10:06 a.m., April 21, 2009----The University of Delaware and Accudyne Systems have been awarded a contract through NASA's Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program to further develop an automated tape placement process for large composite aerospace structures.

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Researchers at UD's Center for Composite Materials (CCM) will collaborate with engineers at Accudyne, a custom machine builder based in Newark, Del. The CCM work will be led by John Tierney, a scientist at CCM. Mark Gruber, who earned bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering at UD in 1978 and 1981, respectively, will head Accudyne's effort. Gruber is a senior partner with Accudyne, which he helped found in 1996.

The goal of the work is to eliminate the need for costly autoclave processing of large composite structures while maintaining the material quality achievable with this traditional fabrication method.

“Automated tape placement is an emerging method that enables processing of recyclable thermoplastic polymers,” Tierney says. “It's environmentally friendly, eliminating the scrap and release of volatiles associated with autoclave processing of thermosetting materials.”

Potential NASA applications for the out-of-autoclave fabrication technology range from space vehicle skins and tanks to solid rocket motors and liquid rocket engines. Aeronautics applications include wing and fuselage skins for commercial and military airplanes and helicopters.

“Process models and simulations developed here at CCM will be used in moving forward with the next generation of equipment to produce aerospace-grade composite structures,” Tierney says. “The program is a great example of how we can use knowledge-based partnerships to improve U.S. competitiveness. The fact that Accudyne is a local small company with a strong UD alumni presence makes it even better.”

“Accudyne is pleased to again be working with CCM to improve thermoplastic tow and tape placement,” Gruber says. “The Phase 1 effort was successful due to the highly integrated program with John Tierney and [CCM director] Jack Gillespie and their knowledge of thermoplastic materials. This understanding will be crucial for the Phase 2 program, which will model what is happening inside the material as it is being in situ placed into a laminate.”

Through STTR contracts, NASA's Innovative Partnerships Program office partners with U.S. industry to infuse innovative technologies into NASA missions and transition them into commercially available products and services for the agency as well as for the commercial sector. The highly competitive program requires a collaborative research effort between small business and research institutions.

The agency selected 16 proposals for Phase 2 contracts totaling some $9.6 million. Phase 1 awards are for feasibility studies to evaluate the scientific and technical merit of ideas, Phase 2 contracts expand on Phase 1 results, and Phase 3 focuses on commercialization.

Article by Diane Kukich