Design and testing of novel multifunctional satellite structures

Abstract

In the past century, humanity has seen the first powered flight, the first step on the Moon, the birth of satellite television and the dawn of the satellite internet mega constellation era. Throughout this period of rapid evolution of satellite platforms and services, little has changed in the way satellites are manufactured, assembled and integrated. At the same time, as space is becoming more crowded and resources on the ground more scarce, protection against orbital debris impacts and the use of space sustainability principles have to become central to satellite design and operation. The need for more integrated satellite platforms has brought forth the idea of pushing concurrent engineering principles beyond the early stages of the mission lifecycle and into the detailed design phase to develop components that perform multiple functions at once. The thesis makes use of metal additive manufacturing to challenge the way sandwich panels are designed. This could be the key enabling technology to achieving truly multifunctional satellite structures that are tailored to the loading application and that reduce material waste, manufacturing time and cost. The research focuses on the printing and redesign of sandwich panel cores with two functionalities in mind: improved orbital debris shielding and integrated sandwich panel inserts that can improve pull-out performance and satellite demisability. The thesis starts by analysing and demonstrating the superior structural performance of sandwich panels with printed honeycomb cores over baseline sandwich panel constructions based on previous experimental results from the ReDSHIFT project. The work continues with the development of a novel material model for thin-walled AlSi10Mg structures which can be used in developing new light core geometries for both low and high strain rate applications. The thesis proposes a novel hybrid sandwich panel core which brings together honeycomb and corrugated geometries in a design that can perform well both under structural and hypervelocity impact loading. The design is analysed through simulation studies and testing and it shows potential to outperform multi shock panels and current CFRP-AL honeycomb sandwich panels for high obliquity impacts especially in Low Earth Orbit. In addition, a new design philosophy for sandwich panel inserts is proposed and its potential for increased pull-out performance is demonstrated through both numerical studies and experimental tests. The novel inserts are also assessed from a demise perspective through a series of simulations and they demonstrate a more effective heat transmission through the panel depth compared with baseline potted inserts. The concepts proposed as part of the thesis are constrained by limitations in printing technology which do not allow for very thin walls to be printed reliably. As 3D printing technology evolves into the future, and sub 100 μm thick printed load bearing elements may become the norm, the research presented in this thesis may change the way satellite structures are conceptualised and integrated in the constellations of tomorrow.

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Identifiers

ORCID for Adrian Dumitrescu: orcid.org/0000-0002-7595-9510

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