Ref: R. E. Allred, A. E. Hoyt, P. M. McElroy, S. Scarborough, D. P. Cadogan, UV Rigidizable Carbon-Reinforced Isogrid Inflatable Booms, Proc.

43rd AIAA/ASME/ASCE/AHS/ASC Structures, Structural Dynamics, and Materials Conf., April 22-25, 2002, Denver, CO, paper 2002-1202.

AIAA-2002-1202

UV RIGIDIZABLE CARBON-REINFORCED ISOGRID INFLATABLE BOOMS

Ronald E. Allred and Andrea E. Hoyt Adherent Technologies, Inc. Albuquerque, NM Paul M. McElroy McElroy Science & Engineering, Inc. La Crescenta, CA Stephen Scarborough and David P. Cadogan ILC Dover, Inc. Frederica, DE

ABSTRACT
The objective of this study was to demonstrate sunlight cure (UV) of a carbon fiber-reinforced open isogrid tube for Gossamer-type spacecraft. An epoxybased resin was developed and characterized that cures in sunlight at low temperatures (10C) on carbon and carbon/glass hybrid tows. 1.5-m-long open isogrid tubes were fabricated using wet filament winding techniques. The tubes were sunlight cured and tested for degree of cure and mechanical properties. The demonstration hardware had a 99 percent cure and showed peak buckling loads equivalent to thermally cured tubes. This technology will allow fabrication of large, lightweight and low cost inflatable Gossamer structures that have significantly improved compliant packing efficiency without degradation of deployed precision and mechanical performance.

INTRODUCTION
Large space-deployed structures such as solar sails, radar and communications antennas, radiometers, and solar arrays are receiving a great deal of interest by NASA in the Earth Sciences and Gossamer programs. These large structures by necessity must be ultralightweight and low stored volume. Inflatable or self-deployable approaches that become rigid after they reach the correct shape are a promising approach for fabricating structural members for these applications, such as booms, struts, and trusses. There remains a need for a controlled, clean rigidization technology to harden these inflatable spacecraft once they have achieved the required shape. Previous work has shown that photocurable resins for Rigidization On Command (ROC) has considerable

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Copyright 2002 by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc.

potential for controlled rigidization of inflatable structures1. This work extends the prior photocurable work to sunlight cure of Gossamer spacecraft.

The Rigidization on Command (ROC) Concept

The many approaches to rigidization considered over the past decade and their problems or disadvantages are discussed in Ref. 1. The potential for the ROC concept is also discussed in Ref. 1. The ROC concept uses composites fabricated with cationic photocurable epoxy matrix resins and offers the following advantages: High cure strength (unlike expanded aluminum) Low outgassing (solvent and water free, unlike gelatins) No temperature dependence (cure as low as 20C) Living polymer (guaranteed cure/extra margin) Low shrinkage (unlike gelatins) No complex elastomer/fabric interactions Predictable behavior Indefinite storage life. Inflatable spacecraft constructed with ROC resin systems require only sufficient inflation gas for space deployment and are rigidized only when required with the use of UV light. Similar resins can be used for sunlight cure of Gossamer spacecraft. For the structures noted in the Earth Science interest area (solar sails, antennas, etc.), lightly loaded members will be realized, thus emphasizing the isogrid approach as compared to other structural concepts. A relative mass vs loading comparison for various structural member concepts, inflatable and mechanical, shows that the isogrid construction is one of the most efficient.

