“This carbon fiber is not the same fiber that you’d go out and make aircraft or car parts from,” says Dr. Kaukler. “This is the only way to make the carbon fiber that is suitable for rocket nozzles, is to start with cellulosic fiber.”
Steele says that heat created from the rocket’s burning fuel slowly burns away the interior of the nozzle in flight. Therefore, a low-conductivity fiber composite keeps a propellant’s heat in for more propulsion efficiency, which prevents the nozzle from burning away too quickly in flight.
He adds that the process could be of interest to NASA, whose old cellulose rayon fiber processes created hazardous byproducts. The greener process could be used for NASA’s solid rocket motors in its next-generation Space Launch System. According to Dr. Kaukler, it could be useful for heat shields used in re-entry to Earth’s atmosphere or on planetary probes designed for landing.
