| dc.description.abstract | New methods to produce environmentally-friendly energy, is a growing technology area.
By using wind at high altitudes, Kitemill wants to be a part of this revolution. Operations in the air requires high quality and security of components. Furthermore, rough conditions make demands on excellent material properties. For this purpose carbon fiber composite is suited for use. This is one of the areas of expertise at Kongsberg Defence Systems (KDS), and it is in their interest to develop new utilization for the technology. Kitemill's concept is based on a plane consisting of a wing, divided into two separate parts. To connect the two halves, a joiner is needed. During this master work design, manufacturing process and production of an optimized joiner, together with a finite element analysis (FEA), has been the main focus.
Two different designs for the joiner have been evaluated, a rectangular box profile and an I-beam with foam core. A manufacturing process for the two profiles were developed, using Kitemill's existing mold tool as base. During the layup of the two joiners, differences and experiences were detected to discuss further improvement of the manufacturing process. A four point bending test were performed to test the two manufactured joiners. The results from the bending test were verified through a FEA analysis, and the results corresponded well. Furthermore, a buckling analysis were performed, and confirmed that failure due to buckling will not be crucial for the applied loads. Finally, all results and processes were compared, to obtain the most suited design and manufacturing process for the joiner.
The results from experimental work and FEA analysis concluded with the I-beam as the best design for the joiner. Furthermore, some recommendations was given to improve the manufacturing process. | |
