Thermal modelling of tape laying

with continuous carbon fibre-

reinforced thermoplastic
S. M. GROVE
(Plymouth Polytechnic, UK)

A finite element model of heat conduction has been used to

investigate the temperature distribution and thermal cycling
associated with the fabrication of continuous carbon fibre-reinforced
PEEK(APC2) laminates by tape laying with a laser heat source. The
thermal transport and surface optical properties of APC2 have been
measured at independent laboratories, and provide the basis for the
numerical calculations. The process of interply fusion has been
modelled by considering a coordinate system at rest with respect to
the tape laying head. Calculations have demonstrated the effect on
temperature of the basic process variables (lay up speed and laser
power) and identified regions of appropriate operating conditions.
The sensitivity of the temperature at the welding interface to a
reduction in the incidence angle of the laser beam was also
investigated. The cooling of the laminate following consolidation has
been investigated, and maximum cooling rates of between 120 and
200 Ks -1 were calculated. Cycles of heating and cooling during
laminate fabrication have been synthesized to give thermal histories
for subsequent analysis of polymer morphology.

Key words: finite element model; temperature distribution; thermal

cycling; continuous carbon fibre-reinforced PEEKlaminates

NOMENCLATURE
P Power (W) Ttmax, Tsmax Maximum surface temperatures on
1, Io Intensity (W m -2) tape and substrate
p Density (kg m -3) Tt' , T s' Temperatures immediately preceding
Cp Specific heat (J kg -1 K -j) nip
o: Thermal diffusivity ( m 2 s - 1 ) Tue, The Temperatures at surfaces of
k Thermal conductivity (W m -1 K -l) consolidated laminate
r Surface reflectance II (subscript) Parallel to unidirectional
qb Normalized temperature fibres
Tn Temperature at welding interface ± (subscript) Perpendicular to
(nip) unidirectional fibres

The properties of engineering thermoplastics In principle, fibre-reinforced thermoplastics also have a

