Multiscale modeling of unsaturated flow in dual-scale fiber preforms of liquid composite molding III: reactive flows

The woven, stitched or braided fabrics used in liquid composite molding (LCM) display partial saturation behind moving flow-front in an LCM mold which is caused by delayed impregnation of fiber tows. In this part 3 of the present series of three papers, a novel multiscale approach proposed in parts 1 and 2 [1] and [2] is adapted for modeling the unsaturated flow observed in the dual-scale fabrics of LCM under non-isothermal, reactive conditions. The volume-averaged species or resin cure equation, in conjunction with volume-averaged mass, momentum and energy (temperature) equations, is employed to model the reactive resin flow in the inter-tow (gap) and intra-tow (tow) regions with coupling expressed through several sink and source terms in the governing equations. A coarse global-mesh is used to solve the global (gap) flow over the entire domain, and a fine local mesh in form of the unit-cell of periodic fabrics is employed to solve the local (tow) flows. The multiscale algorithm based on the hierarchical computational grids is then extended to solve the dual-scale flow under reactive conditions. The simulation is compared with a two-color experiment and a previously published two-layer model. Significant differences between the temperatures and cures of the gap and tow regions of the dual-scale porous medium are observed. The ratio of pore volumes in the tow and gap regions, the effective thermal conductivity in the tows, and the reaction rate are identified as the important parameters for temperature and cure distributions in the gap and tow regions.     

The impact of air evacuation on the impregnation time of Out-of-Autoclave prepregs

Most Out-of-Autoclave prepregs (OoA) are only partially impregnated with resin. Their impregnation completes during the cure cycle, solely driven by the difference between atmospheric and vacuum pressure. Increased part length leads to an impregnation time gradient caused by the transient air flow inside the fibrous medium. In this work, a novel numerical approach capable of predicting the local impregnation time of a fibrous domain with resin, at isothermal conditions, under the influence of transient air flow, is proposed (delayed air evacuation). Sensitivity studies prove the robustness of the numerical scheme, for a large range of flow time-scales. The same approach is used to predict the local impregnation time of a commercial OoA prepreg tow, for a wide range of part lengths. It is demonstrated that for manufacturing long parts OoA, accurately capturing the influence of the air pressure on the local impregnation state of the tow, is important for quantifying the risk for residual tow porosity.     

Modeling the impact of capillary pressure and air entrapment on fiber tow saturation during resin infusion in LCM

Traditionally, capillary effects have been neglected when modeling the filling stage of Liquid Composite Molding processes. This simplification is justified because the inlet resin pressures are much higher than the capillary pressure. This simplification is also acceptable when impregnating fabrics in which their fiber tows saturate at the same rate as the bulk preform. However, this assumption is questionable for fabrics that exhibit dual scale in which the fiber tows saturate at a much slower rate than the bulk preform. In such cases, the capillary pressure can influence the time to saturate a fiber tow significantly and impact the overall impregnation dynamics. Since the flow front velocity inside the fiber tows is significantly smaller than the flow around them, it is important to include the capillary pressure that may aid the saturation of the tow. In this paper, we modify our existing simulation that can predict the filling of the bulk preform and the saturation of the fiber tows to include the capillary forces at the fiber tow level. Important parameters are identified and grouped in non-dimensional form. A parametric study is conducted to examine the role of these dimensionless parameters on the overall tow saturation levels. The modeling is extended to include the effect of entrapped air inside the tows on the overall saturation of the preform. An experimental technique using the optical properties of vinyl ester and glass fiber was used to qualitatively validate the proposed model.     

