Composites Manufncfuring 6 (I 995) 189- 192

@) 1995 Elsevier Science Limited

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09%7143/95/$10.00

Improved thermoplastic tape winding using

laser or direct-flame heating

R. Funck” and M. Neitzel

Institute fiir Verbundwerkstoffe GmbH, University of Kaiserslautern, 67663 Kaiserslautern,
Germany

Filament winding is one of the most challenging technologies to produce axisymmetrical or even non-
symmetrical structural thermoplastic composite shells with continuous fibre reinforcement. The aims of this
contribution are: (1) to present results on laser-assisted high speed filament winding of pre-impregnated
thermoplastic tapes and quasi-axial helical filament winding with direct flame, and (2) to compare different
heating and pre-heating methods. The key issue in the application of thermoplastic tape winding is heating.
Proper heating of pre-impregnated tapes during the on-line winding process can be achieved by a variety of
methods: laser and infra-red radiation, hot gas and direct flame. It will be considered how the above heating
methods affect the equipment and process costs, energy efficiency and response time.

(Keywords: thermoplastic tapes; filament winding; heating method)

INTRODUCTION materials has the potential to overcome the drawbacks of

conventional filament winding. It offers the option to
Thermoplastic composite materials offer the advantage achieve consolidation during the process, eliminating the
of high fracture toughness, unlimited shelf life, recycla- need for post-consolidation processing. Studies found
bility, post-forming, and reduced cycle times due to that thermoplastic filament winding can be more cost
continuous processing by avoiding the curing cycles that effective than thermoset winding. Figure I gives an
are characteristic for thermoset matrix composites. In overview of the advantages and disadvantages of
addition to favourable mechanical properties, thermo- filament winding unidirectional pre-impregnated com-
plastics offer a wide range of manufacturing options. posite tape. To improve cost effectiveness, it is necessary
Recent interest in advanced thermoplastic composites to obtain high material throughput rates in combination
has been spurred by the promise of higher manufacturing with constant quality.
productivity, increased quality and improved material
properties’ 4.
Compared with filament winding of conventional HIGH SPEED FILAMENT WINDING WITH
thermosets, filament winding of thermoplastic composite CO2 LASER
materials offers cost and performance advantages in
specific applications. The key factor in the successful High speed filament winding has been achieved by
application of thermoplastic winding technology is the processing thermoplastic pre-impregnated tapes with
heating system. During the consolidation process, matrix laser radiation using an industrial-scale, high velocity,
flow occurs until interlaminar contact is achieved. This four-axis winding device. The used numerical controlled
process mainly depends on temperature, pressure and traversing carriage machine is equipped with a very light
time. Many techniques can 'befound in the literature for support to minimize vibrations. Support speeds of
raising the matrix temperature above the melting point 120mmin~’ can be attained with optimized control
to achieve in situ consolidation5. This paper describes parameters.
methods using direct flamle and laser energy as heat The main task in heating pre-impregnated thermo-
sources. The required pressure is generated by tape plastic tape by laser radiation is to focus the laser beam
tension. both on the incoming tape surface and the tape wound
In situ (on-line) processing of thermoplastic composite already on the mandrel. The design provides for melting
the tape surfaces in the contact zone. Figure 2 illustrates
*To whom correspondence should be addressed the applied principle for high speed laser filament