reinforced with continuous carbon fibres were first
investigated in the early 1970s. 1.2 Within the last six
years, several raw materials suppliers have launched
commercial products. 3-5 In comparison with cross-
linked matrix composites, thermoplastic composites
have better damage tolerance, and those with a
semicrystalline matrix (such as PEEKor PPS) have
superior environmental and chemical resistance. 6
0010-4361/88/090367-09 $3.00(~)1988 Butterworth & Co (Publishers) Ltd
COMPOSITES. VOLUME 19. NUMBER 5. SEPTEMBER 1988
number of processing advantages. They may be
repeatedly melted and solidified, and, in the case of
ICI's Aromatic Polymer Composite (APC2), the raw
material is available as a high fibre volume fraction,
fully impregnated tape which has unlimited shelf life.
On the other hand, the preimpregnated tape has no
'tack' and is much stiffer than its thermosetting
counterpart, making it more difficult to load into a
367
mould. There is also a need for higher processing
temperatures than in most cross-linked resin systems,
and if the polymer is semicrystalline, its final
morphology and properties will depend to some extent
on the thermal conditions under which it is
processed. 7-9
These factors, coupled with a drive for greater
automation in composite manufacture, have
encouraged a reappraisal of thermoplastic processing,
and the development of novel techniques. Some, such
as filament winding and tape laying, are modifications
of common processing routes for composite materials,
while others, such as roll-forming or hydroforming, 1°
are derived from the metal shaping industry.
Tape laying and filament winding have the potential to
exploit the ability of thermoplastics to be reversibly and
locally melted. In the fabrication of a large component
from prepreg tape it may be neither desirable nor
necessary to melt uniformly the entire laminate;
instead, successive plies can be welded together by the
local application of heat and pressure at the interface.
Several demonstrations of these techniques have been
reported in the production of complete components or
preforms, using a range of different energy sources to
melt the thermoplastic. 11-14
Heat transfer plays a fundamental part in the
processing of both thermosetting and thermoplastic
polymer composites. In the work reported here, a
semicrystalline thermoplastic (PEEr) is subjected to a
novel fabrication route (tape laying); a knowledge of
temperature distribution in the material before, during
and after consolidation serves the following objectives:
1) to establish the possible range of process parameters
(eg, tape lay up speed and power input) for effective
and efficient fabrication;
2) to identify the possibility of polymer degradation by
prolonged exposure to excessive temperatures; and
3) to assess the effect of the fabrication process on
polymer crystallinity by investigating thermal
cycling and cooling rates.
Experimental
The calculations were made for ICI plc* in support of a
tape laying development programme. Fig. 1 shows the
experiment schematically - APC2 prepreg tape passes
between a pinch roller and a horizontal welding table.
A laser beam inclined at a nominal 15° to the horizontal
is directed into the nip region between tape and
substrate. Its heating effect locally melts the polymer
while the tape delivery head moves relative to the
table. On completion of each traverse, the tape is cut
and the system is repositioned. In this way, successive
plies can be added both laterally and vertically, thus
building a fully-consolidated laminate. A given point in
the laminate will experience a series of thermal
impulses (rapid heating followed by slower cooling)
which will decrease in magnitude as successive plies are
added. In a 2 mm (8 ply) laminate, material at the base
* APC Development Laboratory, ICI Chemicals & Polymers Group,
Wilton, Middlesbrough, UK
368
Tape ~ /
/
/
/
~ Pinch roller
Laser beam Z .
:[ / Consohdated
"~ ] / laminate
~ ~ _ .~,.~
"~"..
/
................................
('substrate')
....................................................................
.....................................................................
I I
t
Welding table
Fig. 1 Schematic diagram of the tape laying system
will have undergone seven of these thermal cycles,
while that at the upper surface will have been subjected
to only a single cycle.
Numerical model
Continuous fibre-reinforced polymers can display
anisotropy of thermal, as well as mechanical properties,
and few heat conduction problems are amenable to
analytic solution. The finite element method provides a
convenient numerical tool for use in complex two and
three-dimensional geometries. The software used for
the calculations reported here was developed primarily
for the analysis of anisotropic fibre-reinforced
composites, and has been subjected to both theoretical
and experimental validation. 13
The finite element representation uses 8-noded
quadrilateral or 20-noded brick elements for two and
three-dimensional problems. Primary input data
required are:
1) the coefficients (kij) of the thermal conductivity
tensor; and
2) the heat capacity (pCp).
In the most general case of anisotropy, there are 3 (in
two dimensions) or 6 (in three dimensions)
independent values of kij. For a unidirectional
continuous fibre-reinforced composite, these are
readily calculated from the two or three principal
conductivities. Heterogeneous materials may be
represented by the specification of different thermal
properties at different locations in a finite element
mesh.
Assumptions
On a microscopic scale, a composite is inhomogeneous,
with fibre and matrix having thermal properties which
may differ by three orders of magnitude. It is assumed
that inhomogeneities are confined to a microscopic
scale both in space and in time, and that the material
may be represented as anisotropic but homogeneous. It
can be verified that the rate of longitudinal heat
conduction in a unidirectional carbon fibre composite is
much less than the rate at which the laser heat source is
moving. The time scale for conduction in the composite
is given by x =/2/or, where l is an appropriate length
scale. Arbitrarily settingl = 1 mm with ~1 = 3 x 10-6
COMPOSITES. SEPTEMBER 1988
m 2 s- 1(see following section) gives x = 0.3 s. If lay up is
proceeding at a typical 6 m min- t, then the heat source
will travel 30 mm in this time. Thus the external heat
source is moving much faster than the internal conduction
of heat.
The geometry of the tape laying system sketched in Fig.
I suggests that heat conduction will be two-dimensional
in this plane - that is, there is no significant heat loss
from the edges of the tape or laminate, and that during
the rapid heating period the temperature is uniform
across the width of the tape. This assumption was
verified by a detailed three-dimensional calculation
which showed edge heat losses to be negligible.
It is assumed that after the addition of each ply, the
laminate returns to ambient temperature before
subsequent plies are laid.
THERMAL PROPERTIES OF APC2
The specific heat (Cp) of APC2 up to 400°C was
obtained by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC).
These data are combined with density to give a
temperature-dependent heat capacity (Fig. 2).
Thermal transport properties (diffusivity and
conductivity) are much more difficult to measure
accurately, particularly for anisotropic materials.
3 -
× the intensity of the heat flux at any point decreases, and
i
.?
E 2-
I I I I
0 I00 200 300
Samples of APC2 were prepared for a number of
independent measurements of these properties at
commercial laboratories. 16-t8 Fig. 3 shows the
smoothed results for longitudinal and transverse
thermal conductivity in unidirectional APC2. It should
be noted that these data were averaged from three
different experimental techniques, and that scatter was
typically + 10% at a given temperature. Transverse
properties are dominated by the polymer matrix, and
the melting point of PEEKat about 340°C can be
identified.
SURFACE REFLECTANCE OF APC2
Fundamental to the calculation of temperature
distribution during tape laying is a detailed
representation of the distribution of incident laser heat
flux near the interface between tape and substrate. It
was therefore necessary to obtain measurements of the
surface reflectance of APC2 tape for an incident laser
beam at high angles of incidence. It was found 19that
reflectance did not vary consistently with angle of
incidence, and that values were reasonably constant
across the width of the tape. It is interesting to note that
reflectance varied most in the longitudinal direction
(along the tape length), values ranging from 0.14 to
0.42 over distances of the order of 10 mm.
The importance of surface reflectance stems from the
geometry of the laser welding experiment (Fig. 1).
Multiple reflections of the laser beam will ensure that
ultimately all of the incident energy will be absorbed
somewhere in the region of the tape/substrate
interface. However, as more reflection takes place, so
the maximum temperature attained by the material will
fall. It has been assumed in these calculations that the
rapid variations of surface reflection will combine to
give an average effective value. A mean of the two
extremes, namely r = 0.28, has been used for the
calculation of incident flux. The sensitivity of the
temperature distributions to surface reflectance is
I demonstrated in the following section.
400 500

