Corrugated panels have gained considerable popularity in a range of engineering applications, particularly in morphing skin applications due to their remarkable anisotropic characteristics. They are stiff to withstand the aerodynamic loads and flexible to enable the morphing deformations. In this thesis a detailed review of the literature on corrugated structures is presented. The specific characteristics of corrugated structures such as: high anisotropic behaviour, high stiffness and good durability, lightness and cost effectiveness are discussed comprehensively. However for the application in morphing aircraft, the optimal design of the corrugated panels requires simple models of these structures to be incorporated into multi-disciplinary system models. Therefore equivalent structural models are required that retain the dependence on the geometric parameters and material properties of the corrugated panels. In this regard, two analytical solutions based on homogenization and super element techniques are presented to calculate the equivalent mechanical properties of the corrugated skin. Different experimental and numerical models are investigated to verify the accuracy and efficiency of the presented equivalent models. The parametric studies of different corrugation shapes demonstrate the suitability of the proposed super element for application in further detailed design investigations. Then the design and multi-objective optimization of an elastomer coated composite corrugated skin for the camber morphing aerofoil is presented. The geometric parameters of the corrugated skin are optimized to minimize the in-plane stiffness and the weight of the skin and to maximize the flexural out-of-plane stiffness of the corrugated skin. A finite element code for thin beam elements is used with the aggregate Newton's method to optimize the geometric parameters of the coated corrugated panel. The advantages of the corrugated skin over the elastomer skin for the camber morphing structure are discussed. Moreover, a finite element simulation of the camber morphing internal structure with the corrugated skin is performed under typical aerodynamic and structural loadings to check the design approach.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:678394 |
| Date | January 2015 |
| Creators | Dayyani, Iman |
| Publisher | Swansea University |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa42865 |
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