Shape Adaptive Airfoil for Small Aircraft

In the course of this project, an SMAHC system was designed, constructed and implemented taking into account the efficiency.

The possibility of using a morphing trailing edge for new energy efficient aerial vehicles to improve aerodynamic efficiency seems promising. Due to the high performance related to the weight, as well as the macroscopic stroke, Shape Memory Alloy Hybrid composites (SMAHC) are particularly suitable for the implementation of such systems in aviation. Shape Memory Alloys can be combined with laminates to form such hybrid composites. The possibility of distributed structural integration leads to systems having reduced complexity (fewer components taking on fewer different functions), and to avoidance of punctual load application. The active and thermally initiated control of these actuators is intrinsically effected by electrical current and the associated Joule heat input. This type of actuation is subject to low efficiency. Such systems can therefore not be op-erated economically in many cases, since the effort required to operate and actuate these structures is greater than the benefits gained from them. It is therefore essential to take efficiency into account during the concept phase when considering the use of such systems.