SCHOOL AFFIATION

West Ashley Center for Advanced Studies (K-12) (Charleston, SC)

FACULTY ADVISOR

Prof. Oliver Meyer (Mechanical Engineering)

RESEARCH PROJECT OVERVIEW

The bistability characteristics of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminate were measured with a profilometer. Novel shapes including hexagons, flags, triangles, and kites were developed along with a hinge. Preforming the composites required experimenting with silicone and parchment paper as separators to prevent the composite from sticking to itself or to forms and modified vacuum bagging techniques. Integrating aluminum strips on the hinge line increased the curvature while using the KEVLAR® -carbon fiber hybrid fabric resulted in a multi-stable object with interesting force transition properties.