Softenable composite boom for reconfigurable and self-deployable structures

This article investigates (experimentally and numerically) the time and temperature-dependent folding and unfolding behavior, including the structural nonlinearity, of thin-walled softenable composite structures. The composites are fabricated with woven fabric fibers and a heat softenable material o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Mechanics of advanced materials and structures 2017-06, Vol.24 (8), p.698-711
Main Authors: Roh, Jin-Ho, Bae, Jae-Sung
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alloys
Boom
Composite structures
Deployable structures
Elastic properties
Fabrics
Fibers
Folding
Mathematical models
Nonlinearity
Polymers
Reconfigurable
self-deployable
Shape memory
shape memory polymers
softenable composite
Spacecraft
Textile composites
Viscoelasticity
woven fabrics
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Summary:This article investigates (experimentally and numerically) the time and temperature-dependent folding and unfolding behavior, including the structural nonlinearity, of thin-walled softenable composite structures. The composites are fabricated with woven fabric fibers and a heat softenable material of the shape memory polymer (SMP) resin. A numerical model is developed. The model is based on the elastic properties of the woven fabric fibers, their fabric geometry, and the thermo-viscoelastic properties of the SMP resin. A thin-walled cylindrical boom, which can be flexibly folded into an arbitrary configuration and be self-deployed, is fabricated using the heat softenable composite. The viscoelasticity and the shape memory behaviors are investigated during the folding and unfolding of the boom at elevated temperatures.
ISSN:1537-6494
1537-6532
DOI:10.1080/15376494.2016.1196776