BACKGROUND
Inflatables
A comprehensive review of the state of the art in inflatable spacecraft is given in Refs. 2-16. The most important objective for large spacecraft is mass reduction and packing efficiency and the most promising option is the use of inflatable systems. The development of isogrid reinforcements for inflatable tubes has shifted the emphasis from low-mass systems to packaging efficiency for Gossamer structures. The overall intent of inflatable spacecraft is to balance the following properties: low mass small payload volume ease of fabrication high reliability good dimensional stability predictable behavior good dynamic characteristics long storage life low cost. Inflatables deploy and function well in space where the absence of gravity results in very low loads. High accuracy may be maintained by the constant force provided by the inflatant or, preferably, by predictable rigidization of the structural components. Current techniques offer some novel approaches for rigidization of inflatable spacecraft, but they also come with some significant disadvantages including large power consumption, poor stability, and large amounts of outgassing.1

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The open weave of the isogrid also allows for migration of the sunlight energy to the back-side of the laminate, thus opening the potential for advanced reinforcement materials such as carbon to be considered.

Specialized Resins for ROC Applications

It is important to note that, in addition to the standard photoinitator, the addition of other compounds may be required to adjust the cure and storage/handling behavior of the ROC resin systems for the unique complications of inflatable space structures and the cure conditions encountered in an orbital environment. These compounds include sensitizers to increase light absorption, accelerators to increase cure kinetics at low temperatures, and high molecular weight species or fillers to control viscosity.

Accelerators under consideration were selected for stability during long-term storage and to minimize outgassing in the cured resin systems. For this program, polyethers of various structures and molecular weights that are capable of coreaction with epoxy groups were evaluated. Fibers used were IM7-GP 6K (Hexcel Corp.) carbon fiber and 449 AA 1250 S2 (Owens Corning) glass fiber.

Accelerator Evaluation
Preliminary evaluation of accelerated resin systems involved partial photocure of the resins followed by analysis of residual cure exotherm using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). In these experiments, a small amount of sample (2-7 mg) was placed into a DSC liquid sample pan and exposed to UV light using a low power Pen-Ray lamp. The samples were exposed for 15 minutes, after which cure was suspended by quenching on dry ice. The samples were analyzed within 5 min of quench. Results of these experiments showed accelerations of 20 to 100% expressed relative to an unsensitized, unaccelerated photocuring epoxy containing the same photoinitiator. Degree of cure varied between 82.2 and 99.5%. All of the new accelerators tested showed significantly better results than the accelerator developed in Ref. 1. The best results were achieved for the system designated ATI-ROC-P600-2, with nearly complete cure observed after only 15 min UV exposure at ambient temperature. Significant acceleration was also observed for ATI-ROC-T650-2. Those two resin systems were selected for further evaluation.

EXPERIMENTAL
Materials
The primary epoxy resin investigated was a hydrogenated Bisphenol-A epoxy. A diaryliodonium salt was selected as the main photoinitiator for this work. Only one sensitizer was investigated for this program; benzophenone is well documented as a sensitizer for use with tetrahydrofuran in the acceleration of cationic epoxy cure.17 This sensitizer absorbs at approximately 346 nm and transfers energy to the photoinitiator thereby allowing for greater lightharvesting efficiency in the system. The use of this photosensitizer also allows for the use of Mylar films in the production of demonstration articles; without the photosensitizer, the film blocks the wavelength necessary to fragment the photoinitiator.

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Cure Rate Analysis

The cure behavior of the two most promising resin systems was evaluated at various temperatures at and below ambient using two techniques, photocalorimetry and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Photocalorimetry Two types of photocalorimetry experiments were performed to evaluate the cure rates of the various resin systems at temperatures ranging from 20C to 30C. The first series of experiments, called flash photolysis experiments, involved short irradiations (10 sec) with a Pen-Ray lamp, followed by a 20 min isothermal monitoring stage. Flash photolysis experiments have been demonstrated to highlight differences in the initiation rates of various photocuring systems.18 Flash photolysis experiments were conducted at 30C, 20C, and 0C. The second series of experiments involved 20 min Pen-Ray irradiations of the resin samples under isothermal conditions; experiments were conducted at 30C, 20C, 0C, and 20C. Resin samples tested included a control sample (epoxy and photoinitiator only), the AT-R9803/AT-A9809 accelerated system developed in the Ref. 1 study, and the two best accelerated resin systems developed during the course of this effort. Infrared Analysis Analysis of resin cure was also conducted using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. In these experiments, a sample of neat resin was spread into a thin layer onto a commercially available fluoropolymer substrate (3M IR cards,

