Biography: 

Maurizio Natali is Associate Professor at the University of Perugia, Italy. He has been involved in several national and European programs on ablative Thermal Protection System (TPS) materials for chemical rocket propulsion, especially for Solid Rocket Motors (SRMs). He also spent part of these R&D efforts on TPS materials used in re-entry flight. He was involved on the development of the Vega launcher made by the Italian company AVIO. In the last 20 years, he focused his efforts on the manufacturing and exotic characterization of the ablation, mechanical, and thermo-physical properties of TPS materials such as Carbon/Phenolic Composites (CPCs) and Carbon/Carbon Composites (CCCs). In 2023 he was selected as a national expert of the board on "Advanced Materials" during the Symposium for the Italian Airforce Centenary entitled "Call for challenge: developing the hypersonic capability".

About University of Perugia (UoP):

University of Perugia (UoP) - through its R&D department located in Terni - has spent 30 years on the manufacturing and exotic characterization of the ablation, mechanical, and thermo-physical properties of TPS materials such as Carbon/Phenolic Composites (CPCs), Carbon/Carbon Composites (CCCs), and Elastomeric Heat Shielding Materials (EHSMs). UoP has been involved in several national and European programs on ablative Thermal Protection System (TPS) materials for chemical rocket propulsion, especially for Solid Rocket Motors (SRMs) and Hybrid Rocket Motors (HRMs).