Modelling microscopic flow in woven fabric reinforcements and its application in dual-scale resin infusion modelling

A physical unit cell impregnation model is proposed for the micro-scale flow in plain woven reinforcements. The modelling results show a characteristic relationship between tow impregnation speed, the surrounding local macro-scale resin pressure and the tow saturation within the unit cell. This relationship has been formulated into a mathematical algorithm which can be directly incorporated into a continuum dual-scale model to predict the ‘sink’ term. The results using the dual-scale model show a sharp resin front in inter-tow-pore spaces and a partially saturated front region in intra-tow-pore spaces. This demonstrates that the impregnation of fibre tows lags behind the resin front in the macro pore spaces. The modelling results are in agreement with two reported experimental observations. It has been shown that the unsaturated region at the flow front could increase or have a fixed length under different circumstances. These differences are due to the variation in tow impregnation speed (or the time required for the tow to become fully impregnated), the weave architecture and the nesting and packing of plies. The modelling results have also demonstrated the drooping of the inlet pressure when flow is carried out under constant injection rates. The implementation of the algorithm into a dual-scale model shows coherence with a single-scale unsaturated model, but demonstrates an advantage in flexibility, precision and convenience in application.     

Measuring the impregnation of an out-of-autoclave prepreg by micro-CT

Resin flow into dry reinforcement regions is the main microstructural change during the processing of out-of-autoclave prepregs and influences air evacuation and void suppression. Such impregnation flow was investigated experimentally during the processing of a second-generation out-of-autoclave prepreg. First, laminates were partially processed to different stages of a simple cure cycle. Then, samples from each laminate were scanned using X-ray microtomography (micro-CT) to obtain 3D microstructural data. This data was used to investigate the initial microstructure of the material and measure the extent of impregnation at each processing stage, the rate of impregnation, and the evolution of macro-porosity within the material.     

Model tests of iceberg towing

Icebergs may cause a threat to offshore installations, vessels and operations in a number of Arctic regions. In order to increase the understanding of what happens when an iceberg tow is started in ice covered waters; physical tank model tests have been carried out in various concentrations of sea ice. The objectives with these tests have been to evaluate the practical arrangements for iceberg towing and to collect data regarding tow loads and iceberg behaviour during the tow.The tank model tests were carried out in scale 1:40 in the ice tank at Hamburg Ship Model Basin (HSVA), Germany. Two different iceberg models were used and each towed in four different ice concentrations. From all tests, tow line forces, iceberg displacements and rotations were recorded.It was concluded that towing in 50% ice concentrations and higher were not realistic due to high resistance. During the tows in high concentrations, ice was breaking in flexural mode, crushing, rafting and ridging continuously in front of the iceberg models. With respect to the tow line, the line was fully extended and lifted up from the water/ice. In real operations this may increase the risk for tow line rupture and subsequent “snapping”. In 50% ice concentration, total loads in the tow line will most of the time be lower than maximum bollard pull for powerful diesel electric icebreakers indicating that towing up to this concentration may be feasible. However, tow lines will have to resist even the highest peak loads during a tow and it is unclear whether sufficiently strong tow lines can be produced. With respect to tows in 20% concentration and open water, loads are significantly lower indicating that towing in low ice concentrations should be feasible.Measured loads seem to be reasonable well described by a log-normal distribution. The concentrations of surrounding sea ice are found to be most important for the load magnitude while variations in speed, acceleration, course and iceberg shape seem to be less important.A log-normal distribution, in which the parameters are functions of the sea ice concentration, has been fitted to recorded data. Combined with information regarding expected tow length, this distribution may be applied in order to provide crude estimate on extreme loads during an iceberg tow. By performing additional model tows in different ice conditions and with larger variations in iceberg size, this model may be further developed to be applicable in a wide range of scenarios.     

Virtual specimens for analyzing strain distributions in textile ceramic composites

Methods are presented for calibrating the local elastic properties of tow-scale material domains in virtual specimens of textile composites. A model of the tow geometry is calibrated using 3D tomographic data via previously published methods. The local elasticity is defined to vary with the local tow orientation and fiber volume fraction within tows. The accuracy of the tow geometry is assessed by comparing the surface geometry of virtual specimens with an alternative data source, viz. topographical data obtained by digital image correlation. Calibration of the elastic constants is validated by comparing measured surface strain distributions with computed strain distributions. An approach is also presented for extending the model to the non-linear regime, by simulating the response of virtual specimens in which the bonds between abutting tows are broken and the resulting fracture surfaces are frictionless. The latter results yield a better match to the measured strain distributions.     

