Technical Note: New structural materials for space applications

During the early evolution of the aeroplane, extensive use was made of wooden constructions relying on what might be termed a 'natural' composite material, including the familiar plywood form of construction. The greater strength, stiffness and fracture resistance of metals (for a given mass) eventually led to the replacement of wood with metal constructions, particularly those exploiting aluminium alloys. This, in turn, led to the development of the so–called 'light alloys' that are now used extensively in the construction of space vehicles. More recently, fibreglass composites have also come to be widely used in the construction of lightly–loaded structural components and, because of their good dielectric properties, for the first generation of space antennas. In the last ten years, the use of these now 'conventional' materials has been increasingly challenged by the emergence of new composite materials with potentially better specific–strength and stiffness properties.