Basic design guidelines for SMA/epoxy smart composites

The actuating ability and reliability of shape memory alloy (SMA) hybrid composites were studied in this paper. Results showed that by selecting small hysteresis SMAs such as TiNiCu alloy, SMA hybrid composites have a linear stress-temperature behavior, which is relatively easy to control. The curing process of the epoxy matrix does not affect significantly the actuating ability of the embedded TiNiCu alloy wires. A moderate prestrain of the TiNiCu wires is preferred when giving attention to both the mechanical properties and the reliability of the TiNiCu hybrid composites. Additional reinforcing fibers with a negative thermal expansion coefficient such as Kevlar fibers are helpful to strengthen the reliability of the interface and enhance the actuating ability of the SMA hybrid composites. Based on the experimental results, some basic guidelines for designing shape memory hybrid composites were proposed.