Thermomechanical coupling for charring ablators

Thermomechanical analysis of ablative materials is of great importance to the design of thermal-protection systems. A finite volume method for coupling the mechanical and thermal response models for ablation problems is proposed. This method is capable of simulating both transient and static thermomechanical responses. The solver is verified against analytic solutions and through code-to-code comparisons. It is then fully coupled to a state-of-the-art material response code. Coupled results show that high temperature gradients have significant effects on the mechanical performance and stress generation. The magnitude and the location ofthe stress concentration can play a significant role in structural integrity, and may lead to crack formation as well as spallation.