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Abstract:
Advancements in both the design and construction of high-speed naval vessels have necessitated the evaluation of the building materials in a cavitating environment. Given their weight advantages, construction materials are often either aluminum or glass reinforced polymer (GRP) composites. Historically, neither of these materials has performed well in a cavitating environment. The objective of this effort was to evaluate cavitation erosion protection alternatives for a GRP composite structure used in a cavitating environment. Screening of the various design alternatives was done using the ASTM 032 vibratory induced cavitation test method and a relative ranking of each protection system was generated. Results from the testing show that a GRP composite system can be designed to greatly increase the cavitation erosion resistance of the material, but this resistance remains below common metallic materials. A solution identified during this study involves the use of durable elastomer materials as the protection mechanism.
| Limitations: |
APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE |
| Pages: |
76 |
| Report Date: |
NOV 2005 |
| Contract Number: |
N000140110916 |
| Report Number: |
A864144 |
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