Experimental investigation on the deformation of CFRP cylinders using piezo-actuators

In this paper, the deformation of cylindrical composite structures employing piezoelectric actuators is investigated. It specifically addresses radial deformations of a composite cylinder generated by macro fibre composites (MFC). The purpose is to experimentally characterise the shape as well as the magnitude of the composite cylinder’s deformation using an optical full-field 3D measurement system. Besides cylinder expansion and contraction under operating conditions, shell bending appeared to contribute significantly to the overall deformation behaviour. With the data provided the development of an adaptive primary aircraft structure is conceivable.