Experimental study on bistable behaviour of anti-symmetric laminated cylindrical shells in thermal environments

et al. 2020

Polymers

Self Cite

The bistability of anti-symmetric thin shallow cylindrical polymer composite shells, made of carbon fiber/epoxy resin, has already been investigated based on the uniform curvature and inextensible deformation assumptions by researchers in detail. In this paper, a non-uniform curvature model that considers the extensible deformations is proposed. Furthermore, a parametric modeling and automatic postprocessing plug-in component for the bistability analysis of polymer composite cylindrical shells is established by means of ABAQUS-software, by which the equilibrium configurations and the load-displacement curves during the snap process can be easily obtained. The presented analytical model is validated by the numerical simulation and literature models, while the factors affecting the bistability of anti-symmetric cylindrical shells are revisited. In addition, the planform effects of anti-symmetric cylindrical shells with rectangular, elliptical and trapezoidal planform are discussed. The results show that the presented analytical model improves the accuracy of the prediction of the principal curvature of second equilibrium configuration and agree well with the numerical results.

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Non-Uniform Curvature Model and Numerical Simulation for Anti-Symmetric Cylindrical Bistable Polymer Composite Shells

et al. 2020

Polymers

Self Cite

“…The centers of curvature in the two configurations are on the same side of the shell. The transformation between two configurations of a bistable composite cylindrical shell can be accomplished through two forms of external force generated from actuators: pulsed external force [31], [32] and continuous external force [33], [34]. In this study, a bistable asymmetric glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) composite cylindrical shell is used as the antenna's substrate to achieve reconfigurability.…”

Section: Antenna Design and Analysis A Substrate Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wideband Pattern- and Polarization-Reconfigurable Antenna Based on Bistable Composite Cylindrical Shells

Lin

et al. 2020

IEEE Access

This paper presents a wideband pattern-and polarization-reconfigurable antenna based on bistable composite cylindrical shells. This antenna, which includes seven radiating metal strips, uses bistable anti-symmetric glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) composite cylindrical shells as the substrate to achieve reconfigurability without the need for redundant structures or semiconductor devices. This bistable GFRP substrate has two stable cylindrical configurations: extended structure and coiled-up structure. Therefore, by transforming the configuration, the radiation patterns of the proposed antenna are changed, and simultaneously, the polarization is switched between left-handed circular polarization (LHCP) and right-handed circular polarization (RHCP). A prototype of the proposed antenna is fabricated and measured. The measured results indicate that the antenna can operate in the frequency range from 2.3 to 3 GHz in the two configurations. The proposed antenna can be utilized as the payload of a satellite.INDEX TERMS Wideband, pattern-reconfigurable antenna, polarization-reconfigurable antenna, bistable cylindrical shells.

“…To this end, the image processing software CorelDRAW in conjunction with a Matlab code is used to obtain the principal curvatures and the twisting curvatures of each stable shapes. 41 The two straight edges and the arc edge are photographed in order to obtain the twisting angle of two straight edges 2 and the principal curvature of the arc edge C. According to the two-parameter model by Cantera et al 37 k…”

Section: Test Apparatus and Measurement Processmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hygroscopic influence on bistable characteristics of antisymmetric composite cylindrical shells: An experimental study

Journal of Composite Materials

Pan

et al. 2018

Self Cite

This paper investigates the effect of moisture on bistable characteristics of antisymmetric composite cylindrical by using experimental and finite element method. The bistable characteristics are characterized by the curvatures of antisymmetric composite cylindrical shells in different stable states and snap processes between the two stable states which are indicated by the load–displacement curve and snap load. The manufactured specimens after dried in the oven are immersed in distilled water to full saturation and the saturated salt solutions (MgCl2) to full saturation. The specimen achieves different moisture that is immersed in distilled water at the different period until full saturation and in the saturated salt solution (MgCl2) with the same period of saturation in distilled water. Specimens with different moisture are then mechanically loaded on a testing machine to transform between two stable states. Load–displacement curves are recorded in the computer, from which the snap loads can be found. After the test, the principal and twisting curvatures are captured by a digital image processing. The results are contrasted with hygroscopic influence on another kind of bistable composite structure (asymmetric cross-ply laminates) in this paper. The results show that the shapes and snap loads of antisymmetric composite cylindrical shells are influenced by the moisture increasing.