Type 62). The substrate was placed into a chilled cell in the spectrometer compartment and irradiated with a PenRay lamp placed approximately 2.5 cm from the sample mounting tower. The reduction in peak area of the band at 760 cm-1, at least partially attributed to C--O stretching modes in the epoxide group, was monitored during the course of irradiation. In the first series of experiments, the resins were irradiated for 40 minutes with the cell cooled to 10C.

Coated Fiber Cure Experiments

The ATI-ROC-P600-2 and ATI-ROCT650-2 were selected for curing experiments with carbon (1 or 2 tows) and hybrid tows composed of one carbon and one glass tow. The three tow configurations were coated with ATIROC-P600-2 and ATI-ROC-T650-2 resins. The fibers were spread apart and then brushed with the resin to be tested. The fiber sets were wrapped around glass frames and the frames secured above a mirror so that all sides of the strands would come in contact with UV radiation. The frames were placed in full sunlight and strands were cut from each of the fiber sets at pre-specified time increments and stored away from UV light.

Boom Manufacturing
Isogrid booms were manufactured using a modified thermoset filament winding process. Thermoset filament winding is a process that is widely used to make many axi-symmetric composite parts such as rocket motor cases, storage tanks, and pipes. It is a controlled technique of wrapping fiber rovings around a mandrel that has been formed to the shape of the final part. In this case, the tows were coated with a UV-curable epoxy resin as

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they were wound around a mandrel that was covered with a Mylar bladder. Once the winding was finished, a Mylar restraint was added to the outside of the isogrid boom and the entire assembly removed from the mandrel. End caps were then inserted and the boom UV cured. The isogrid booms fabricated on this program had an isogrid base length of 34.9 mm, a lead angle of 30, and a diameter of 0.1778 m. The boom layers are shown in Figure 1. _____________ _____________
1 mil mylar 12K IM7 carbon fiber + 1 449 S-2 glass roving 1 mil mylar

Figure 3. ROC isogrid boom curing on mandrel The ambient temperature during the boom cure was ~27C. Using a UV meter during the cure, it was found that the UVA radiating from the sun was 4 mW/cm2 and there was 2 mW/cm2 of UVA reflecting back from the mirror trough. This curing procedure was followed for this experiment only to prevent movement at the nodes from handling or part removal. After this first cure, the booms were pulled off of the mandrel, inflated to ~1 psi, and hung outside in the sunlight for 8 hours (Figure 4). Again, they were rotated 90 every half an hour.

Figure 1. ROC isogrid boom layers A photograph of the filament winding process is given in Figure 2.

Figure 2. Isogrid boom manufacturing

Boom Curing
The booms were first cured in sunlight on the mandrel after they were wound. The booms were placed in a mirror trough and rotated 90 every half an hour for 4 hours (Figure 3).

Figure 4. ROC isogrid boom curing without mandrel

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After the tubes were fabricated, a DSC was performed to determine the degree of cure (Figure 5). The result of this DSC test was then compared with the DSC curve of the uncured resin. From this comparison, the boom was 99% cured.

Figure 5. DSC curve of sun-cured isogrid boom

Isogrid Boom Testing

After the booms were cured, they were trimmed down to 39.4-cm long tubes and bonded into aluminum endcaps (Figure 6.). Before the booms were bonded, sample sections were weighed and a mass per unit length was determined with and without the Mylar films. With the Mylar bladder and restraint the mass was 165 g/m. Without the Mylar bladder and restraint, the mass was 108.5 g/m. This mass per length could be reduced in the future by using thinner films for the bladder and the restraint and with more control of the resin content. The booms were then placed into the Instron machine and tested (Figure 7). The booms were first tested in torsion to determine their torsion modulus. Then the booms were compression tested to Figure 6. ROC isogrid boom testing sample

Figure 7. Sample isogrid beam compression test setup failure to determine their compressive modulus and strength.

