ADVANCED SIC COMPOSITES FOR FUSION APPLICATIONS

Chemically vapor infiltrated silicon carbide (SiC) composites have bee n fabricated from continuous fibers of either SiC or graphite and test ed for strength and thermal conductivity. Of significance is that the Hi-Nicalon(TM) SiC based fiber composite has superior unirradiated pro perties as compared to the standard Nicalon grade. Based on previous r esults on the stability of the Hi-Nicalon fiber, this system should pr ove more resistant to neutron irradiation. A graphite fiber composite has been fabricated with very good mechanical properties and thermal c onductivity an order of magnitude higher than typical SiC/SiC composit es.