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Multi-material Helipad
Navy SBIR FY2012.2
| Sol No.: |
Navy SBIR FY2012.2 |
| Topic No.: |
N122-109 |
| Topic Title: |
Multi-material Helipad |
| Proposal No.: |
N122-109-0861 |
| Firm: |
Touchstone Research Laboratory, Ltd.
The Millennium Centre
1142 Middle Creek Road
Triadelphia, West Virginia 26059-1139 |
| Contact: |
Paul McElroy |
| Phone: |
(304) 547-5800 |
| Web Site: |
http://www.trl.com |
| Abstract: |
The goal of the Phase 1 effort is to demonstrate the feasibility of using a structurally flexible multi-layered insulation for increased thermal management and reduced weight for a portable helipad for austere environments compared to the current single material system. Hor gases and thrust particulates from aircraft exhaust can create extreme temperatures and thermal shock leading to premature failures in exposed materials. Carbon and basalt non-woven fabrics and felts have tremendous temperature and thermal shock resistance making it the ideal material solution for flexible high heat portable helipads. The concept has great potential to limit the heat through the thickness and to maintain the underlying ground surface to below 200 0F. The architecture of the layered stack of materials is designed to produce a tortuous thermal path through the thickness and to spread the heat applied to the top surface from the exhaust laterally within the multi-material top layer. No through seams exist in the design to allow easy thermal transport of heat to the underlying surface. The proposed helipad mat should have excellent drapeability that will allow it to conform to irregular surfaces in austere environments that are not pre-prepared for helicopter or Vertical Takeoff & Landing operational traffic. |
| Benefits: |
The identification of a need to develop and demonstrate new lightweight material solutions to address Vertical Takeoff & Landing pads is a perfect insertion opportunity for Touchstone's innovative multi-material, multi-layered approach. This new approach takes advantage of work already accomplished by Touchstone in the development of Guided Multiple Luanch Rocket System (GMLRS) Insensitive Munitions panels and the strong design skills that currently reside at Touchstone.
Touchstone believes that the multi-material approach and its ability to provide enhanced thermal, blast, ballistics, structural, acoustic, vibration, and corrosion resistance in a lightweight design can provide not only a significant technology performance advance for the Navy but can also be integrated into many other support structure systems in a similar manner. The need for advanced materials solutions for landing pads is not unique to DoD. This same technology has the potential to be extended into Army systems such as Extended Area Protection and Survivability and GMLRS applications. As the process is scaled and non-recurring and engineering costs are minimized, the pricing of this work is also commercially viable in the oil and gas, as well as in mining industries and would become an integral part of these companies' exploration in austere or environmentally sensitive areas.
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