Behavior of shape memory alloy hybrid composites

Abstract

Shape memory alloys have found applications in different industrial applications due to their high strain recovery.  These materials are used in aerospace parts such as actuators, engineering applications like hybrid composite parts and vibration control, medical applications such as manufacturing of implants.  In the design and application of these materials, it is important to be able to predict material behavior in advance.   A constitutive model capable of predicting the deformations in the parts can serve as a valuable tool in the design and manufacturing of these parts.  In this research a constitutive model is presented which is capable of predicting the super elastic behavior of shape memory alloys.  This model is applied to a hybrid composite material to predict the induced strains in the part as the shape memory alloy is actuated.  The effect of process such as smart material volume fracture and type are investigated.

Key word: shape memory alloys- shape memory effect- super elasticity - hybrid composites