Exotensioned structural members with energy-absorbing effects
Structural members having enhanced load bearing capacity per unit mass include a skeleton structure formed from strips of material. Notches may be placed on the strips and a weave of tensile material placed in the notches and woven around the skeleton structure. At least one pair of structural members can be jointed together to provide very strong joints due to a weave patterns of tensile material, such as Kevlar, that distributes stress throughout the structure, preventing stress from concentrating in one area. Methods of manufacturing such structural members include molding material into skeletons of desired cross section using a matrix of molding segments. Total catastrophic failures in composite materials are substantially avoided and the strength to weight ratio of structures can be increased.
- Research Organization:
- Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC52-06NA25396
- Assignee:
- LANL
- Patent Number(s):
- 8,621,822
- Application Number:
- 13/411,537
- OSTI ID:
- 1117651
- Resource Relation:
- Patent File Date: 2012 Mar 13
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Method for forming a double-curved structure and double-curved structure formed using the same
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patent | July 2014 |
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