A ceramic nozzle for the NASA-Langley 2.4-m /8.0-ft/ high temperature structures tunnel

Two materials, a refractory castable ceramic and a SiO2-SiO2 composite, were fabricated as nozzle inserts for the Langley Research Center's 2.4-m (8.0-ft) high temperature structures tunnel. The high pressure and intense heat of the CH4-air products of the combustion-gas stream limits the materials that can be used in this tunnel. The castable-ceramic material showed good resistance to erosion and the thermal loads imposed on it by the gas stream but failed in tension when subjected to high hoop stresses. The SiO2-SiO2-composite nozzle insert withstood the thermomechanical loads but eroded unacceptably with increasing test temperature and pressure.