FIBERFORMED CERAMIC INSULATION AND METHOD

Abstract

Ceramic insulation has a mat of intersecting, discrete ceramic fibers bonded with a sol-gel glass binder. A fabric-reinforced glass coating is bonded to at least one surface of the mat. The insulation is prepared by forming a slurry of ceramic fibers, molding the slurry to form a soft felt mat, drying the mat, and incrementally introducing the binder into the mat with a multiple-impregnation technique, which controls shrinkage of the ceramic fiber mat. The fabric-reinforced glass coating is formed by applying a glass fiber cloth to a surface of the ceramic fiber mat and coating the same with a powdered glass. The powdered glass is melted and cooled. The process provides a layering technique that permits formation of a continuous fibrous structure having layers that impart distinct characteristics at desired regions within the structure. By using different ceramic fibers and fibers of differing physical dimension, or by including additives with the slurries, tailoring of the physical characteristics of the insulation is achieved. Improved properties are obtained by stitching the fiber cloth to the mat, curing the glass binder in a nitrogen atmosphere to replace oxygen in the glass with nitrogen, using a barrier coated cloth within the glass overcoat, or any combination thereof.

Source: Google Patents

35 USC §181 Secrecy Order

Inventor

• 1ANNA L. BENDIG