Design, fabrication and testing of a composite bracket for aerospace applications

In this paper the results of a programme, in which a composite bracket as a replacement for a metal forging was developed, will be presented. The finite-element method (FEM) in combination with an optimization module was used to design the bracket. Compared to its metal counterpart, the composite bracket demonstrated a weight reduction of 43%. Two composite brackets were fabricated by resin transfer moulding (RTM). One bracket was loaded statically to 1.38 × Design Ultimate Load. The bracket did not fail at this load level.