<title>Smart structures applications for hypersonic vehicles</title>

Abstract

A survey of current literature was performed and vehicle designers from the aerospace industry were polled to examine how state of the art smart structural concepts could improve the design of hypersonic vehicles. Several types of hypersonic vehicles; including winged single stage to orbit, sub-orbital cruise aircraft, and supersonic/hypersonic missiles have demanding airframe and systems requirements which may not be sufficiently met with traditional structural designs. The use of smart structures is examined to improve vehicle performance in areas such as active vibration control, noise reduction, vehicle attitude control, structural cooling, and engine performance. The operating environment of hypersonic vehicles are examined and the capabilities of currently used structural materials and actuators are compared with those of smart materials and structures. Possible smart structures applications are presented as modifications to existing designs as well as new structural concepts. Conclusions are made on the suitability of various smart structures concepts for current and future hypersonic applications.