Textron Systems and Boston Materials Announce Collaboration

Textron Systems Corporation, a company of Textron Inc., and Boston Materials, Inc. announced that they have reached an agreement to collaborate on the development and industrialization of advanced high-temperature resistant composites. Through the Textron Systems and Boston Materials partnership, a thermal protection system (TPS) will be developed that will provide higher durability and reduce deployment costs for hypersonic vehicles. The new TPS, applied externally to the outer structural shell of a launch vehicle to protect against extreme temperatures generated during atmospheric reentry, will incorporate Boston Materials' proprietary Z-axis Fiber technology. As its name suggests, Z-axis Fiber works in the z-direction in a composite laminate to improve interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) and in-plane properties. Boston Materials CEO Anvesh Gurijala stated that the company's Z-axis Fiber will be applied to Textron Systems' TPS in a carbon-carbon composite (CCC), and initial tests are expected to provide a 30% increase in shear strength.

Could Help Us Achieve High-Temperature Thermal Protection Systems

Textron Systems Vice President of Strategic Systems Dave Scaringella stated: "ZRT could help us achieve lower-cost, easier-to-manufacture high-temperature thermal protection systems." Boston Materials CEO Anvesh Gurijala said that this collaboration further strengthens the company's position as a leading supplier of high-performance and reliable material solutions.     Source