Ricerc@Sapienza

The space conditions are very hostile for both spacecrafts and human life. It's well known that UV radiation, vacuum, atomic oxygen and large temperature gradients, damage the aerospace components and in particular lead to a degradation of polymer-based materials that are the basic elements of different spacecraft subsystems, such as multy-layer-insulation (MLI) in satellites and propulsion systems in solar sails. Moreover, the international scientific community is focusing its attention on the design of new radiation monitors and more radiation resistant spacesuits and human habitat structures for exploration of Moon and Mars. For these reasons, the membrane general performance can be improved by nano-reinforced coating on such membranes.
This project will be focused on the development of nanocomposite films on flexible membranes which have unique properties. The realization of multifunctional films on a sufficiently large scale will be the target for a technological demonstrator to be tested in satellite applications. In particular, the nanoparticles geometry, functionalization and concentration in the polymer blend will be studied. An analytical model for the manufacturing process of spray coating of nanocomposites fluids will be developed. Conductive measurements, before and after bending at 180° and UV-C exposure, will be performed on all films by using electrical resistance tomography technique to estimate changes in the conductivity distribution on the surface of the films and the piezoresistive properties of the overall structure. The performance of multifunctional films will be tested in simulated space environments this will bring information on the expected behavior of the films in satellite applications and the Atomistic Finite Element Method (A-FEM) techniques will be used to transfer the mechanical and electric properties of carbon nanoparticles to the polymeric matrix in order to predict the overall properties of the nanostructured composite film.