Functional Hybrid Composites

Active hybrid composites, a combination of shape memory alloys and fiber-reinforced plastics, are becoming increasingly important in many industrial and medical applications. The spectrum of applications ranges from medical instruments and actively shape-changing parts in transport technology to space- or weight-efficient actuators in automation technology. The challenge in the production of active hybrid composites is to integrate the shape memory wires into the polymer matrix without macroscopic anchoring and to ensure sufficient adhesion at material level. The Functional Hybrid Composites research project, which is being carried out together with our project partner Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (CAU),is pursuing three central objectives. The first main objective is to develop a new concept for improving the thermo-mechanical resistance of the SMA polymer interface in an active hybrid composite. This will be achieved by systematically modifying the SMA wire surface using a selective etching process to increase the thermal conductivity. In addition, the precise adaptation of the thermo-mechanical properties of the polymer matrix is being sought through the use of nanoscale structured and anisotropically structured functional aluminium foils. A further aim is to integrate the SMA wires at material level without using macroscopic force transmission elements such as anchors. The third main objective is to investigate how further geometrically anisotropic structuring of the aluminium foil can be used to control the vertical thermal diffusivity without compromising the lateral deformability of the composite. This should make it possible to decouple the thermal modification from the mechanical modification.

Aim of the project is to increase the thermo-mechanical resistance and functionality of the SMA-polymer interface in active hybrid composites by modification of the SMA surface, introducing anisotropic structured Al-foils, and multi-scale modelling.