Journal of Theoretical
and Applied Mechanics

49, 3, pp. 841-857, Warsaw 2011

Low-velocity impact characteristics of composite plates with shape memory alloy wires

Mi-Sun Rim, Eun-Ho Kim, In Lee, Ik-Hyeon Choi, Seok-Min Ahn, Kyo-Nam Koo, Jae-Sung Bae, Jin-Ho Roh
To investigate impact characteristics of shape memory alloy hybrid composites (SMAHC), several experiments were performed. Tensile tests of shape memory alloy (SMA) wires were carried out to investigate thermo-mechanical properties, and low-velocity impact tests of SMAHC plates and conventional composite plates without SMAs at the critical energy level. low-velocity impact tests of several types of composite plates, including composite plates with embedded SMAs/Fe/Al wires and conventional composite plates, were also done. Results of these experiments show that embedding SMAs in a composite plate can improve the impact resistance. Lastly, low-velocity impact tests of SMAHC plates with SMA wires embedded at different positions through the thickness were performed in an effort to improve the impact resistance. Embedding SMA wires at a lower position in the composite plates was the most effective for improving the impact resistance.
Keywords: shape memory alloy; SMAHC; composite; low-velocity impact; impact resistance