Towards a Manufacturing Technology for High-Volume Production of Composite Components

The last decade has seen strong interest from high-volume manufacturers such as the automotive industry in the development of processes which provide cost effective routes to the manufacture of components in fibre-reinforced composite materials. This paper considers one family of processes that have been targeted as offering a solution—that of resin transfer moulding (RTM)—and reviews the findings of work based at the University of Nottingham. The mechanisms involved are examined together with the variants on the basic process and the implications for high-volume production. Consideration is given to process technology, materials and the relationship between design and manufacture. A route to high-volume manufacture based upon computer aided engineering is proposed.

[1]  Musa R. Kamal,et al.  Kinetics and thermal characterization of thermoset cure , 1973 .

[2]  Hideo Kubota,et al.  Curing of highly reactive polyester resin under pressure: Kinetic studies by differential scanning calorimetry , 1975 .

[3]  Christopher W. Macosko,et al.  Process parameters estimation for structural reaction injection molding and resin transfer molding , 1990 .

[4]  Chris D. Rudd,et al.  Effects of process variables on cycle time during resin transfer moulding for high volume manufacture , 1990 .

[5]  Jose Maria Kenny,et al.  A model for the thermal and chemorheological behavior of thermoset processing: (II) Unsaturated polyester based composites , 1990 .

[6]  Bernard Miller,et al.  Forced in‐plane flow of an epoxy resin in fibrous networks , 1986 .

[7]  Eugene H. Wissler,et al.  Viscoelastic Effects in the Flow of Non-Newtonian Fluids through a Porous Medium , 1971 .

[8]  Chris D. Rudd,et al.  Mechanical properties of weft knit glass fibre/polyester laminates , 1990 .

[9]  M. V. Bruschke,et al.  A finite element/control volume approach to mold filling in anisotropic porous media , 1990 .

[10]  Chris D. Rudd,et al.  Electrochemical effects during thermoset moulding , 1991, Journal of Materials Science.

[11]  이우일,et al.  Resin Transfer Molding의 수치해석에 관한 연구 , 1989 .

[12]  T M Gotch.  VACUUM IMPREGNATION TECHNIQUES FOR GRP ON BRITISH RAIL , 1979 .

[13]  H. B. Chin,et al.  Development of a mathematical model for the pultrusion process , 1986 .

[14]  J. B. Griffiths.  Minerals as fillers ― modification to serve modern markets , 1990 .

[15]  John P. Coulter,et al.  Resin impregnation during composites manufacturing: Theory and experimentation , 1989 .

[16]  S. McGee,et al.  Curing characteristics of particulate‐filled thermosets , 1982 .

[17]  Chris D. Rudd,et al.  Fibre reinforcement for high volume resin transfer moulding (rtm) , 1990 .

[18]  John P. Coulter,et al.  Resin Impregnation During the Manufacturing of Composite Materials Subject to Prescribed Injection Rate , 1988 .

[19]  J. G. Williams,et al.  Liquid flow through aligned fiber beds , 1974 .

[20]  Raju Davé,et al.  A Unified Approach to Modeling Resin Flow During Composite Processing , 1990 .