Multifunctional Thermal Barrier Application Composite with SiC Nanowires Enhanced Structural Health Monitoring Sensitivity and Interface Performance

Carbon fiber (CF)-reinforced ceramic composites show the attractive potential for next generation thermal protection materials because of their outstanding reliability and excellent high-temperature resistance but are facing great challenges in the combination of the engineering practicality and versatility. Herein, it is demonstrated that silicon carbide nanowires can be grown on the surface of CF to create a multifunctional thermal barrier application composite. The embedding of the silicon carbide nanowires in the interface of CF and ceramic matrix significantly increased the structural health monitoring sensitivity and interface strength of the composites. Compared to the conventional CF/ZrC composites, the structural health monitoring sensitivity of the composites with SiC nanowires is greatly elevated with a 14-fold improvement. Additional investigations revealed that the multifunctional SiCnws–CF/ZrC nanocomposites enjoyed a low thermal conductivity of 0.49 W/(m·K), a light weight (0.76–1.85 g/cm3), and a relative high compressive strength of 23.64 MPa, which is favorite in applying as a thermal barrier material. Furthermore, the interface design strategy could be extended as a universal method in fabricating various fiber-reinforced composites for a wide range of other applications.