In this work, we reported an effective method to prepare phenolic impregnated carbon ablator (PI-
CA) by a sol-gel impregnation of phenolic solution into carbon fiber mat, followed by ambient drying. The density of
the PICA could be adjusted in a wide range (0. 27 to 0. 47 g/ cm 3 ) by using different concentrations of phenolic solu-
tion. The microstructure, flexural property and thermal insulation property of PICA were systematically investigated.
PICA, which are composed of phenolic aerogel reinforced by carbon fiber, exhibit excellent mechanical property (2． 2
to 16. 5 MPa) and insulation performance [56 to 62 mW/ (m·K)]. The highest bending strengthen of 16. 5 MPa and
lowest thermal conductivity of 56 mW/ (m·K) can be achieved at a mediate density of 0. 40 g/ cm 3 . After carboniza-
tion at high temperature (1 000℃), the resulting carbonized C-PICA still exhibit low density, high flexural strength-
en and low thermal conductivity.