Predicting Nonlinear Response of Composite Structures Used In Hypersonic Flight Vehicles

ABSTRACT: Hypersonic flight conditions subject the vehicle to extreme environments that induce severe thermal gradients and generate intense spatial and time varying pressures. Existing methodologies for analyzing the high-performance materials required to operate in these environments are typically linear elastic solutions that do not capture the highly non-linear response and failure progression seen from these materials. ATA Engineering proposes development of a material modeling toolset, implemented as an add-on to commercial CAE software, that will determine material performance parameters (e.g., strength, stiffness) under complex thermomechanical loading. The toolset will combine an efficient means for finite element modeling of ceramic matrix composites, advanced regression algorithms to determine constituent material properties from limited test data, and progressive-failure Monte Carlo simulation in an intuitive user interface. The toolset will include a means for multiscale analysis that will communicate information about local material damage to and from a full vehicle simulation. In Phase I, we will develop analytic models representative of materials used on previous high speed vehicles and validate their predictive accuracy against existing material test data. In Phase II, we will perform a experimental campaign for verification and validation and will incorporate the tool into a comprehensive multiphysics simulation framework for hypersonic vehicles. BENEFIT: The technologies developed in this project will aid the design of the next generation of hypersonic vehicles by reducing risk and uncertainty. The toolset will allow designers to incorporate progressive material failure models with structural, aerodynamic, thermal, and other physical models to provide a more holistic and accurate understanding of vehicle state-of-structure throughout the mission trajectory. Through a multi-scale approach, the analytic tool will allow investigation of local material damage progression in the context of a full vehicle simulation without greatly increasing solution time . Commercial applications extend beyond hypersonic vehicles to gas turbine engine components, spacecraft reentry systems, automotive and other systems utilizing advanced composite materials.