High-performance lightweight structures for aerospace, automotive engineering and energy technology are the focus of research at the Institute of Structures and Design. The Institute consists of a total of five departments with sites in Stuttgart and Augsburg. The Center for Lightweight Construction Technology (ZLP) is located in Augsburg.
The thrust chamber as part of a rocket engine is one of the most highly stressed components. Therefore, it has a great influence on the performance, reliability and cost of a launcher system. The combination of modern composite materials with innovative design concepts and cooling methods within the framework of Black Engine technology promises advantages in terms of simplified production, reliability and reusability.
In September 2016, the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) and the Canadian University of British Columbia (UBC) launched the collaboration initiative DLR@UBC.
As a spin-off of the German Aerospace Center, msquare GmbH distributes, develops and produces innovative induction heating technologies. These can be used profitably and resource-saving in the manufacture and repair of fibre composites, for example in wind energy or aerospace
In the project „Procomp“ manufactured a thermoplastic carbon fiber reinforced inter-stage structure for next generation European launcher systems. Using a cutting edge flashlamp heatsource the DLR developers manufactured two scaled demonstrator of a lattice inter-stage structure using in-situ Automated Fiber Placement (AFP). To see here: Scaled, intertank structure demonstrator (left untrimmed, right trimmed part) Credit: DLR
Im Projekt „IRAS“ wird in Zusammenarbeit von Industrie und Forschung in Baden-Württemberg eine integrierte Entwicklungsplattform für kostengünstige Satelliten aufgebaut. Hier zu sehen: Die Herstellung der trockenen Flechtstruktur eines CMC-Orbitaltriebwerks. Quelle: DLR
Thermoplastic composites, thermoplastic advanced fiber placement (T-AFP), in-situ consolidation (ISC), flashlamp heating, continuous ultrasonic welding (cUS), resistance welding (RW)
The project Urban Rescue deals with different rotorcraft configurations (helicopters and eVTOLs) which are necessary for urban rescue scenarios.
Tobias Haase studied computer science. Since 2016 he has been working as a researcher in the Department of Automation and Quality Assurance in Production Technology at the DLR Institute of Structures and Design’s Center for Lightweight-Production-Technology (ZLP) in Augsburg. In this interview, he tells us about his job. Credit: DLR