Mold-filling simulations for the injection molding of continuous fiber-reinforced polymer

Injection molding can be used to fabricate fiber-reinforced polymer composites by impregnating a continuous fabric mat preplaced in a mold cavity with a polymer resin. The mold-filling time is dependent on the flow and heat transfer behavior in the mold. A model is proposed that considers the non-Newtonian How through the porous fabric mat and the heat transfer between mold, fabric mat, and flowing fluid. The model was simulated for the mold filling of a carbon fiber mat with a pseudoplastic polymer solution. The results from the simulation provide Information for optimizing mold-filling parameters through proper selection of inlet fluid pressure, heat source temperature, and type of polymer-solvent system.     

Relationship between pore structure with residual pore and mechanical properties of expanded graphite nanocomposites at varying molding pressures

The main challenges of developing expanded graphite (EG) composites are to improve the diffusion of polymer chains into EG pores and consequently to reduce the residual pore as defects in the final composites. In this paper, composites of unsaturated polyester (UP) resin containing 0.75 wt% EG are prepared at varying molding pressures of 1, 10, 20, and 30 bar. The EG particles are prepared at different exfoliation temperatures in the range of 700 to 900°C to have EGs with different porous structures. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) micrographs show that residual pores are observed in the composites prepared at a low pressure of 1 bar. However, when the molding pressure increases, the number of the residual pores decreases and consequently the flexural properties improve. The highlighted improvements achieved by increasing the molding pressure from 1 to 30 bar are a decrease in the value of the residual pore from 23% to 3%, an increase in the flexural modulus from 1523 to 1744 MPa, and an increase in the flexural strength from 30.6 to 54.5 MPa. Interestingly, applying higher molding pressure affects the composites containing EGs with the highest degree of porosity, or rather larger pores, more remarkably.     

Particle distribution from in‐plane resin flow in a resin transfer molding process

In liquid composite molding (LCM) processes such as resin transfer molding (RTM), particle distribution can be problematic as the particle fillers can be filtered by the reinforcement fibers during the resin infusion process. In this paper, the filtration of alumina and silica nanoparticles in the production of aramid fiber epoxy composites is characterized. The laminates are produced by in‐plane RTM and the effects of selected process variables on the laminate particle distribution are investigated. The objective is to evaluate the assumption that nanoparticles due to their small physical size inherently do not filter in resin infusion processes. The nanosilica particles are found to effectively not filter, while the nanoalumina particles are much more sensitive to filtration as they formed micro‐scale agglomerates as small as a few microns in size prior to injection. The filtration behavior follows a simple theoretical model for micro‐scale particle filtration, already existing in the literature. For the filtration sensitive particles, it was found that the filtration is influenced by the preform fiber volume content. Other common process variables such as resin viscosity, particle concentration in the injected resin, and saturated resin flow time (resin overflow volume) are found to be filtration independent and do not change the filtration behavior. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 59:22–34, 2019. © 2018 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Enhancement of resin transfer molding using articulated tooling

Mold articulation is introduced in this concept for resin transfer molding (RTM) to increase mold fill times and potentially allow for the use of high viscosity, hot melt resin systems, or thermoplastics. Following a brief review of conventional RTM and a discussion of the limitations on the factors that control fluid flow through porous media, the articulated concept is described. This is followed by an explanation of the sequence of motion of an articulated segmented mold necessary for consolidation, void removal and accelerated fluid flow through a fibrous preform. An analysis of the process using a fiber preform with orthotropic permeability is outlined from which mold fill time is obtained. This is compared with conventional RTM mold fill times using typical resin properties and fiber volume fractions. For the conservative assumptions used, an improvement by a factor of ten in mold fill time is achieved using the articulated process relative to conventional RTM.     

汽车内饰用酚醛树脂/黄麻纤维复合材料的拉伸性能

采用正交试验方法,用5%Na OH溶液对黄麻毡进行预处理,利用模压成型工艺制备酚醛树脂/黄麻纤维复合材料,通过对正交试验结果进行极差分析和方差分析,研究树脂含量、模具温度、模具压力和保压时间4个工艺参数对复合材料拉伸性能的影响程度和显著性水平,并通过多指标综合评分法对材料的拉伸性能综合评价,分析各个工艺参数对材料拉伸性能的影响规律。结果显示,树脂含量和模具压力对复合材料的拉伸性能影响非常显著,当树脂含量为20%、模具温度为180℃、模具压力为10 MPa、模压时间为6 min时,复合材料的拉伸性能最好,此时拉伸强度为24.06 MPa,拉伸弹性模量为113.17 MPa。     

