Descripción del proyecto
Evaluación de nuevos materiales punteros para el sector aeroespacial
El sector aeroespacial europeo emplea materiales compuestos de plástico termoestable de bajo peso y alto rendimiento en muchas aplicaciones. Recientemente, los termoplásticos han suscitado mucho interés como alternativas a los plásticos termoestables ya que se pueden volver a fundir, moldear, reprocesar y reciclar. Los plásticos termoestables, además de tener un menor capacidad de recuperación, requieren un paso de curado adicional para endurecerse y fraguar. Para sacar el máximo partido a los termoplásticos en la industria aeroespacial, dada su capacidad de fundirse y deformarse cuando se recalientan, es importante caracterizar su comportamiento cuando se someten al calor, al fuego y a cargas mecánicas. HITCOMP está desarrollando un laboratorio de pruebas funcional para evaluar estos materiales, cuyos datos servirán de base a un modelo de elementos finitos para llevar a cabo pruebas virtuales de los termoplásticos a fin de compararlos con los plásticos termoestables convencionales basados en resinas epoxi que se emplean actualmente.
Objetivo
Heat and fire cause more damage on composites than on metallic counterparts. In order to improve the current epoxy based composites behavior under thermal affection, an alternative is going be addressed: thermoplastic composites.
Additionally, the sector is making a transition to a more electric aircraft, increasing the thermal affection on the structure since the number of heat & fire sources.
Hence, there are several reasons behind the drastic shift from aluminum and steel to thermoplastics: weight reduction, better fuel economy and lower operation costs, emissions reduction, corrosion and fatigue resistance or, in some cases, flame resistance and retardancy .
The framework of this topic is AIRFRAME ITD Work Package B-2.1 and B-2.2 whose objective is to achieve lighter and more cost effective structures. In this line, current tendency at A/C level is to increase the structural contribution of the more efficient composites substituting metallic structures, developing fuselages with optimized usage of volume and minimized weight, cost and environmental impact.
Under this framework, the research project HITCOMP aims to characterize the behaviour, under fire and thermal affection, of new high performance thermoplastic composites based on PAEK family resins, for comparison to the current thermoset, epoxy based, composites. HITCOMP aims as well to establish an innovative methodology allowing an affordable characterization of thermoplastics and the prediction of their behaviour and resistence when submitted to fire or high temperature events and to mechanical load. For this purpose, a thermo-mechanical model based on FEM permitting an innovative “virtual” characterization of specimens will be developed. An innovative testing lab based on two co-registrated IR cameras will be developed too. It will allow accurate, non-intrusive measurements of the actual temperature of both sides of the samples during the fire tests and for the adjustment and validation of the model.
Ámbito científico
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensorsoptical sensors
- engineering and technologymaterials engineeringcomposites
- engineering and technologymechanical engineeringvehicle engineeringaerospace engineeringaircraft
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringenergy and fuels
Programa(s)
Régimen de financiación
CS2-RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinador
28903 Getafe (Madrid)
España