Vibration Attenuation in an Epoxy Smart Composite Beam with Embedded NiTi Shape Memory Wires

Shape memory alloys (SMA) are thermo-responsive materials where deformation can be induced and recovered through temperature changes. Therefore, SMA are considered smart materials. In this work, an epoxy beam reinforced by NiTi SMA wires was developed. This active composite contains five pre-trained NiTi SMA wire actuators, evenly distributed along the neutral plane of the epoxy beam, which can be activated by resistive heating. The results of different ways for electrical activation of the smart composite in a simply clamped mode are discussed. It was possible to demonstrate the viability of this concept for attenuation of mechanical vibrations by controlled electrical heating of the NiTi wire actuators.