Impact Resistance Enhancement of Composite-Reinforced Actuator Components

Composite-reinforced cylinders offer a means for weight reduction for critical flight-control systems. The concern for impact-resistance and damage-tolerance is of special interest because of the invisible nature of the damage. A spoiler-actuator cylinder was composite-reinforced to answer the need for lower weight. The composite design has features aimed at enhancing its impact-resistance.

An instrumented drop-weight test was used to evaluate low-velocity impact-damage to the composite-reinforced cylinder. Ultrasonic C-scan techniques were used for damage assessment. Performance of impacted cylinders was compared with performance of unimpacted ones. Results indicate a design has been developed that is insensitive to low-velocity impact-damage. This approach proves the validity of composite reinforcement for impact-sensitive actuator components.