Abstract
Deployable spacecraft technology should be both lightweight and compact for storage while also being rigid and expansive once deployed. A new type of structure that can meet both of these requirements is the morphing cylindrical lattice. This multi-stable structure can morph from a compact stowed state, to a long and slender deployed beam. It comprises narrow strips of carbon fibre composite material, making it particularly suitable for deployable booms, solar arrays and antennae. While existing modelling techniques focus on predicting the stability of lattices using symmetrical laminates, current work extends upon state-of-the-art by including the effects of thermal strains and curvatures that arise in non-symmetrical laminates when cured at elevated temperatures. As non-symmetrical laminates cool during post-cure, thermal stresses increasingly develop due to the variation of in-plane thermal expansion coefficient through the thickness. The model developed in this work, includes thermal stress effects, allowing for the design of thermally actuating lattices. This model is verified through comparison with finite element analysis and experimental data, both of which show excellent agreement.
Highlights
Shape changing, or morphing, structures have attracted increasing interest in recent years, showing potential to significantly improve performance in many engineering sectors, especially those involving transport industries where structures would benefit from a change in shape in response to a change in air, or water, flow
The work presented in this paper focuses on a different type of morphing composite structure, the multi‐stable cylindrical lattice
The thermal strains and curvatures that develop from curing processes at elevated temperatures have been shown to have potential to be harnessed for significantly altering the stability landscape of morphing cylindrical lattices
Summary
Morphing, structures have attracted increasing interest in recent years, showing potential to significantly improve performance in many engineering sectors, especially those involving transport industries where structures would benefit from a change in shape in response to a change in air, or water, flow. These structures are often manufactured from composite materials, such as carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP), making them lightweight, load bearing and highly tailorable [1]. The work presented in this paper focuses on a different type of morphing composite structure, the multi‐stable cylindrical lattice
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