DYNAMIC PERFORMANCE OF A NANO-MODIFIED COMPOSITE AERONAUTICAL PANEL

The adoption of composite materials is becoming increasingly attractive in many aeronautical applications. The improved endurance and corrosion resistance are few of the advantages they can offer, compared to the conventional alloy solutions. Due to the extraordinary mechanical property of carbon nanotubes (CNTs), they can be considered as an effective reinforcement treatment for composites. Multifunctional materials are designed so as to meet specific requirements through tailored properties. These materials, employed both for general aviation and very light class, allow to be readily modified with extra upgrading treatments during the lay-up manufacturing phase, thanks to their physical constitution. Particularly, in aerospace applications, the potential implementations of these advanced materials have been predicted to have a large impact on future aircraft vehicles, mainly due to their distinct features, which include greater mechanical, thermal and electrical characteristics. In such framework, different vibro-acoustic tests have been performed on a fiber-reinforced panel, representative of an aeronautical shell, for the characterization of the damping as well as the transmission loss properties related to such micro-handling treatment. The spectral excitation has been provided by an acoustic source, simulating in such a way the aerodynamic pressure load agent on the structure. Significant studies have been carried out to investigate and improve the vibro-acoustic properties of filled or reinforced polymer composites: the authors showed that the use of nano-particles such as CNTs can really improve the dynamic performance of standard laminates.