Simulating impact-induced satellite breakups with a discrete element method

The Discrete Element Method is uniquely suited to modeling the extreme fragmentation typical of impact-induced satellite breakups. In this paper, we introduce a discrete orthotropic material model for simulating carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRP). We calibrate and validate the CFRP model with hypervelocity impact experiments performed at Fraunhofer EMI on thin CFRP face sheets. We demonstrate the suitability of the model for simulating spacecraft breakups by comparing simulation results to a ground-based experiment of a 15 x 15 × 15 cm CFRP micro-satellite from literature. Fragment size distributions show excellent agreement between experiment and literature. Comparisons are also made with the NASA breakup model.