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RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Resin Development
At 30C, all samples except the control initiated polymerization with a 10 sec UV exposure. Initiation rates appeared similar for ATI-ROC-T650-2 and the ATR9803 system; these systems settled into a constant polymerization rate at 4 min and 5 min, respectively. ATI-ROC-P600-2 initiated somewhat faster, settling into a constant polymerization rate at approximately 3 min. Figure 8 shows the differences between the various resin systems at 30C. The ATI-ROC-P600-2 resin (solid curve Figure 8) shows the fastest initiation as exhibited by the largest initial exotherm and rapid rise to steady state polymerization. Decreasing the temperature leads to slower initiation for all systems: the magnitude of the initiator production exotherm is smaller and covers a longer time period. Only ATI-ROC-P600-2 and ATI-ROC-T650-2 exhibited any initiation with a 10 sec exposure at 20C; none of the samples exhibited any significant initiation with a 10 sec exposure at 0C.

Plots exhibiting the temperature effects on the 10-sec photoinitiation of ATI-ROCP600-2 are shown in Figure 9.

Figure 9. Flash photolysis thermograms for ATI-ROC-P600-2 resin at several different temperatures. The reduction in rate of initiation with reduction in temperature can clearly be noted. The results of the 20-minute irradiations at various temperatures mirrored the results of the flash photolysis; the ATIROC-P600-2 resin was the most active at all temperatures, followed by the ATIROC-T650-2 resin and the unaccelerated control resin. In contrast with the flash photolysis experiments, however, slow polymerization was observed at 0C for ATI-ROC-P600-2 and ATI-ROC-T650-2; very little activity was noted at 20C. Both new resin systems performed considerably better than the ATR9803/AT-A9809 ROC resin system developed in the Ref. 1 study. The infrared results were in agreement with the calorimetry experiments; the ATI-ROC-P600-2 resin showed faster, more complete cure during the irradiation period than did either of the other two resins, ATI-ROC-T650-2 or the unaccelerated control. Figure 10 compares the relative cure of ATI-ROCP600-2 and the unaccelerated control

Figure 8. Flash photolysis thermograms for three ROC resins at 30C

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resin; differences in the starting peak area can be attributed to slight differences in the film thicknesses used for the experiments.

Figure 11. Plot of 760 cm-1 peak area (corresponding to epoxide ring-opening polymerization) versus time for ATI-ROCP600-2 resin Figure 10. Comparison of the reduction in peak area at 760 cm-1 (corresponding to epoxide ring-opening polymerization) for an unaccelerated control resin and ATIROC-P600-2 at 10C. ATI-ROC-P600-2 presents a marked improvement in cure at 10C relative to the unaccelerated control resin. This is evidenced by the fact that the ending peak area for ATI-ROC-P600-2 is lower than that for the control resin despite having started at a higher level. ATIROC-T650-2 also exhibited faster cure at 10C than did the control sample. A sample of ATI-ROC-P600-2 resin was also subjected to a longer term experiment at 10C in an effort to determine when polymerization is complete at this temperature. A plot of peak area versus reaction time for this experiment is given in Figure 11. The reaction proceeds quite quickly over the first 75 minutes of the experiment, gradually tapering off at approximately 120 minutes. It is not likely that polymerization is complete at this stage; the sample was still somewhat tacky at the conclusion of the experiment. It is important to note, however, that polymerization at 10C is feasible for this resin system. This is extremely important given the calculations of expected orbital temperatures in which these systems need to perform.

