Abstract
This study investigates the optimization of a hybrid composite/elastomer sandwich plate structure using a periodical pattern of viscoelastic material. Design variables consist in the thicknesses of the layers, their fiber orientations, the position of the elastomer patches and their geometrical distribution. Damping properties of the hybrid structure are calculated by the Method of Strain Energy (MSE) and the constrained optimization maximizes these properties using the active-set algorithm. Two optimized plates containing patterns embedded or not in a composite matrix are compared with a plate damped by a continuous viscoelastic layer. Results show that optimizing composite plates with patches gives interesting results: damping properties are about ten times the properties of the plates with continuous viscoelastic layers, the patches can be sticked on the external layers of the plate and not internally, and all the strain components in elastomer are involved in damping.
Highlights
One important challenge of automotive and aerospace manufacturers is the reduction of noise pollution
Nonlinear constraints are respected at the end of the optimization: in both cases, with filled and void gaps, decrease in tensile stiffness and increase of weight do not exceed 1.5%
It is to note that the bending stiffness Fb is highly improved as discontinuous elastomer layers replace continuous layers and that this reinforcement is larger for void gaps between patches
Summary
One important challenge of automotive and aerospace manufacturers is the reduction of noise pollution. Vibration of structural components is a major source of noise: during vibration, structural parts move, generate air waves and play the role of a speaker. Due to their low weight and high stiffness, composites are sensitive to this phenomenon. Passive solutions have been proposed to solve this problem: they consist in sticking rubber patches in some well-chosen locations of the structure; they are revealed quiet efficient [1] Such method must be achieved a posteriori and it modifies the mechanical properties or/and the mass of the structure. The damping properties of the structure are strongly limited by the loss of stiffness and the increase in mass of the structure induced by the use of elastomer layers
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