High Damping for Lightweight Structures CSA Engineering Inc

High Damping for Lightweight Structures CSA Engineering, Inc. Palo Alto, CA Innovation A reliable, cost-effective, precisely controllable damping technology based on cocured viscoelastic/composites. Accomplishments l Developed C-Strut technology, a truss element (strut) manufactured with graphite-epoxy (composite) and viscoelastic (damping) material. l Design achieves stiffness not possible with conventional fabrication methods for viscoelastic damped struts. l Uses passive damping to prolong life and enhance performance while suppressing vibration and noise. l Technique can economically raise the inherent damping of graphite/epoxy composites by over two orders of magnitude. Commercialization l Truss elements for test structure have been sold to the University of Kentucky, with funding from Mc. Donnell Douglas Aerospace, Space Station Division. C-Strut: Load-bearing Strut with High Damping Government/Science Applications l Cocured viscoelastic/composite damping has application for satellites, solar arrays, rotating and construction machinery, machine tools, sporting goods, bicycles, windsurfboards, telescope metering and antenna structures. l Other applications include: household appliances and damping of all types of structures subject to dynamic loads. l Cocured viscoelastic/composite technology was major factor in receiving $500 K aircraft damping contract. Marshall Space Flight Center Date of Update: 3/18/98 Success Story #: 150 Points of Contact: - NASA (Denise Swain; 205/544 -0968) - CSA Engineering (Joseph Maly; 650/494 -7351) 1992 SBIR Phase 2; NAS 8 -39902