Tow Cure
Obtaining photocure on carbon-reinforced composites was the major goal of the program. Prior work has demonstrated that the cure front does not propagate through a bundle of carbon fibers. Possible reasons for termination of reaction may include the inability of the UV-initiating light to penetrate the tow or quenching of cationic reacting species via an unidentified mechanism, perhaps formation of acidbase complexes with the carbon fiber surface. In this program we evaluated the UV-initiated photocure of accelerated resin systems on IM7-GP 6K fiber systems. Various single and woven tow configurations were evaluated; modeling

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has shown that woven tows are required to ensure structural integrity of the isogrid boom structures and that the weaving forms a light pipe effect that aids UV penetration into the interior of the fiber bundles. In this work, single carbon tows, a carbon tow woven with Owens Corning 449 AA 1250 S2 glass fiber, and a configuration consisting of two woven IM7 tows were evaluated. The results of the tow experiments indicate that photocure on carbon fiber is indeed possible with the resin systems developed during the course of this program. Both ATI-ROC-P600-2 and ATI-ROC-T650-2 resin systems showed significant photocure on carbon during a 300 min exposure to sunlight. Figure 12 shows the cure of the two resins on a single carbon tow.

The results for the carbon/glass and carbon/carbon woven tows were much better. Approximately 90-95% cure was achieved for all samples during the first 60 minutes of sunlight exposure with the bulk of the cure occurring within the first 15 minutes of exposure. This is shown in Figure 13. It is important to note that the results for ATI-ROC-P600-2 with carbon/carbon woven tows is virtually indistinguishable from that achieved for the carbon/glass woven tows. Improvement in cure with carbon/glass woven tows versus single carbon tows was expected.

Figure 12. Degree of resin cure on single IM7 carbon tows as a function of exposure to sunlight Based on the fits to the data, ATI-ROCP600-2 cured slightly faster than did ATIROC-T650-2 under similar conditions. Degrees of cure for the two resins appear to be similar, around 80%. While not fully cured, this is an important result since the cure of these resins on a single carbon tow was successfully demonstrated.

Figure 13. Degree of cure of ATI-ROCP600-2 and ATI-ROC-T650-2 resins on woven IM7/S-glass tows as a function of sunlight exposure. Degree of cure on ATIROC-P600-2 resin on two woven IM7 tows is also included. The glass fiber can transmit UV light further into the sample, thereby improving cure throughout the system. In the case of the carbon/carbon woven tows, however, it appears that the weaving boundary, which is filled with resin, acts as a sort of light pipe, also transmitting UV light deeper into the sample and promoting cure. This phenomenon is, in fact, supported by the

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modeling, which indicates a helical resin line between the tows in any woven system.

Boom Mechanical Tests

The results of the torsion and compression testing are given in Table I. Table I. Mechanical Test Results Summary on Isogrid Booms
Serial No. Length (in.) Failure Mode ICT1424-001 12.718 Local Rib Buckling 39.2 ICT1424-002 12.718 Local Rib Buckling 34.3

booms fabricated using wet filament winding techniques and sunlight cure showed equivalent properties to similar booms that were thermally cured. When fully developed, this technology may be used to fabricate large inflatable Gossamer spacecraft with compliant packing efficiency without degrading deployment precision or mechanical properties.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors would like to thank Ms. Melissa R. Sprouse for her extensive work in evaluating resin photocure and composite photocure during the course of this program. We would also like to thank Dr. Keith Belvin, NASA LaRC, the technical monitor for this work, for his insight and guidance during the program. This work was performed on Phase I SBIR contract NAS1-01042 for NASA LaRC.

