Shape Memory Polymer
All-Polymer Conductive Liquid Crystal Elastomer
Morphing Systems
Custom Reusable Mandrels
Deploying Veritex Struts
High-Performance Composite Patch System
Low-Density, Low-Void Syntactic Foam
 Shape
Memory Polymer
In 1998, under internal funding, CRG researchers
conducted preliminary experiments on a thermoplastic shape
memory polymer (SMP). The potential of this underused class
of materials was immediately recognized for multifunctional
structures. External funding was obtained on a Phase I NASA
SBIR program to investigate applying this class of material
to deploy and form a lightweight reflective membrane on orbit.
Although the follow-on Phase 2 program was not secured, the
feasibility and demonstrated potential of SMP was validated.
In addition, CRG researchers realized many potential applications
of SMP had not yet been recognized by the technical community.
Subsequently, CRG embarked on a business development plan
to secure intellectual property rights and funding to develop
and exploit the unique properties of SMP.
In 2000, CRG secured follow-on funding to demonstrate
both a new thermoset SMP based on styrenic chemistry and some
new concepts that used the unique characteristics of thermoset
SMPs. These programs resulted in a ground-breaking patent
on styrene SMP (Patent No. US 6,759,481), patents covering
the use of SMP as a mold in an ophthalmic lens rapid manufacturing
process (Patent No. US 6,827,325) and several other patents
that are pending. Building on the success from the previous
year, in 2001 CRG continued the development of rapid manufacturing
technology for a medical device and under internal funding
expanded the application of SMP to reconfigurable composite
structures. Applications for reconfigurable composites included
skin for morphing aircraft, deployable housing, and others.
These internally funded demonstrations were the foundation
for many current research and development programs. During
this time, it became apparent that new formulations and classes
of thermoset SMP materials were required to transition this
technology into real systems.
In subsequent years, CRG demonstrated several
new classes of thermoset polymers, including a high-temperature
SMP based on cyanate ester chemistry, a high-toughness epoxy
SMP, light-activated SMP, water-activated SMP and others (patents
pending). The unique properties of these materials continue
to drive innovations in a wide range of applications.
In 2004, CRG made the baseline styrenic SMP,
trademarked as Veriflex®,
commercially available through CRG Industries LLC. Another
commercially available product, Veritex™,
a stock composite material using Veriflex resin, is demonstrating
its usefulness in composite thermoforming applications. The
following year (2005) saw the introduction of the first consumer
product based on CRG’s SMP technology – Rubbn’Repair™
– a composite patch material targeting the performance
racing industry. This patch product is designed to rapidly
repair car body damage on complex curved surfaces in less
than 20 seconds in the pit. Initial reponse to this product
by top racing teams has been highly enthusiastic. In 2006,
the material was further commercialized by targeting the Veritex
patch toward more general repair applications. The patch system
for these applications is trade named Rec'Repair™
and is proving useful in a myriad of applications requiring
structural repairs that duct tape or glue can't handle.
Shape memory polymer technology has revolutionized
the way many industry leaders are thinking about how to design,
fabricate, and use their next-generation products. New materials,
processes and applications are under continuous development
at CRG. Recently demonstrated technological breakthroughs
in material design will enable SMP technology to be applied
to even the most cost-sensitive applications.
[For more about SMP, see Veriflex]
 All-Polymer
Conductive Liquid
Crystal Elastomer
Advanced
Materials scientists have partnered with Kent State
University to develop novel conductive elastomeric materials
for the Air Force Office of Scientific Research. In this program,
CRG scientists demonstrated the feasibility of an all-polymer
conductive liquid crystalline elastomer. They employed template-synthesis
of conductive polymer in a reactive liquid crystal medium
to obtain the desirable conducting polymer network microstructures.
New liquid crystalline monomers were designed
and synthesized to meet the compatibility requirements for
this material system and were used to template-synthesize
a fibrilar conductive polymer network within the system. The
molecular alignment in the liquid crystal monomer controlled
the morphology of the elastomer. This morphology led to significant
conductivity at a low loading of conductive polymer. This
technology will lead to significant weight savings and enhanced
durability features, such as lower compression set and higher
corrosion resistance over that of traditional conductive seal
materials. This program has established key correlation between
performance and material design, conductive elastomer material
synthesis, and processing conditions.
 Morphing
Systems
Systems
Engineering researchers are currently working with
the Air Force Research Laboratories Munitions Directorate
(AFRL/ MN) to develop and demonstrate sound structural morphing
materials and process technology to enable multiple Air Force
morphing structure applications. CRG is prototyping a morphing
wing for a Lockheed Martin developmental system. This new
wing will improve system performance and enable the vehicle
to carry out additional missions.
