over the deposition of carbon-rich materials, resulting in high-strength, heat-resistant, and lightweight components that are well-suited for harsh or demanding environments.

Common applications of carbon-carbon composites include:

Heat-shielding Systems for Spacecraft Heat-shielding systems for spacecraft
Combustion Chambers and Other Types of High-temperature Systems Combustion chambers and other types of high-temperature systems
Hypersonic Vehicles Hypersonic vehicles

Tex Tech Industries can also carbonize preforms for use in hypersonic applications. We do so using large vacuum furnaces with a usable part height of 81″ and a diameter of 76″. We also offer Chemical Vapor Infiltration treatments using our vacuum furnaces, which are capable of reaching temperatures up to 4,300 °F during heat treatment.

Military Composites for Thermal Protection Systems (TPS)

Thermal protection systems (TPS) are applied to the external structures of vehicles or aircraft to maintain temperature control. These materials are selected due to their high-temperature stability and weight efficiency. Thermal protection systems limit heat conduction within spacecraft during atmospheric reentry and also protect airframes and systems from the freezing temperatures of deep space.

Common TPS materials include:

Stabilized Ablative Insulation Felt (SAIF)

This conformable TPS material features thermally resistant fibers and coatings for use on spacecraft exteriors. The ablative surface coating eliminates the need for painting, and the material can be customized to meet your particular insulative, density, and optical requirements. These materials come in tiles based on the dimensional requirements of each application.

Felt Reusable Surface Insulation (FRSI)

This low-temperature material is ideal for applications requiring insulation up to 600 °F. FRSI materials come in various thicknesses, each offering different performance levels relative to the expected thermal loads.

Strain Isolation Pads (SIP)

Strain isolation pads are situated between an aircraft’s TPS system and fuselage. They work to absorb the strain caused by varying levels of thermal expansion between the aircraft’s aluminum structure and TPS tiles.

Precursor Billets

Precursor Billets from Tex Tech Industries are made from rayon and oxidized polyacrylonitrile. These billets can be carbonized and infused with resin to create composite tiles. Depending on your needs, our precursor billets are available in thicknesses ranging from 1.5″ and 4″ with widths up to 90″.

Amorphous Silica Felt

We offer customized amorphous silica felt materials in three temperature grades to meet different application requirements: 900 °C, 1,100 °C, and 1,200 °C.

Military Composites: Rayon Carbon

Rayon-based carbon fabric offers superior quality and temperature resistance for use in carbon cloth polymer composites, such as phenolic resin-based materials. These composites play a critical role in protecting structural components on satellites, space shuttles, and rockets from extreme heat. Because they function as ablative materials, they are important in ensuring the safe operation of spacecraft and aircraft.
  • Material Benefits

    Material Benefits

    These high performance materials offer several key benefits, including:

    • Insulative
    • The ability to withstand extreme temperatures
    • Lightweight
    • Desirable mechanical properties
    • Exceptional ablative behavior
    • High purity and quality
  • High-Temperature Applications

    High-Temperature Applications

    Carbonized rayon fabric is ideal for demanding high-temperature ablative applications, including:

    • Solid rocket throats
    • Rocket nozzles
    • Combustion chambers
    • Applications requiring heat shields for extreme temperatures

    At Tex Tech Industries, we have the resources to manufacture high-purity heat shields for reentry. We can also produce wrapped finished components for defense-related reentry heat shields, such as those for missiles.

Military Composites: Types of Coatings

Our polymer coating technology capabilities are superior when paired with advanced processing and extensive textile knowledge. This allows us to deliver end-to-end custom solutions for our clients in the defense industry.

At Tex Tech, we offer a wide range of polymer coating material options, including:

  • Acrylic
  • Polyurethane
  • PVC
  • Rubber (natural, nitrile, chloroprene, EPDM, fluoroelastomer)
  • Silicone

We also provide coatings for the following textiles up to 100″ in width:

Our diverse variety of polymer coating systems rounds out our capabilities and offerings. These systems can apply several coats in one pass as well as perform surface enhancements upon request. We can apply aqueous, solvent, and 100% solid coatings using methods such as:

  • Adhesive lamination
  • Direct (knife over roll, knife over table, knife over air)
  • Heat lamination
  • Immersion (dip-coating)
  • Reverse roll coating
  • Transfer coating

We at Tex Tech are dedicated to quality and safety. To demonstrate this, we hold various industry certifications including:

  • IATF 16949 Quality Registration
  • ISO 14001 environmental
  • Zero-landfill status
  • Six Sigma Black Belt process and safety oversight
  • A2LA accreditation for mechanical testing

Durable Military Composites from Tex Tech Industries

Durable Military Composites from Tex Tech Industries
Durable Military Composites from Tex Tech Industries

If you require reliable military-grade composite materials for your application, Tex Tech Industries has the expertise and capabilities to manufacture a solution that meets your unique needs.

For more information about our military composite and coating capabilities, reach out to us today. You can also request a quote to get started on your custom military composite solution.