Maximum Compression Load (lbf)

Linear
Displacement @

0.1015

0.1350

Max. Compressive Load (in.) JG (lbf-in2) EA (lbf) 179705 51789 155261 36536

REFERENCES
1. R.E. Allred, L.A. Harrah, A.E. Hoyt, P.M. McElroy, R.A. Wise, and M.C. Lou, Inflatable Spacecraft Using Rigidization on Command (ROC) Concept, 41st AIAA/ASME/ASCE/ AHS/ASC SDM Conference, April 3-6, 2000, Atlanta, GA, Paper AIAA 20001637. 2. G. Grossman and G. Williams, Inflatable Concentrators for Solar Propulsion and Dynamic Space Power, J. of Solar Energy Engineering, 112, 229, (1990). 3. G. Reibaldi, G. Hammer, and J. Bernasconi, Inflatable SpaceRigidized Reflector Development for Land Mobile Missions, 11th COMSAT Conference, San Diego, CA, March 17, 1986.

As can be seen from the results of these tests, Tube 1 failed in compression at 39.2 lbs and Tube 2 failed in compression at 34.3 lbs. Both failure modes were local rib buckling. The preliminary calculated value for a 12K IM9 boom is 25 lbs. Note that the Booms tested were 12K IM7 intermingled with 1 roving of fiberglass.

CONCLUSIONS
Results from this work show that sunlight cure of Gossamer spacecraft without MLI is possible on carbon-reinforced open architecture structures. Sample carbon/glass-reinforced open isogrid

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4. M. Bernasconi and S. Koese, Space Rigidized Thermal Shield for the ESA FIRST, 3rd European Symp. on Space Thermal Control and Life Support, Noordwijk, NL, October 3, 1988. 5. B. Authier and L. Hill, Large Inflatable Parabolic Reflectors in Space, Instrumentation for SubMillimeter Spectroscopy, 598, 126-132 (1985). 6. J. V. Coyner, Conceptual Design of an Electrostatic Antenna, Large Space Systems Technology, NASA Conference Publication 2215, November 16, 1981. 7. W. R. Clayton and, P. A. Gierow, Inflatable Concentrators for Solar Thermal Propulsion, ASME Solar Engineering 2, 795 (1992) 8. P.B. Willis, Foam Reinforced Inflatable Spacecraft, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, NASA Tech Brief, NPO-19913, March 1997 9. G. Friese, Inflated Concepts for the Earth Science Geostationary Platform and an Associated Flight Experiment, LGarde, Inc., NASA-CR-187580, Jan 1992. 10. P. A. Gierow and J. Paxton, Material Property Effects on Thin Film Solar Concentrators, J. of Spacecraft and Rockets, 32, 697 (1990). 11. D. Lester, M. Warner, and M. Blair, Foam Inflated Rigidized Structures for Space Applications, Proc. 1993 JANNAF Propulsion Meeting, Vol. 2, 243-251, (1993). 12. C. Cassapakis and M. Thomas, Inflatable Structures Technology Overview, Proc. AIAA Space Prog. and Tech. Conf., Huntsville, AL, September 26, 1995.

13. M. Thomas and G. Veale, Scaling Characteristics of Inflatable Paraboloid Concentrators, Solar Engineering, ASME Book No. H00630, 1991. 14. J. Main and R. Carlin, Dynamic Analysis of Space-Based Inflated Beam Structures, J. of the Acoustical Society of America, 97, 11035, (1995). 15. J. Main and J. Peterson, Load Deflection Behavior of Space Based Inflatable Fabric Beams, J. Aerospace Engineering, 7, 225 (1994). 16. R. Freeland, Validation of a Unique Concept for a Low-Cost, Lightweight Space-Deployable Antenna Structure, 44th Congress of the International Astronautical Federation, Graz, Austria, October 16, 1993. 17. L. R. Gatechair, and S. P. Pappas, Cationic Photoinitiation Efficiency, Initiation of Polymerization, F. E. Bailey, ed., ACS Symp. Ser. 212, American Chemical Society, Washington, DC, 1983, pp. 173-189. 18. Sauerbrunn, S.R., Armbruster, D.C. and Shickel, P.D., Differential Photocalorimetry: Advancements for the Analysis and Characterization of Free Radical, Cationic and Hybrid Photopolymers, TA Instruments Publication No. TA-037, available at www.tainst.com.

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