such that the manufacturing effort (production time) e.g. for the braiding process could be reduced by around 50% with only marginal mass penalty. Compari- son of results from frames manufactures by and also allow the selection of proper manufacturing methods based on an even more rational trade-off between structural properties and manufacturing effort. Hybrid Material Structures Since a basic approach in lightweight structures is to identify and put proper materials to proper components and posi- tions within a structure, several activities have been carried out in this area also in order to identify and reduce possible of mismatches of the different materials. This not only relates to their interfaces, but may become also relevant on components and structural level. For example, many thermal cycles in carbon fiber reinforced materials and parts may lead to micro-cracks in the polymer, especially so for cycling amplitudes in the range of +100°C down to -150°C which is typical for many structures in space. Due to a softening effect of such micro-cracks, the C-fiber gets even more dominant for the overall properties of the composite. This then results into a further decrease of the coefficient of thermal expansion, which could change from say -0.2 E-6 / °K down to -1 E-6 / °K. Though still very small in absolute terms, this large relative change might become relevant for structural thermo-elastic deformations and related loss of geometric precision in orbit. Steel fiber reinforced aluminum parts have Simulated and tested behavior of steel ropes in aluminum base material relevant for crash properties been investigated in cooperation with Institutes from KIT and TU Dortmund in the SFB/TR10 on advanced manufacturing processes for such materials. Since such parts are mainly aimed for automotive applications, investigations on crash absorption have been finalized end of this year. These investigations covered related materials and components simulations and experimental investigations. Results showed the benefits of such reinforce- ments, which allow to control the crash behavior.
Research Focus n Adaptive and shape morphing structures n Hybrid material structures n Large space structures n Model-based design optimization methods Competence n Adaptive structures and smart materials n Design optimization methods n Structural mechanics and design concepts n Mechanical and environmental testing Infrastructure n Computer cluster with 250 processors n CAD and several FEM tools n Dynamic simulation tools n Design optimization tools n Workshop for metal and fiber compo- site parts n Mechanical and environmental test facilities incl. cryogenic temperatures n Extensive measurement systems n Non-destructive materials and parts inspection Courses n Leichtbau n Luft- und Raumfahrtstrukturen n Multidisciplinary Design Optimization n Adaptive Strukturen n Faserverbundwerkstoffe n Membranstrukturen n Betriebsfestigkeit n Multifunctional Polymer Parts n Vibro-Akustik und Lärm n Testmethoden im Flugzeugbau und Leichtbau Management Prof. Horst Baier, Director Adjunct Professors Prof. Dr. Pierre Mertiny Prof. Dr. Rudolf Schwarz Administrative Staff Amely Schwörer Research Scientists Dipl.-Ing. Johannes Achleitner Dr. Valeria Antonelli Dipl.-Ing. Luiz da Rocha-Schmidt Dr. Leri Datashvili, senior research scientist Dipl.-Ing. Stephan Endler Dipl.-Ing. Matthias Friemel Lali Gigineishvili Andreas Hermanutz, M.Sc. Dipl.-Ing. Peter Krempl Tao Luo, M.Sc. Nikoloz Maghaldadze, M.Sc. Dipl.-Ing. Martin Mahl Dipl.-Ing. Alexander Morasch Dipl.-Ing. Gunar Reinicke Dipl.-Ing. Bernhard Sauerer Dipl.-Ing. Markus Schatz Liang Si, M.Sc. Dipl.-Ing. Holger Staack Dipl.-Ing. Felix Stroscher Tanut Ungwattanapanit, M.Sc. Erich Wehrle, M.Sc. Dipl.-Ing. Rainer Wehrle Bin Wei, M.Sc. Dipl.-Ing. Matthias Weinzierl Technical Staff Manfred Bauer Dipl.-Ing. Karl-Ludwig Krämer Bernhard Lerch Christian Mörlein Dirk Steglich Josip Stokic