C3HARME

New ceramic composites for extreme environments

The combination of very high temperatures, corrosive environments and rapid heating-cooling cycles is beyond the capabilities of current aerospace materials. This challenge pushed C³HARME to answer the demand for new advanced materials capable of operating in these harsh conditions. The project is designing, developing, fabricating and testing new ceramic matrix composites capable of self-repairing localised damage that occurs during operation in extreme aerospace environments. C³HARME focuses on near-zero erosion rocket nozzles and near-zero ablation thermal protection systems, enabling hypersonic spacecraft to maintain flight performance. The project's consortium has a balanced mix of scientific expertise and excellence in materials science and modelling, engineering, process technology and industrial scale-up.