Magneto-rheological fluid (MRF) characterization, optimization and condition monitoring for aircraft flight control actuators

航空航天工业正面临着开发更清洁、更轻飞机的政治、社会和经济压力 由环保材料制成，并采用节能技术。其中一项关键技术是开发机电执行器(EMA)，以取代传统的飞行操纵面液压执行器。在开发用于飞行控制的实用EMA时，主要问题是可靠性，因为传统的齿轮和螺丝机构可能会卡住并导致灾难性故障。NSERC-CRIAQ的第一个项目(ENV404)证明了磁流变学 用于连续滑移驱动(CSA)的流体(MRF)旋转离合器以其高控制带宽、高功率重量比和高可靠性，可以很好地满足航空航天运动控制的要求。这一新的NSERC-CRIAQ-CARIC项目提案(ENV709)的目标是提供必要的知识和理解，使磁流变液执行器能够在直升机飞行控制应用中得到实际应用。剩下的最突出的挑战是 磁流变液的耐久性和最优离合器的设计。拟议的研究将对磁流变液的降解进行深入的实验表征。将对流体进行分析，并确定和量化降解过程。根据研究结果，将提出并验证改进的磁流变液和离合器设计。提出状态监测策略，开发磁流变液状态监测传感器技术。最后，将为典型的飞行控制应用制作全功能磁流变液执行器的原型，并在复制飞行测试条件的全尺寸耐久试验台上对该执行器进行测试。这项研究将通过提供必要的知识来推动航空航天和机器人领域的发展，以完成用于CSA的一种新的有前途的驱动技术-磁流变液旋转离合器的开发。这个 研究将为加拿大航空航天工业提供专有新技术，这些技术将成为一项战略 这是加拿大在航空航天领域的竞争力资产。

The aerospace industry is facing political, social, and economic pressure to develop cleaner and lighter aircrafts made from environmentally friendly materials and using energy efficient technologies. One key technology is the development of Electro-Mechanical Actuators (EMA) to replace conventional hydraulic actuators for flight control surfaces. The main issue in developing practical EMAs for flight control is reliability as traditional gears and screw mechanisms can seize and lead to catastrophic failures. A first NSERC-CRIAQ project (ENV404) demonstrated that MagnetoRheological Fluid (MRF) rotary clutches for Continuous Slippage Actuation (CSA) can advantageously meet aerospace motion control requirements with their high control bandwidth, high power-to-weight ratios, and high reliability. The goal of this new NSERC-CRIAQ-CARIC project proposal (ENV709) is to provide the knowledge and understanding required to enable practical applications of MRF actuators for helicopter flight control applications. The most prominent remaining challenge is the durability of MRF and the design of optimal clutches. The proposed research will conduct an in-depth experimental characterization of the degradation of MRF. Fluids will be analyzed and the degradation process identified and quantified. Based on findings, improved MRF and clutch designs will be proposed and verified. Condition monitoring strategies will be proposed and a MRF condition monitoring sensor technology will be developed. Finally, a fully functional MRF actuator will be prototyped for a typical flight control application and the actuator will be tested on a full-scale endurance test bench replicating flight test conditions. The research will advance the field of aerospace and robotics by providing the knowledge necessary to complete the development of a new promising actuation technology, MRF rotary clutches used in CSA. The research will provide Canadian aerospace industry with proprietary new technology that will become a strategic asset for Canada's competitiveness in the aerospace sector.