Substituição da matriz estrutural de um ARP de espuma depron para ácido polilático utilizado em manufatura aditiva

Abstract

Modifying the structure of polymers by adding supercritical agents varies important properties of these materials, which expands the field of these polymers and Additive Manufacturing (AM) as a whole. In this context, a change was made to the depron structural matrix of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) for Low Density Polylactic Acid (LW-PLA) used in AM. In this regard, the characterization of the LW-PLA used was carried out, analyzing the variation in density of this polymer as its extrusion temperature varies in the 3D printing process. The UAV 3D model was designed and exported to a slicing \textit{software} in order to determine the mass of each structural component of the proposed model. The sizing of a tubular carbon fiber spar, taking into account the forces acting in balanced flight, was done. The spar mass was added to the total structural mass, provided by the slicing \textit{software} of the proposed model. Performance calculations were made for the proposed model and compared to the performance of the original model. Due to the decrease in structural mass, it can be concluded that printing UAVs using LW-PLA is not only possible but also advantageous. There was an increase in endurance and flight range, as well as a decrease in the minimum speed that can be performed by the UAV and an increase in the maximum speed. In addition, AM fabrication is a less laborious process in the manufacture of structures and also more accurate from a dimensional point of view. The decrease in mass can also allow an increase of more than 100\% of the loaded weight when maintaining the same performance of the reference UAV.