Resin transfer molding (RTM) process of a high performance epoxy resin. II: Effects of process variables on the physical,static and dynamic mechanical behavior

The effects of processing variables on the mechanical behavior and the void content of one‐part epoxy based glass fabric composites produced by resin transfer molding (RTM) were investigated. The variables studied included injection pressure, injection temperature, and fabric structure. Image analysis was used to measure the void content in the composites. Variations in injection pressure and temperature were found to have a significant effect on the quality and the mechanical performance of composites. The optimized physical and mechanical performance of the composites was obtained by processing the resin at 160°C under 392 kPa pressure. Molding of highly permeable EF420 fabric required a shorter mold filling time, but resulted in reduced flexural strength and storage modulus in the resulting composites as compared with that of the composites containing 1581 fabric.     

Modeling nonisothermal impregnation of fibrous media with reactive polymer resin

The manufacture of polymer composites through resin transfer molding (RTM) or structural reaction injection molding (SRIM) involves the impregnation of a fibrous reinforcement in a mold cavity with a reactive polymer resin. The design of RTM and SRIM operations requires an understanding of the various parameters, such as materials properties, mold geometry, and mold filling conditions, that affect the resin impregnation process. Modeling provides a potential tool for analyzing the relationships among the important parameters. The present work provides the physical model and finite element formulations for simulating the mold filling stage. Resin flow through the fibers is modeled using two-dimensional Darcian flow. Simultaneous resin reaction and heat transfer among resin, mold walls, and fibers are considered in the model. The proposed technique emphasizes the use of the least squares finite element method to solve the convection dominated mass and energy equations for the resin. Excellent numerical stability of the proposed technique provides a powerful numerical method for the modeling of polymer processing systems characterized by convection dominated transport equations. Results from example numerical studies for SRIM of polyurethane/glass fiber composites were presented to illustrate the application of the proposed model and numerical scheme.     

复合材料模压成型的工艺特性和影响因素分析

简述了聚合物基复合材料模压成型工艺特性,对模压成型的设备、预浸料、工装模具、工作环境条件等提出相应要求,着重对成型工艺过程中模压成型温度、压力、保温时间等工艺参数对复合材料制品性能影响做了分析,且简要介绍了复合材料模压制品可能出现的质量问题、产生原因、预防措施等内容。     

Key factors affecting permeability measurement in the vacuum infusion molding process

The composites industry, under increased environmental constraints, is seeking to shift from existing open mold manufacturing processes for composite parts. A promising manufacturing technology known as the vacuum infusion molding process is gaining acceptance among composite-parts manufacturers since it involves low tooling cost and allows complete elimination of volatile organic compounds (VOC). The process is similar to the resin transfer molding process; however, in the vacuum infusion technique, a polymeric film, often referred to as vacuum bag, replaces the stiff mold cover. The film is sealed against the lower half of the mold, at the periphery. Air expelled from the mold cavity results in the compaction of the reinforcement by the atmospheric pressure present on the outer side of the polymeric film. Finally, resin impregnates the mold cavity, usually through a resin distribution channel. The process is mainly developed for large-scale structures, where material cost is an important parameter and users cannot afford any production pitfalls. Among process parameters that affect resin flow in the vacuum infusion molding process is the permeability of the reinforcement stack, which has to be measured and evaluated taking into consideration the requirements of the process. A possible approach is the definition of a parameter that defines the maximum infused length, and this parameter will take into account the structure of the reinforcement, the resin viscosity, the fiber volume fraction and inlet geometry.     

Impregnation Molding of Particle-Filled Preceramic Polymers: Process Modeling

A process model is presented for the analysis and simulation of impregnation molding of particle-filled, continuous-fiber ceramic composites. A multidimensional, transient particle filtration formulation is coupled with isothermal, anisotropic Darcy flow to predict filler-concentration profiles during molding. The particle filtration is insensitive to the injection flow rate; however, in irregularly shaped molds, the geometry of the mold greatly influences the local velocities, which results in local variations in the rate of filtration. Although the preform volume fraction and inlet particle concentration influence the particle accumulation quantitatively, the filtration coefficient and the permeability have a dominant role in setting the filtration trend.     