Shear and drape behavior of non-crimp fabrics based on stitching geometry

Non-crimp fabrics (NCFs) enable relatively high mechanical properties by keeping the reinforcement tows straight. Handling of those fabrics is improved by stitching the reinforcement tows together. While the stitching has little structural influence on the final part, it highly affects the NCFs capability to shear and drape over a mold during preforming. High tensile strain in the stitching yarn has been correlated to the NCF resistance to shearing and even adverse drape defects such as tow undulations. Furthermore, stitching causes the shear behavior of the fabric to be anisotropic, with different behavior in positive and negative shear. In the current study, a model based on the stitching geometry and reinforcement tow directions has been created to find the tensile strain in the stitching yarn as the NCF is being sheared. It was found that the stitch angle was the main driving stitching parameter, and that this angle could be selected so that shearing in both positive and negative directions produces no tensile strain in the stitching yarn. The model showed good correlation with uniaxial bias-extension and drape tests for NCFs with different stitching parameters. Finally, design charts are displayed which can be used to select the stitching parameters of standard industrial NCF-machines which results in NCFs with near-symmetric shear behavior and thus good shear and draping performance.     

Effect of room-temperature out-time on tow impregnation in an out-of-autoclave prepreg

Tow impregnation as a function of material out-time was investigated for an out-of-autoclave carbon fiber–epoxy prepreg. Prepreg was aged at ambient temperature for 56 days. Every 7 days, laminates were laid up and cured using vacuum bag only processing. Void content was calculated through image analysis of polished sections. Experimental results were used to validate an analytical model for tow impregnation. Model predictions were based on flow kinetics during processing conditions, taking into account increasing degree of cure and evolution of resin viscosity as a function of ambient aging time. The study found that no significant tow porosity occurred within the material’s stated out-life, that tow porosity increased once this out-life was exceeded and eventually stabilized due to the room-temperature vitrification of the resin. The model’s predicted trends were consistent with experimental results, suggesting that an increase in resin viscosity is indeed the main cause of out-time induced tow porosity and providing a means of predicting laminate quality as a function of room temperature aging time.     

A Study of Strength Transfer from tow to Textile Composite Using Different Reinforcement Architectures

The paper proposes an experimental and analytical approach of designing composites with the predetermined ultimate strength, reinforced with warp interlock fabrics. In order to better understand the phenomena of transfer of tensile properties from a tow to the composite, intermediate phases of composite manufacturing have also been taken into account and tensile properties of tows taken from the loom and the woven reinforcements have also been tested. Process of transfer of mechanical properties of raw materials to the final product (composite) depends on various structural factors. Here the influence of weave structure, which ultimately influences crimp has been studied. A strength transfer coefficient has been proposed which helps in estimating the influence of architectural parameters on 3D woven composites. 3 woven interlock reinforcements were woven to form composites. The coefficients of strength transfer were calculated for these three variants. The structural parameters were kept the same for these three reinforcements except for the weave structure. In was found that the phenomenon of strength transfer from tow to composite is negatively influenced by the crimp. In general the strength transfer coefficients have higher values for dry reinforcements and afterwards due to resin impregnation the values drop.     

Measurement of the Appearance and Growth of Tow Buckling Defect in the Frame of Complex Shape Manufacturing Process by Using Fringe Projection Technique

During the manufacturing of composite complex shape parts, defects such as tow buckles characterised by out of plane elevation may appear. The parameters controlling the appearance and growth of the defect are not completely understood and need to be investigated. A device capable of reproducing tow buckles has been used to study the tow buckling phenomenon. Several techniques able to measure out of plane elevations are discussed to detect the appearance and evaluate continuously the growth of the tow buckle in relation to its size and shape. The fringe projection technique was chosen as it gives the best compromise between the size of the defect to measure and its resolution. If the in‐plane bending angle is the main criterion at the origin of the tow buckle appearance and growth, it is not the only one. This work shows that the fabric architecture such as the space between the tows perpendicular to the one showing the buckle is also crucial to control the buckle's appearance and growth. It also shows that the differential bi‐axial loading of the fabric as well as the stiffness of the tows in the three main directions greatly influences the appearance of the defect.     