COMPOSITES MANUFACTURING Volume 6 Number 3-4 1995 189

Thermoplastic tape winding and heating method: R. Funck and M. Neitzel
( THERMOPLASTIC COMPOSITE TAPE )
Figure 1 Advantages and disadvantages of filament winding with
unidirectional thermoplastic pre-impregnated composite tape, com-
pared with thermosets
Figure 2 Scheme of laser processing set-up (F = tape
v = winding speed)
winding. The set-up allows winding speeds of up to
120 m min-’ to be reached at winding angles of 90”, with
options to achieve even higher speeds.
The high winding speed has been accomplished as
follows:
?? defocusing of the integrated high-performance CO,
laser beam with 1.2 kW energy output. The circular
beam, decoupled from the resonator, is converted into
an elliptical shape using a specular optical system with
copper mirrors. The ratio of the minor axis to the
major axis of the ellipse was at about 1 : 10, providing
an optimum beam distribution.
?? pre-heating of the incoming tape using hot gas in a
-heated oven that can be purged by inert gas to prevent
matrix degradation. The oven heats up the entire
spool, along with the tape to be layed before it reaches
the winding head. The advantage of this system is the
simplicity of temperature control. The tape tempera-
ture is constant even if the winding speed varies or the
process is interrupted.
The major advantage of laser radiation is simple energy
control (response times of only a few milliseconds) in
combination with high radiation density. Overheating
the tape can be avoided by taking the local tape
temperature or the actual winding speed as the variable
controlling the laser output6.
An optical beam delivery system is necessary to direct
the radiation from the laser head to the working point
190 COMPOSITES MANUFACTURING Volume 6 Number 3-4
HIGH SPEED FILAMENT WINDING
(Winding Parameter \
sl Winding _ Angle of 90” GF I PPS
/’
Laser Power [WI 1290
Winding Speed [mlmin] 90
Oven Temperature [ “C] No Oven
Mandrel Temperature [ “C] 23
Tape Tension [ N/mm2 ] 75
Beam Splitting [%] 70/30
( Incoming Tape I Mandrel )
\ ‘UU
Figure 3 Parameter settings for high speed processing of GFjPPS and
GFjPP
(nip point) on the mandrel. The best choice for CO2 laser
beam movement is an articulated arm. It is relatively
light in weight and allows a comparatively large working
volume. Nevertheless, it is a mechanically passive system
which always depends on an additional handling device.
The optical system is carried by the winder support.
The laser beam has to be focused on the nip point, which
carries out a relative movement to the mandrel. Good
results were achieved; glass fibre/poly(phenylene sulfide)
(GF/PPS) tape was processed at winding speeds of up to
90mmin-’ and glass fibre/polypropylene (GF/PP) tape
tension;
was processed at up to 120 mmin-’ (winding angle 90’).
The winding speed was lower for the first layers since the
tape material needed a longer heating time to overcome
the heat losses mainly by conduction from the molten
tape to the relatively cold mandrel.
The most important parameters for high speed
filament winding with CO1 laser are the pre-heating
oven temperature, the disposable laser power and the
beam splitting between the tape surface which is being
laid on the mandrel and the tape already wound in the
vicinity. Pre-heating is required because of the large heat
capacity of thermoplastic composites and the low
transverse thermal conductivity, which make it difficult
to heat the tape quickly from room to processing
temperature. After exiting the pre-heat oven, the tape
passes into the final heating stage where it is brought to
processing temperature. Optimized beam density and
splitting rate are required to raise the temperature of
the tape accurately. Figure 3 shows the adjusted
parameter setting range for high speed processing of
GFjPPS (0.4mm x 5 mm/45 ~01%) and GFjPP
(0.4 mm x 5 mm/47 ~01%).
QUASI-AXIAL HELICAL FILAMENT WINDING
WITH DIRECT FLAME
Direct flame processing of thermoplastic matrix tila-
ment-wound composites is shown in Figure 4. The
support of the seven-axis gantry filament winding
device contains the tape supply, tape brake and process
control system. The winding head, including the heat
1995
 Thermoplastic tape winding and heating method: R. Funck and IV. Neitzel

Pyrometer 2
(Surface Temperature)

Ggure 5 Post-processing with compression belt

Figure 4 Schcmc of direct flame processing set-up (F = tape tension:
II = winding speed)

