Shape Adaptive Multilayered Polymer Composite

The NASA Langley SMP was originally designed for smart active structures in morphing spacecraft and airfoils to provide noise reduction and increased stability. The technology may also have applications in self-deployable structures, smart armors, intelligent medical devices, and other various morphing structures. The incorporation of conductive fillers into the polymer matrix allows for a faster response time than that of typical SMPs due to a combined response from both Joule heating and dielectric loss. Joule heating is achieved by the application of a low-level current that is diffused uniformly across the polymer when an electric field is applied. The addition of an alternating field shortens the thermal response time due to dielectric loss. Voltage application is determined by the specific material dimensions. For a benchtop scale device, about 10-40V was required for activation of the material. Furthermore, the technologys variable stiffness polymer composite (VSPc) is laminated with highly elastic layers to provide additional stored elastic energy, resulting in a higher recovery force than that of similar materials currently on the market. The technology is being used in a laboratory setting at NASA and prototypes have been built, with durability and fatigue testing underway. The new polymer is patent pending, and NASA seeks companies to license the technology and develop it for commercial applications.