Composite materials containing a nanostructured carbon binder phase and high pressure process for making the same

Abstract

A composite material composed of a matrix phase bonded by a carbon binder phase derived from sintered carbon nanoparticles such as, for example, fullerenes. The present invention further relates to a method of making such composite materials which includes the steps of dispersing a sufficient amount of carbon nanoparticles into a matrix phase, and compressing the carbon nanoparticles-containing matrix phase at a sufficient pressure and temperature over a sufficient time to facilitate the conversion of the carbon nanoparticles into a nanostructured carbon binder phase, thereby yielding the composite material.

Description

RELATED APPLICATION [0001] The present Application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60 / 457,445, filed Mar. 26, 2003, entitled “DIAMOND-BONDED COMPOSITES AND METHOD FOR PRODUCTION OF SAME.”GOVERNMENT LICENSE RIGHTS [0002] The U.S. Government has a paid-up license in this invention and the right in limited circumstances to require the patent owner to license others on reasonable terms as provided for by the terms of Grant Numbers N00014-01-C-0370 and N00014-01-1-0079 both awarded by the Office of Naval Research; by the terms of Contract Number NAS1-03045 awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Agency; and by the terms of Contract No. DAAH01-OO-CR008 funded by U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command.FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0003] The present invention relates generally to composite materials containing a nanostructured carbon binder phase, and more particularly to composite materials containing a matrix phase interspersed with a nanostructured carbon binder ph...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0009] The present invention is directed generally to composite materials and process for making the same. The composite materials of the present invention exhibit desirable properties including high strength and low weight, and are simpler and more cost efficient to fabricate than composite materials possessing similar properties. The processes of the present invention have been found to afford considerable flexibility in tailoring the properties of the resulting composite materials to meet the performance requirements of a range of applications, such as rocket parts, exhaust systems, aerospace structures, machine tools, armor plates, and protective coatings. The composite materials of the present invention can be in the form of, for example, particle-strengthened materials, fiber-strengthened materials, network-strengthened materials, and bi- / tri-continuous-strengthened materials.

[0011] Upon pressure-assisted sintering, the resulting composite material containing the newly formed nanostructured carbon binder phase exhibits high specific strength and toughness, low weight and good thermal stability, while imparting resilience to the material. The fabrication process requires a relatively short period of time to complete. Optionally, the carbon binder mixture can further contain other forms of carbon including, for example, pitch carbon, anthracite carbon, diamond, graphite, carbon fibers, and the like. The other forms of carbon can be present in the carbon binder mixture in amounts ranging from about 1.0% to 99% weight based on the total weight of the carbon binder mixture.

[0012] The composite materials of the present invention exhibit advantages including relative ease in sufficiently infiltrating the open pore space of the matrix phase or preform, relatively short processing time, flexibility in control of bonding between the matrix phase and the nanostructured carbon binder phase, and process scalability at economical cost.

Problems solved by technology

The fabrication process requires a relatively short period of time to complete.

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