Performance Analysis of Graphene-Reinforced Composite Laminate Wing Skin Using Fluid-Structure Interaction

Abstract

The development of new aerospace materials has increased the use of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers (CFRPs) that have a high strength-to-weight ratio. Nevertheless, the current CFRPs have restrictions on stiffness, damage tolerance, and thermal performance in dynamic loading. The influence of graphene-reinforced CFRP composite wing skins on structural and aerodynamic performance is studied using a validated Fluid-Structure Interaction (FSI) model. To investigate a Selig S1223 airfoil of realistic aerodynamic loading, a coupled Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Finite Element Analysis (FEA) framework was created. There were four wing skin designs studied. Conventional CFRP (CWS), Sandwich Composite with Honeycomb (CWSwHC), and Advanced Laminate without Graphene and Graphene-Reinforced CFRP (G-CFRP). The findings indicate that the addition of graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) at 1 wt. The percentage causes a total deformation of about 35 percent, equivalent elastic strain of 40 percent, and equivalent stress up to 50 percent, to be lower than that of a regular CFRP. The enhanced composite made by enhancing with graphene shows better load distribution, better stiffness, and better aeroelastic consistency, which shows its potential in the next generation light-weight and high-performance aerospace structure.