Experimental investigation of dispersion during flow of multi-walled carbon nanotube/polymer suspension in fibrous porous media

We prepared three types of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT)/vinyl ester resin suspensions with different degrees of initial MWNT dispersion. Each suspension was injected into a mold cavity to saturate a stationary random glass fiber preform. High shear rates were not encountered in the non-uniform porous media. The quality of dispersion of the MWNT caused by the interaction between the MWNT with glass fiber media was characterized by examining the sections of the cured composites using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The results revealed that the final MWNT/Glass fiber structure is a strong function of the initial state of the MWNT dispersion in the suspension and the porous media structure.     

An investigation of particle deposition mechanisms during impregnation of dual‐scale fabrics with micro particle image velocimetry

Injection moulding processing of composite materials most often includes infiltration of a thermoset resin into a multi‐scale porous fabric. Controlling the fluid flow within the multi‐scale fabric is essential for the quality of the final composite material, since the transport of fluid between regions with different scales is of importance for phenomena such as void formation and filtration of particle doped resins. Hence, the transient flow behaviour in dual scale porous media is investigated in detail with Micro Particle Image Velocimetry. These experiments show that the fluid transport between the two scales can be controlled by the injection velocity. Validation of the measured velocity fields furthermore shows excellent agreement with theory and that transport between the two scales can be substantial at the flow front but negligible up‐stream it. POLYM. COMPOS., 31:1232–1240, 2010. © 2009 Society of Plastics Engineers     

单向玄武岩增强复合材料工艺与性能研究

采用正交试验方法,以冷却方式、成型压力、增强纤维百分含量、成型温度为影响因素研究以单向布为增强体结构的玄武岩增强硼酚醛树脂复合材料的工艺性能。结果表明,成型温度对复合材料的力学性能影响最大,且随着成型温度的提高而线性增强;增强纤维的百分含量对复合材料拉伸性能的有较大影响,但对弯曲性能的影响较小,且力学性能不随增强纤维含量的增加而线性增强;成型压力的增大有利于复合材料弯曲性能的改善,而对拉伸性能的影响较小;适当延长冷却时间有利于复合材料力学性能的提高。     

Permeability model for a woven fabric

The resin transfer molding (RTM) method is used to manufacture composite parts. The reinforcing fibers are placed in a mold cavity and the resin is injected to fill up the empty spaces. After the resin cures, the mold is opened and the part ejected. To predict necessary pressures and filling times and the proper locations for the inlet ports for resin injection and vents for air ejection it is necessary to model the resin infiltration process. A key to this modeling is permeability which characterizes the resistance of fibers to the flow of infiltrating resin. A simplified model for in-plane permeability of fabric reinforcement (preform) is developed here. This model uses lubrication theory for modeling the flow through open pores and Darcy's law for the transverse flow through the reinforcement. Scaling analysis is provided to justify the simplification and to estimate the range of validity for resulting expressions. Extension of the model to cover multi-layered preforms is derived. Boundary conditions and the data necessary to specify the problem geometry are discussed. A numerical experiment is conducted to estimate the influence of the transverse permeability of the preform on the solution. A calculation is provided for the permeability of a plain weave fabric.     

In situ sensor monitoring and intelligent control of the resin transfer molding process

An intelligent closed-loop expert control system has been developed for automated control of the resin transfer molding process of a graphite fiber preform using an epoxy resin, E905L. The sensor model system has been developed to make intelligent decisions based on the achievement of landmarks in the cure process, such as full preform impregnation, the viscosity, and the degree of cure of the resin rather than time or temperature. In-situ frequency dependent electromagnetic sensor (FDEMS) and the Loos resin transfer model are used to monitor and control the processing properties of the epoxy resin during RTM impregnation and cure of an advanced fiber architecture stitched preform. Once correlated with viscosity (η) and degree of cure (α), the FDEMS sensor monitors and the RTM processing model predicts the reaction advancement of the resin, viscosity and the impregnation of the fabric. This provides a direct means for monitoring, evaluating, and controlling intelligently the progress of the RTM process in situ in the mold throughout the fabrication process and for verification of the quality of the composites.     

New liquid processing of oxide/oxide 3D wowen ceramic matrix composites

In this work, a novel process named Flexible Injection Process (FIP) was developed to manufacture near-net shape oxide/oxide composites reinforced with 3D interlock fibers. This process uses a flexible membrane to apply pressure to promote transverse impregnation of the fibrous reinforcement by a slurry charged with sub-micron ceramic particles. Due to the through-thickness filtration and compaction, FIP process is much faster than typical in-plane impregnation and results in composites with lower residual porosity than those produced by traditional processes. In this study, a mathematical modeling of the impregnation in FIP was developed and compared to experimental infiltration experiments. Furthermore, ceramic matrix composites (CMCs) produced by FIP were compared to composites manufactured via an established RTM-like process. The two molding processes were compared to determine if the different flow behaviors have an impact on material densification, porosity formation, mechanical properties, and manufacturing time. CMCs produced by both methods resulted in similar microstructures, as determined by mercury intrusion porosimetry, even if FIP composites were marginally less porous. Finally, a comparison of mechanical properties resulting from the two manufacturing methods has shown a similar behavior. Thus, the main advantages of FIP molding were identified to be the shorter cycle time and the robustness of the impregnation compared to RTM-like processes.     

