Ballistic Missile System Advanced Materials and Structures

The proposed innovation focuses on advanced material structures based on the development of piezoelectric (PZ) polymer materials in textile form. PZ materials are of extreme interest in future Kill Vehicles. The structural responses created by the firing of the Divert Actuation System create stress requirements on the dynamic Line Of Sight Performance of the Sensor. This, in turn, requires that the sensor structure be extremely stiff, often driving the design away from low-cost alternatives. The possibility of using active damping as presented by PZ materials could enable a wide range of design configurations and low cost seeker materials for future Kill Vehicle designs. A second benefit of PZ materials would be utilizing the spun PZ materials in structures where the ability to determine a structural integrity "health check" could be a critical data point to ensure the required levels of Mission Assurance. Phase I will investigate PZ fiber and/or fabric elements in Kill Vehicle structures. Potential MDA applications enabled by the proposed innovation include vibration damping, structural integrity monitoring and energy harvesting.