Experimental Study on the Bending Creep Behavior of CFRP Tube

Abstract

To evaluate the service reliability of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic （CFRP） composite tubes used in spacecraft structure，static three-point-bending and creep tests of the CFRP tube are performed. At first，experimental tests of bending modulus and bending rupture strength，500-hour-long constant temperature creep，–60 ℃～100 ℃ and –160 ℃～80 ℃ thermal cyclic creep are conducted for the tube respectively. Based on the testing results，long-term creep deformation of the tube is predicted，using the time-temperature-stress superposition principle，the derived creep master curves as well as a phenomenal Findley model. Then，assessment on the mechanical strength and load-carrying capacity of the CFRP tube is made according to a maximum strain criterion. Results show that the CFRP tube can meet the creep deformation and strength requirements under the long-term service lifetime.

Keywords

CFRP tube / bending strength / creep property / time-temperature-stress superposition principle / load-carrying capacity assessment