The Spacecraft Truss Structures Mass Reduction Method

Design of the Flying Vehicles Elements from Polymer Composite Materials


Аuthors

Rudenko M. S.1, Girn A. V.1, Bystrov N. D.2*, Oreshkin D. I.1

1. Siberian State University of Science and Technology named after academician M.F. Reshetnev, 31, Krasnoyarsky Rabochy av., Krasnoyarsk, 660014, Russia
2. Samara National Research University, Moskovskoe shosse, 34, Samara, Russia

*e-mail: bystrof-nd@yandex.ru

Abstract

The article presents a method for the spacecraft truss structures mass reducing by the adhesion strength of the bonded joints between the titanium alloy end fittings and carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) tubes through the titanium surface laser texturing. The truss structures are widely applied in the large deployable spaceborne antennas, reflectors, and telecommunication spacecraft. Typically, such trusses consist of the CFRP tubes with titanium inserts (end fittings) glued to their end faces. It is demonstrated that the interface between the titanium alloy and adhesive compound is the weakest link of the coupling, exhibiting the glued joint adhesive strength of only 5–12 MPa without special surface preparation. This low strength is attributed to the presence of a passive oxide film (predominantly rutile, TiO2) that is naturally formed on titanium and prevents formation of the strong interatomic and intermolecular bonds with functional groups of the adhesive.
The authors theoretically justify the nanosecond laser radiation selection for surface texturing. Unlike the femtosecond or continuous-wave lasers, the nanosecond mode ensures a combination of two complementary strengthening mechanisms: (1) mechanical anchoring due to the regular microrelief formation (microgrooves, craters, and re-solidified ridges), and (2) chemical activation of the surface resulting from thermochemical modification of the oxide layer. During nanosecond laser treatment, the original passive rutile film is removed, and rapid melting, ablation, and recrystallization in an oxygen-containing atmosphere lead to the formation of a new oxide layer enriched with chemically active anatase, which improves wettability and adhesion.
Experimental verification was performed on the samples simulating the CFRP tube with titanium end fitting joint bonded with a three-component epoxy adhesive (VK-9). For the titanium end fittings processed by a spiral texture at a pitch of 125 µm, the shear adhesive strength reached 30.42 MPa, which is approximately 50 % higher than that achieved by conventional mechanical turning. This significant increase in adhesive strength allows proportionally reduce the required bond line length while maintaining the same load‑bearing capacity.
A quantitative mass efficiency assessment was performed for a reflector truss structure containing 216 identical joints. The required bond length after laser texturing was reduced from 15 mm to 6.85 mm, saving 8.15 mm per joint. Given the mass per unit length of the titanium insert of approximately 0.1 g/mm, the mass saving per joint was 0.815 g, resulting in a total mass saving of 176 g for the entire truss. This corresponds to a relative mass reduction of 5.1 % compared to the original truss mass. Computational estimates for the other typical sizes of space truss structures confirm that relative mass saving remains stable within the range from 4.5 to 5.0 %, demonstrating the reproducibility and practical significance of the proposed technical solution.
Thus, nanosecond laser texturing of titanium surfaces is an effective, industrially feasible method for enhancing adhesive bonding in hybrid metal‑composite joints, enabling measurable mass reduction in lightweight space structures without compromising mechanical performance.

Keywords:

spacecraft trusses, adhesive joint, laser titanium texturing

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