CRG is exploiting a unique suite of smart materials
technologies on this program. These include high-performance
shape memory polymers (Veriflex), shape memory composites
(Veritex), and shape memory foams (Verilyte). CRG is combining
these smart materials with advanced processes, fabrication,
and other supporting technologies to achieve morphing structures
that meet Lockheed Martin's requirements and support future
Air Force morphing needs.
CRG's shape memory polymer, Veriflex, was initially
developed under a commercial contract with a Fortune 500 company.
CRG has continued to develop this technology for military
applications and commercial industries.
[Read more about Morphing
Aircraft]
Custom Reusable
Mandrels
 Manufacturing
Technology engineers are working with Air Force
Research Laboratories Material Directorate (AFRL/ML) to apply
CRG's shape memory polymer technology, Veriflex, to
make complex, reusable mandrels/tooling for fabricating filament-wound
composites. Veriflex is a fully-cured, high-performance
thermoset that maintains excellent dimensional stability during
composite fabrication and cure, but is highly elastic at an
elevated temperature. The temperature at which Veriflex becomes
elastic is specifically designed to be compatible with both
the resin cure cycle and the maximum allowable thermal exposure
of the composite.
Mandrel fabrication entails placing a Veriflex
tube (called Smart Mandrels™) into a clamshell
mold, heating it to its elastic state, and then inflating
it so the Veriflex conforms to the complex shape defined by
the mold. Once inflated, the mold and Veriflex are cooled
until the Veriflex returns to its rigid state and can
then be removed from the mold. The result is a custom-shaped
mandrel that can be used to filament-wind complex shapes,
be easily removed after cure, and be molded and used again.
This new tooling process is patent pending.
[Read more about Smart
Mandrels]
Deploying Veritex
Struts
 CRG
engineers are working with NASA to develop composite strut
or truss structures that can be compacted for stowage and
later deploy themselves to full size and shape. In the target
applications, these “smart” structures will precisely
self-deploy and support a large, lightweight, space-based
antenna.
Self-deploying struts offer a simple, light,
and affordable alternative to articulated mechanisms or inflatable
structures. The struts may also be useful in such terrestrial
applications as variable-geometry aircraft components or shelters
that can be compacted, transported, and deployed quickly in
hostile environments. The high-performance Veriflex
SMP, which is the matrix for the Veritex
composite material, is integral to the new strut material's
structure, simplifying the design and increasing the savings
in mass, cost, and system complexity.
[Read
more about Deployable
Space Structures]
High-Performance
Composite Patch System
 As
a result of research on a Phase I NASA program and internal
research and development, CRG engineers have developed a commercializable
shape memory composite patch system that capitalizes on the
properties of Veritex.
The composite material is constructed of high-strain fabric
with a Veriflex
SMP matrix, and an industrial strength 3M adhesive applied
to one side.
Although the NASA program never went to Phase
II, the material demonstrated immediate promise as a commercial
product for many repair applications. The patch is currently
being marketed as Rubbn'Repair®
with sizes and performance suited for the auto racing industry
and auto body repair, and as Rec'Repair™
targeted at general repair markets such as outdoor gear, lawn
equipment, household repairs, and the trucking industry.
Like Veritex composite, the patch material is
rigid at operating temperatures, but becomes pliable above
its transition temperature. Users heat the patch, cut it to
size with scissors, peel off the adhesive backing, and then
apply the patch while shaping it to conform to the contours
of the damaged surface. When it cools, the patch system provides
adhesion as well as rigid, structural support, which repair
tapes and most glues can't offer. The material is available
for sale through CRG
Industries LLC.
[Read more about Rubbn'Repair....Read
more about Rec'Repair]
Low-Density,
Low-Void Syntactic Foam
 Multiple
research programs involving varying grades of syntactic foam
have led to advances in processing syntactic. CRG now uses
a low-stress resin removal system in which the excess resin
is extracted from the syntactic material before the resin
is cured. The resulting high-quality syntactic, called Advantic™,
is being sold commercially through CRG Industries’ as
a series of lightweight, engineered syntactic foams made with
glass, polymer, or ceramic microballoons embedded in a resin
matrix such as cyanate ester, silicone, or epoxy.
CRG Industries’ exclusive mixing process
produces syntactic foams for a variety of applications and
markets, from acoustic panels to aerospace structural cores.
Advantic’s low density (half the density of water),
high uniformity, strength (better than many grades of concrete),
and minimum void content make the material beneficial to a
wide and diverse market. CRG Industries can provide custom,
high-performance Advantic for small and large projects.
In 2005, Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Ocean
Futures Society used Advantic for fine-tuning the buoyancy
of their new rebreather diving systems. CRG provided the material
on short notice to support the Cousteau diving team’s
test schedule in preparation for filming deep dives on the
wreck of the Civil War-era, ironclad warship, Monitor. Advantic
met the team’s needs for a strong, machinable, and lightweight
material for adjusting the rebreathers’ center of gravity.
[Read
more about Advantic]
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