Effect of structure on mechanical properties of vinyl ester resins and their glass fiber‐reinforced composites

The article describes the effect of structure of vinyl ester resins (VE) on the mechanical properties of neat sheets as well as glass fabric‐reinforced composites. Different samples of VE were prepared by reacting ester of hexahydrophthalic anhydride (ER) and methacrylic acid (MAA) (1 : 1 molar ratio) followed by reaction of monomethacrylate terminated epoxy resin with glutaric (E) or adipic (F) or sebacic acid (G) (2 : 1 molar ratio). The neat VE were diluted with styrene and sheets were fabricated by using a glass mold. A significant reduction in the mechanical properties was observed by increasing the methylene content of resin backbone (i.e., sample E to G). Glass fabric‐reinforced composites were fabricated by vacuum assisted resin transfer molding (VARTM) technique. Resin content in the laminates was 50 ± 5 wt %. Increase in the number of methylene groups in the vinyl ester resin (i.e., increasing the bridge length) did not show any significant effect on limiting oxygen index (LOI) value (21 ± 1) of the laminates but tensile strength, tensile modulus, flexural strength, and flexural modulus all increased though these values are significantly lower than observed in laminates based on resin B. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

玻璃纤维毡增强聚丙烯在压缩模塑流动过程中的纤维分布

通过测定玻璃纤维毡增强聚丙烯经挤压流动后不同区域的纤维含量,研究了基体树脂,增强材料的结构与性质,坯料设计,模具温度及坯料的预热温度等对玻璃纤维毡增强聚丙烯在压缩模塑流动过程中纤维发布的影响。结果表明,适当提高基体的粘度及采用多层坯料叠层的坯料设计方法,有利于制品内纤维的均匀分布;针刺密度适当的连续针刺毡及由短切纤维组成的复合针刺毡与聚丙烯形成的复合材料（GMT0,在压缩模塑的流动过程中纤维分布的均匀性较好,随着针刺密度的增加,纤维分布的均匀性下降;用粘结剂粘结而成的连续原丝毡与聚丙烯复合得到的GMT材料,纤维分布的均匀性较差,经适当针刺以后,纤维分布的均匀性得到一定程度的改善,过低的模具温度及坯料预热温度,会引起材料充模流动能力下降,但模具温度及坯料预热温度过高时,流动前沿区域的树脂富集现象将加剧。     

机织/针织混合铺层对复合材料力学性能的影响

为使纺织复合材料同时具有机织结构复合材料和针织结构复合材料的综合力学性能,通过混合铺层方式制备机织/针织混合结构复合材料。以芳纶机织平纹织物和针织罗纹织物为增强体,以环氧树脂为基体,调整复合材料中增强体的铺层顺序,利用真空辅助成型技术制备四层层压机织/针织混合结构复合材料。通过对复合材料拉伸性能、弯曲性能和冲击性能的测试,分析混合铺层和铺层顺序对芳纶环氧树脂复合材料力学性能的影响。结果表明,混合铺层和铺层顺序对芳纶环氧树脂复合材料的弯曲强度和冲击强度有较大影响,特别是对罗纹结构复合材料纬向弯曲强度和冲击强度的改善。当采用相同铺层方式,罗纹织物为受力面时,机织/针织混合结构复合材料具有较大弯曲强度和冲击强度。     

Three-dimensional nonisothermal mold filling simulations in resin transfer molding

The manufacture of polymer composites through the process of resin transfer molding (RTM) involves the impregnation of the reactive polymer resing into a mold with preplaced fibrous reinforcements. Determination of RTM processing conditions requires the understanding of various parameters, such as material properties, mold geometry, and mold filling conditions. Modeling of the entire RTM process provides a tool for analyzing the relationship of the important parameters. This study developed a nonisothermal 3-D computer simulation model for the mold filling process of RTM based on the control volume finite element method. The model will be able to simulate mold filing in molds with complicated 3-D geometry. Results of some numerical studies in RTM show the applications of the proposed model.