The tailor ability of composite structures represents a fundamental aspect of their appeal and utility across a spectrum of industries, as unlike traditional materials, they offer unparalleled flexibility in design and manufacturing, allowing engineers to precisely tailor material properties to meet specific performance requirements. The heart of composite tailor ability lies in the ability to control material composition, fiber orientation, stacking sequences, and resin systems during the manufacturing process. Such customization level enables engineers to optimize structures for several applications, balancing factors such as strength, stiffness, weight, durability, and cost-effectiveness. The concept of Double-Double laminates makes it possible to introduce an alternative approach to the design of composite laminate structures, for which to carry out a proper and effective optimization in terms of laminate thickness and plies orientation. The aim is to minimize the use of plies to the minimum required to provide strength to the structure, while ensuring a reduction in the total mass of the component. In this paper, the Double-Double design and the feasibility study of a composite stiffened panel, typically adopted in aircraft structures, has been investigated. This investigation has delved deeper into the implementation of the Double-Double approach in the aviation field and its potential impact on component performance. The findings of the study revealed promising results, demonstrating that the new Double-Double design, optimized to meet the material strength requirements, yielded a remarkable reduction in total mass. Specifically, the optimized design achieved a mass reduction of up to 26.48% compared to the initial design configuration. This substantial decrease in weight not only contributes to improved fuel efficiency and operational performance but also aligns with the aerospace industry's ongoing efforts to enhance sustainability and reduce environmental impact.
REDESIGN OF AN AERONAUTICAL COMPOSITE STIFFENED PANEL WITH THE DOUBLE-DOUBLE DESIGN APPROACH
Riccio A.;Garofano A.;
2024
Abstract
The tailor ability of composite structures represents a fundamental aspect of their appeal and utility across a spectrum of industries, as unlike traditional materials, they offer unparalleled flexibility in design and manufacturing, allowing engineers to precisely tailor material properties to meet specific performance requirements. The heart of composite tailor ability lies in the ability to control material composition, fiber orientation, stacking sequences, and resin systems during the manufacturing process. Such customization level enables engineers to optimize structures for several applications, balancing factors such as strength, stiffness, weight, durability, and cost-effectiveness. The concept of Double-Double laminates makes it possible to introduce an alternative approach to the design of composite laminate structures, for which to carry out a proper and effective optimization in terms of laminate thickness and plies orientation. The aim is to minimize the use of plies to the minimum required to provide strength to the structure, while ensuring a reduction in the total mass of the component. In this paper, the Double-Double design and the feasibility study of a composite stiffened panel, typically adopted in aircraft structures, has been investigated. This investigation has delved deeper into the implementation of the Double-Double approach in the aviation field and its potential impact on component performance. The findings of the study revealed promising results, demonstrating that the new Double-Double design, optimized to meet the material strength requirements, yielded a remarkable reduction in total mass. Specifically, the optimized design achieved a mass reduction of up to 26.48% compared to the initial design configuration. This substantial decrease in weight not only contributes to improved fuel efficiency and operational performance but also aligns with the aerospace industry's ongoing efforts to enhance sustainability and reduce environmental impact.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
