Comparison of radome sandwich composite structures with finite element method

Abstract

Today, composite sandwiches are used in almost all areas. One of the areas of use are radomes that protect the antenna structures from external effects. The sandwich composites used in radome structures generally consist of the monolayer, two-layer, three-layer (A-type radomes) and five-layer (C-type radom) structures. The number of layers and the materials to be used vary according to the mechanical requirements. This paper presents the results of the design and analysis of radomes made from three-layer and five-layer sandwich composites. The design starts with choosing the convenient material to satisfy the necessary service conditions such as electromagnetic radiation transparency and hydrostatic pressure. Two different design is considered for the analyses which are the three-layer structure was laid in a glass fabric-foam core-glass fabric configuration, and the five-layer structure was laid in a glass fabric-foam core-glass fabric-foam core-glass fabric configuration. Finite element analyses were performed by using commercial software. Mechanical characterization tests were carried out to provide material input for the ANSYS program. These tests were performed according to ASTM standards. The results of the finite element analyses showed that although both designs showed resistance to the hydrostatic pressure of 7.5 MPa the five-layer sandwich composite structure with two layers of foam was found to have better mechanical strength.