Brazing of carbon–carbon composites to Cu-clad molybdenum for thermal management applications

Advanced carbon–carbon composites were joined to copper-clad molybdenum (Cu/Mo) using four active metal brazes containing Ti (Cu–ABA, Cusin-1 ABA, Ticuni, and Ticusil) for potential use in thermal management applications. The brazed joints were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and Knoop microhardness measurements across the joint region. Metallurgically sound CC/Cu/Mo joints, devoid of interfacial cracks formed in all cases. The joint interfaces were preferentially enriched in Ti, with Cu–ABA joints exhibiting the largest interfacial Ti concentrations. The microhardness measurements revealed hardness gradients across the joint region, with a peak hardness of 300–350 KHN in Cusin-1 ABA and Ticusil joints and 200–250 KHN in Cu–ABA and Ticuni joints, respectively.