Temperature (°C)
Fig. 2 Volumetric heat capacity (pOp) of APC2 HEATING AND CONSOLIDATION
10 Methodology
The region close to the tape/substrate interface was
modelled using a coordinate system moving at the same
speed as the lay up head. This enabled the use of a fixed
finite element mesh to represent a given geometry. The
7 movement of the head was modelled by a process of
incrementally shifting the calculated temperature
7 distribution through the mesh at an appropriate time
E
3= interval. It was anticipated that, following a transient
'start up' period, a steady-state temperature
distribution would be achieved. The length of the
transient period and the actual temperature
0.1 I I I I I I 1 I
distribution achieved are both dependent on speed,
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 laser power, geometry, etc. For a given set of
Temperature (°C) parameters, the model will thus indicate such quantities
Fig. 3 Principal thermal conductivities of unidirectional APC2
as maximum surface temperature, interface
(smoothed from experimental data). ( ) Transverse; ( - - - ) temperature and the temperature of the composite
longitudinal after consolidation. Each calculation has to be repeated

COMPOSITES. SEPTEMBER 1988 369

not only for the variable process parameters, but also
for different thicknesses of substrate.
The assumptions made concerning boundary conditions
were that both the consolidating roller and the lay up
table could be considered heat sinks at a constant 20°C,
the heat transfer coefficient being 500 W m -2 K -1.
Tape and substrate approaching the consolidation
region have an initial temperature of 20°C.
The laser beam delivers energy uniformly across the
full width of the tape; this is equivalent to an incident
area normal to the beam ofA = 75mm × 1 mm = 75 x
10-6m 2. If the incident laser power is P (W), then the
effective incident flux (power per unit area) normal to
the beam is Io = P/A.
This incident flux is reduced in intensity depending on
the angle at which it impinges on the material, and this
angle varies around the roller. The intensity is also
reduced by surface reflection.
Fig. 4 shows the geometry of the laser beam in relation
to the tape/substrate interface and indicates the
reflection of two hypothetical rays. Detailed
geometrical calculations were performed to determine
the distribution of heat flux on the two surfaces (the
energy density became negligible after two reflections).
The result is shown in Fig. 5, where the y-axis is a
dimensionless geometrical factor by which the incident
flux (normal to the beam) is multiplied to obtain the
actual heat flux absorbed by the surfaces. The x-axis is
Fig. 4 Schematic reflection of incident laser beam from tape
and substrate surfaces
0.20
Ille n-~ .m.. a.q
0.151-
u
>.
i_
=o 0.10
× 200
0.05
0 00
-12 -11 -10 -9 -8 -7 -6 -5 -tt
Horizontal distance from nip (mm)
Fig. 5 Distribution of laser heat flux, assuming incident beam
at 15° to the horizontal. Actual flux is obtained by multiplying the
flux geometry factor by the flux normal to the beam. ( ) which the flux is incident. (
Tape; ( - - - ) substrate
370
the horizontal distance from the nip between tape and
substrate. The incident flux is greater on the substrate,
but falls sharply near the nip due to the shadowing
effect of the roller.
RESULTS
Effect of process parameters
Each calculation results in a quasi-steady temperature
distribution for the mesh in question. One way of
presenting this information is to plot temperature
profiles along each of the four surfaces, that is top and
bottom of the tape and substrate. An example is shown
in Fig. 6. Not surprisingly, the form of the temperature
distribution reflects that of the incident heat flux (Fig.
5), with the tape being heated further 'upstream' than
the substrate. The temperature of the substrate rises
rapidly, but falls equally quickly in the shadow of the
roller.
In order to represent more concisely the effect of the
various process parameters, the following features were
extracted from the temperature distributions:
1) Tape/substrate interface (nip) temperature (Tn).
For welding to be possible, this must exceed the
melting point of PEEr.
2) Maximum temperatures reached by tape (Tt max) and
substrate (TsmaX). These may have less effect on the
success of welding at the nip, but, if too high, could
indicate polymer degradation.
3) Tape and parent surface temperatures immediately
preceding the nip (Tt' and Ts').
4) Temperatures at the top and bottom of the
emerging consolidated sheet (Tt e and Tse) - these
are required for the subsequent calculation of
laminate cooling rates.
The effect of variations in the processing conditions will
be expressed through these 7 key temperatures.
There are two primary variables which affect the
welding process - lay up speed and laser power. The
effect of these variables has been examined on
unidirectional APC2 sheet up to 8 plies (1 mm) thick.
800
It
600 I t
I I
o
I !
I I
400 l .~~~,,,,,
b-
,~
0
-14 -12 -10 -8 -6 -4 -2 0
-3 -2 Horizontal distance from nip (mm)
Fig. 6 An example of the steady-state temperature distribution
near the nip of a 2 ply laminate. 'Surface' and 'base' refer to
opposite sides of the tape or substrate; 'surface' is the side on
) Tape surface; (----) tape base;
( - - - ) substrate surface; (-----) substrate base
COMPOSITES, SEPTEMBER 1988
 600 650