source, is attached to the swivel axis. A mechanical brake

is used to provide constant tape tension to achieve good
consolidation.
The processing head incorporates the direct flame
torch, designed as low cost equipment using commercial
propane gas torches, providing the energy input to the
tape achieving in sifu consolidation. To prevent matrix
degradation if the winding process stops, the direct flame
torch is attached to a pneumatic swivelling arm. The
torch is in parking position during the process stops and
turns into working positmn as soon as the winding
process begins.
Figure 6 Thermoplastic filament-wound bicycle frame
The main objective is to generate an adequate melt
zone of the thermoplastic matrix to obtain proper
bonding between tape and consolidated laminate. This a carbon fibreipolyamide (CF,‘PA) bicycle frame was
can be managed by focusing the flame and melting the designed and built, using several quasi-axial filament-
matrix on the top surface of the laminate and the surface wound tube geometries (Figure 6). Winding angles
of the incoming prepreg tape simultaneously. The torch between 17 and 45” and tube diameters between 12 and
is directed exactly to the contact point. 48mm as well as elliptical shaped tubes were manufac-
Winding angles down to 17’ were achieved using the tured. The autoclaved CF/PA joints were then bonded to
described winding head. The pressure required to achieve the tubes and aluminium inserts were added to the frame.
good consolidation can usually be generated by tape achieving a total weight of about 1000 g.
tension or by direct mechanical force. Tension is
relatively simple to use, but is adequate only within a
certain range of mandrel diameters and winding angles. COMPARISON OF HEATING METHODS
Pressure applied via rollers or sliding shoes requires
accurate guidance. Since the described winding process Economics play a key role in the use of thermoplastic
involves no application of pressure to the tape during composites and in situ consolidation. Laser radiation,
heating. a new concept was developed. The required infra-red radiation, hot gas energy and direct flame
pressure is generated using an improved post-processing processing are compared on the basis of purchase and
technique with compression belt (Figure S/IVW Patent process costs, winding speed, heat transfer, response time
DE4402552Al). As experiments with this new process and winding path in Table 1”.7 “‘. Depending on part
indicate, consolidation of tube samples and the surface geometry, nature of load and piece number, each
quality are significantly improved. technology provides its own advantages and disadvan-
The main advantages of post-consolidation with tages. Winding speeds quoted in Tub/e 1 relate to
compression belt are: achievement of material forms of comparable quality.
Laser technology provides the highest energy density
?? no hbre displacement;
and efficiency in the welding zone, combined with fast
?? low cost machinery equipment:
response time. As discussed before. speeds of up to
?? no friction; and
120mmin~’ were achieved for circumferential winding
?? smooth surface.
patterns. However, this technology is a very expensive
To demonstrate the feasibility of direct flame processing, option concerning purchase costs.

COMPOSITES MANUFACTURING Volume 6 Number 3-4 1995 191

Thermoplastic tape winding and heating method: R. Funck and M. Neitzel

Table 1 Comparison of heating methods

costs Processing

Winding Purchase costs of Winding Increasing Heat Response Winding path,

technology costs (DM) process (DM h-‘) speed (m min-‘) tape width transfer time helical

Laser 450 000 Nd-YAG: 20 60-140 difficult to absorption, very fast critical
coz: 12 realize local (spot)
Infra-red 10000 1 2.5-21 difficult to absorption, fast critical
realize convection,
local (line)
Direct uncontrolled: 7000 20 30-60 easy to forced short delay unlimited
flame controlled: 60 000 realize convection,
regional
Hot gas 6000 nitrogen: 20 0.6-18 easy to forced short delay unlimited
air: 1.50 realize convection,
regional

Infra-red technology is inexpensive compared with
laser technology. The energy density and response time
are not nearly as high as with laser radiation.
Direct flame processing is a good choice for a heat
source due to low purchase costs and high winding speed.
As already discussed in this paper, helical winding
patterns can be manufactured easily.
Compared with other heat sources, energy efficiency
of hot gas is very low. However, purchase costs of hot gas
heating systems are reasonable. Process costs increase
significantly if an inert gas such as nitrogen must be used
to prevent oxidation when high temperatures are needed.
Instead of using filament winding machines with
several degrees of freedom, industrial robots can be used
for filament winding as well. Loading or unloading the
mandrel and quality control during the process can then
also be achieved. However, the accuracy of articulated
robots cannot compare with that of cartesia winders.
CONCLUSIONS
This paper illustrates two important heating methods for
processing thermoplastic composite tape. (1) High
winding speeds were achieved using laser-assisted
filament winding combined with a pre-heating oven. (2)
A low cost direct flame winding head has been designed
and manufactured. The anticipated performance con-
cerning quasi-axial winding patterns has been achieved.
Several tube geometries with winding angles down to 17”
were produced. Demonstrating the outstanding perfor-
mance of this technology, a lightweight carbon fibre
bicycle frame was manufactured.
A comparison is given of winding technologies such as
laser radiation, infra-red radiation, hot-gas energy and
direct flame processing on the basis of purchase and
process costs, winding speed, heat transfer, response time
and winding path. It is evident that every process has
specific advantages. For example, winding speeds of up
to 120 m min-’ can be achieved with laser radiation while
process costs are lowered using infra-red energy.
Processing various tape widths can be realized quite
simply with hot gas torches and direct flames. These
examples demonstrate that regarding winding pattern,
working load and. manufacturing scale, a variety of
winding technologies can be chosen. Even the experi-
enced manufacturing industry has not yet agreed on a
sophisticated thermoplastic winding philosophy.
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192 COMPOSITES MANUFACTURING Volume 6 Number 3-4 1995