Production of a Carbon/Carbon composite from the thermoplastic LMP/carbon fiber composite

The objective of this work is to process and characterize C/C composites from LMP/CF thermoplastic composites for aerospace applications. Carbon/carbon composites (C/C) can be defined as carbon matrix composites reinforced with carbon fibers. Such composites are of great interest because they combine properties such as low weight and excellent thermal resistance and rigidity, which make them to be used in several sectors, such as aerospace and electrochemistry. These materials were obtained from carbonizations (heat treatments of at least 1000°C under inert atmosphere) of other high carbon composites, which may be thermoplastic or thermosetting. In order to perform this work, the C/C composites were obtained from the Low Melting Point PAEK (LMP), which is a thermoplastic matrix composite, which has an excellent combination of properties such as high thermal stability, solvent resistance and excellent mechanical properties, the LMP being a variation of the PAEK that has low melting temperature, which reduces the energy expenditure for some processes and makes them faster. The substitution of the phenolic resins used for the production of nozzles by the thermoplastic matrix of LMP is advantageous because the mass loss is smaller and the process faster (in thermogravimetric analysis we have a loss of 52% for the phenolic resin while the PML is only 22%).