Andrews Space Develops New High Temperature Material

Seattle, Washington - March 25, 2010 - Andrews Space, Inc. (Andrews) today announced that it has recently completed its third round of Arc Jet testing on a new high temperature material for high speed and re-entry applications

Andrews has been developing and testing new high temperature materials since 2007 under multiple government contracts.  The Andrews material family has unique properties that allow them to remain flexible at both room and cryogenic temperatures, but then become rigid in the presence of heat.  Once rigid, the materials have steady state operating temperatures up to 1,100 degrees Celsius and have tensile strengths comparable to aluminum alloys.

Under these government contracts Andrews has completed three rounds of Arc jet testing at NASA Ames Research Center to evaluate and fine tune the thermal and mechanical properties of the material family.

 "There are many applications that this material can enable, ranging from large curved thermal protection panels for next generation reusable vehicles to deployable surfaces for re-entry or high speed vehicles," said Jason Andrews, President and CEO of Andrews Space. 

"Because of the material's unique properties, it can be stowed in a small volume and then deployed into a high temperature structural member, or formed into a complex shape and then cured to create high temperature structure, such as leading edges or exhaust ducts," continued Andrews.

Andrews Space materials engineer, Dr. Michael Beerman, explains "This is a multi-functional, phase change material that provides structural solutions, as well as thermal management, for extreme aerothermal environments."

Data and test results from the material programs are being used to refine material designs for specific vehicle applications.  Andrews is also talking to several companies and government organizations about how the material can enable their product and mission requirements.   

About the Company:

 Andrews Space, Inc. was founded in 1999 to be a catalyst in the commercialization and development of space. The company is an affordable integrator of aerospace systems and developer of advanced space technologies. To learn more, please visit: www.andrews-space.com.