MODELING THE BEHAVIOR AT LAUNCHING FOR A SATELLITE’S SUBASSEMBLY

The housings of satellite's electronic units have been traditionally made of aluminum. However, as it has been shown in other aerospace applications, the use of composite materials could potentially lead to large mass savings. With the high costs of sending a unit mass of payload into orbit, the mass should be minimized. Composite materials may be able to meet the multiple performance requirements set for the housings, and also carbon fiber-reinforced plastics (CFRP) due to their higher specific stiffness and strength can obtain an important mass saving over aluminum. The main objective of the study is the design and finite element analysis of a composite housing for electronics in a satellite that meets the structural requirements of an existing equipment unit made by aluminum.