Meso-scale strain mapping in UD woven composites

Unidirectional (UD) woven laminates have complex tow geometry due to unbalanced weave architecture. Warp tows are held together by fine weft. Unit cell models for textile composites found in the literature are based on balanced weaves with identical warp and weft specifications. In this paper, unit cell geometry of unbalanced UD weaves has been considered. Unbalanced laminates have complex tow geometry with in-plane tow waviness and a significant overlap between adjacent tows. Main objective of this work is to measure full-field strain distribution at meso-scale or unit cell level and compare the results with FE analysis. Raman spectroscopy is a powerful technique for in situ strain measurement. A UD woven composite laminate with Kevlar fibres is used in this study, as Kevlar fibres exhibit clear Raman band shifts under strain. Influence of in-plane tow waviness on local strain gradients has been demonstrated.     

A new unidirectional carbon fiber prepreg using physically modified epoxy matrix with cellulose nano fibers and spread tows

A new unidirectional carbon fiber prepreg was successfully developed, whose epoxy matrix was physically modified with cellulose nano fibers (CNF). Two different types of prepreg were fabricated using regular carbon fiber (CF) and spread CF tows to identify the effect of prepreg thickness on the mechanical performance including fatigue of quasi isotropic laminates using these prepregs while the thickness of each layer was kept the same (120 μm). The effect of CNF modification of epoxy matrix on the fatigue life is quite significant if thin prepregs were used. It increases greater than 10 times than the fatigue lives of laminates fabricated by regular CF tows/unmodified EP or regular CF tows/modified EP. Uniformly dispersed CNF in the epoxy matrix increases the interfacial strength between CF and matrix.     

跨尺度预测非屈曲织物增强复合材料的刚度和强度

为了预测非屈曲织物增强复合材料的力学性能, 建立了纤维束的正六边形单胞和非屈曲织物复合材料的长方形单胞, 并重点推导了正六边单胞的方程边界条件。通过跨尺度逐级计算这两个单胞的有效弹性常数, 得到了非屈曲碳纤维织物增强环氧树脂基复合材料的宏观有效弹性性能和强度。对该非屈曲织物复合材料在拉伸载荷下的累计失效进行了有限元损伤分析。结果表明: 初始损伤发生在富树脂区或横向纤维束, 损伤在富树脂区与横向纤维束内逐步扩展, 最后向纵向纤维束扩展并迅速导致整体失效; 非屈曲织物增强复合材料的面内拉伸模量的计算预测值非常接近实验值, 面内拉伸强度计算值略小于实验值。     

Influence of fabric shear and flow direction on void formation during resin transfer molding

In resin transfer molding, void type defect is one of common process problems, it degenerates the mechanical performances of the final products seriously. Void content prediction has become a research hotspot in RTM, while the void formation when the flow direction and the tow direction are not identical or the fabric is sheared has not been studied to date. In this paper, based on the analysis of the resin flow velocities inside and outside fiber tows, a mathematical model to describe the formation of micro- and meso-scale-voids has been developed. Particular attention has been paid on the influence of flow direction and fabric shear on the impregnation of the unit cell, so their effects on the generation and size of voids have been obtained. Experimental validation has been conducted by measuring the formation and size of voids, a good agreement between the model prediction and experimental results has been found.     

The effect of fabric and fiber tow shear on dual scale flow and fiber bundle saturation during liquid molding of textile composites

