Assessment of Foam Materials for Cryotank Insulation

In the paper an activity to assess candidate foam materials for insulation of liquid hydrogen tank of reusable launchers is reported. This work has been performed jointly by DaimlerChrysler Aerospace and ESA/ESTEC. A screening of commercial materials has been carried out on the basis of supplier's data and characterisation tests at sample level in a large range of temperature. Most of the materials pre-selected has shown performance considerably lower than the target goal and only one, although with some limitations, has been retained as candidate. Recommended future activities are also presented.