In Liquid Composite Molding (LCM) processes, a fibrous reinforcement preform is placed or draped over a mold surface, the mold is closed and a resin is either injected under pressure or infused under vacuum to cover all the spaces in between the fibers of the preform to create a composite part. LCM is used in a variety of manufacturing applications, from the aerospace to the medical industries. In this manufacturing process, the properties of the fibrous reinforcement inside the closed mold is of great concern. Preform structure, volume fraction, and permeability all influence the processing characteristics and final part integrity. When preform fabrics are draped over a mold surface, the geometry and characteristics of both the bulk fabric and fiber tow bundles change as the fabric shears to conform to the mold curvature. Numerical simulations can predict resin flow in dual scale fabrics in which one can separately track the filling of the fiber tows in addition to flow of resin within the bulk fabric. The effect of the deformation of the bulk fabric due to draping over the tool surface has been previously addressed by accounting for the change in fiber volume fraction and permeability during the filling of a mold. In this work, we investigate the effect of shearing of the fiber tows in addition to bulk deformation during the dual scale filling. We model the influence of change in fiber tow characteristics due to draping and deformation on mold filling and compare it with the results when the fiber tow deformation effect is ignored. Model experiments are designed and conducted with a dual scale fabric to characterize the change in permeability of fiber tow with deformation angle. Simulations which account for dual scale shear demonstrate that the tow saturation rate is affected, requiring longer fill times, or higher pressures to completely saturate fiber tows in areas of a mold with high local shear. This should prove useful in design of components for applications in which it is imperative to ensure that there are no unfilled fiber tows in the final fabricated component.     

Hybrid processing of thick skins for honeycomb sandwich structures

Carbon-epoxy prepregs are generally used to form the skins of honeycomb sandwich structures used in aerospace or racing yachts. For some applications, it is desirable to increase the thickness of the skins. In order to achieve an ideal core pressure level during cure for maximal skin-core bonding, the issue of air extraction from the honeycomb cells through the skin during processing thus becomes critical, in particular if vacuum only processing is used. In the present work, partially impregnated prepregs, called semipregs, having high initial transverse permeability to air, are combined with traditional prepregs to form a hybrid skin. Results are presented on the pressure change inside the honeycomb cells and the skin permeability to air during cure, as well as on skin-core adhesion. The final sandwich quality is assessed and found to be comparable to that obtained with prepreg skins.     

A study of the tensile behaviour of flax tows and their potential for composite processing

To study the potential of flax tows in composite processing as an alternative to flax spun yarns, a flat flax tow consisting of aligned fibre bundles held together by a natural binder was used and characterised in tension under various conditions. The effect of the gauge length was studied on the dry reinforcement. The experimental results showed that the mechanical properties and failure mechanism varied significantly depending on the gauge length and are discussed in relation to the distribution of elementary fibres within the tow. A characteristic length as from which the mechanical properties are stable has been identified. At this length, the effect of the strain rate on the tensile properties was measured and their sensitivity to the strain rate suggests a viscous effect in the behaviour of the flax tow. To approach process conditions such as wet filament winding, a batch of specimens was impregnated with epoxy prior to tensile testing. The tensile properties under wet conditions were found to be close to the properties under dry conditions and shows that the tow can withstand typical processing tensions. Finally, tensile tests on cured-impregnated tows showed interesting mechanical properties for composite application.     

Wet powder impregnation for polyethylene composites: preparation and mechanical properties

An alternative processing route for polyethylene–polyethylene composites has been developed. The processing route includes an impregnation step in a suspension of polyethylene powder in propanol. For this step an impregnation and winding machine has been constructed. Further processing steps are the preparation of prepregs and hot compacting to form PE–PE composites. The influence of the impregnation and winding parameters on the fibre volume fractions of the resulting composites are discussed. The mechanical properties of unidirectional reinforced PE–PE composites parallel and perpendicular to the fibre direction are shown in the results of tensile and compression tests. Finally, the failure mechanisms are described by SEM investigations.     

Determination of anisotropic geometrical parameters for the electrical characterization of carbon/epoxy composite during oven curing

Cure monitoring is an important tool for ensuring manufacturing reliability and reproducibility of composite parts. Among a variety of techniques, electrical measurements are used. However, electrical values are affected by cure cycles and by the rheological and geometrical parameters during curing. All these parameters must be taken into account to establish electrical models. The present paper proposes to study the changes in the geometrical parameters of an oven-cured composite made of T700/M21 prepregs during curing. For this work, microstructural analyses (in the three orthotropic planes) were carried out using specific curing, i.e. by releasing the vacuum at characteristic points (time and temperature). The following parameters were measured (manual and automatic approaches): ply, inter-plies and global thicknesses; percolation parameters; and volume and surface ratios (fibres, matrix and voids). The parameters obtained will be used in future works to define an electrical model for real-time control of the cure process.