\ \

',,\\
550 600 i \
~" 500
o J
o
550
45o

400;
D

&
500
,, ",, \
E E 450
350 ~D %%%• " ~ ,

300 400

250 I I I I 350 L i I I
4 6 8 10 12 4 6 8 10 12

Lay up speed (m min -I)

Fig. 7 Dependence of interface temperature (T~) on laser
power and lay up speed for 2 ply laminate. ( ) 1.5 kW; ( - - - - )
2.0 kW; (. . . . ) 2.5 kW
Lay up speed (m min -1)
Fig. 9 Dependence of maximum tape surface temperature
( Ttma*) on lay up speed and laser power for a 2 ply laminate.
( ) 2.5 kW; ( - - - - ) 2.0 kW; ( - - - ) 1.5 kW

Fig. 7 shows the variation of interface temperature (T,)

with both lay up speed and laser power for a two ply 1o00
laminate (this would correspond to the first pass of the %

welding head, assuming that the first ply was already

attached to the welding table). Depending on what 900 \ kk
criterion is chosen (i.e. minimum temperature), this o \ \
defines a combination of parameters which must be met
for effective ply welding. 800 • •
As the substrate thickens, so the thermal response
changes, and the corresponding graphs for 3 and 4 plies
are slightly different. However, the dependence on F- 700 ~ ~. ~ '~
thickness is only important in the early stages of a lay
up. This is demonstrated in Fig. 8, which shows the
interface temperature for laser power of 2 kW, as a 600 I 1 I
4 6 8 I0 12
function of increasing substrate thickness.
Lay up speed (rn min - I )
The variation of maximum tape and parent
temperatures is shown in Figs 9 and 10 for the 2-ply Fig. I0 Dependence of maximum substrate surface
laminate. As expected, the former is not affected by t e m p e r a t u r e (T, re'x) on lay up speed and laser power for a 2 ply
laminate. ( ) 1.5 kW; ( - - - - ) 2.0 kW; (. . . . ) 2.5 kW
substrate thickness, while the latter reduces by - 1 0 %
as the laminate thickness increases to 4 plies.
The magnitude of these surface temperatures suggests However, these temperatures exist only for very brief
the possibility of polymer oxidation and degradation. periods. For example, in Fig. 6, the substrate surface
exceeds 500°C over a distance of - 1 . 5 mm. At a lay up
speed of 6 m min -1, this distance is covered in only 15
X 10-3s.
6°°k
The time required to reach a steady state varies with
processing conditions, ranging from less than 0.2 s at
12 m min- 1 to 0.4 s at the slowest speeds. At 6 m min- 1 ,

45o I-
F the time is 0.3 s, so that up to 30 mm of laminate at the
start of a pass could be waste.

L~ 4O0
Effect of laser incidence angle
I-- 350 The temperature profiles in Fig. 6 suggest that the
300 all =11=~ == 11= arbitrary laser incidence angle of 15° does not enable
the laser energy to be transferred to the nip region with
250 I I 1 optimum efficiency. Both tape and (especially)
.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0 substrate reach maximum temperatures well in advance
Number of piles of the nip; the substrate temperature falls sharply in the
Fig. 8 D e p e n d e n c e of interface temperature (Tn) on laminate shadow of the roller and, according to these results, the
thickness, for 2 kW laser power. ( ) 4m min-1; (----) polymer here may solidify before being brought into
6 m m i n - ~ ; ( - - - ) 8 m rain -~ contact with the hotter tape.

COMPOSITES. SEPTEMBER 1988 371

Reducing the laser incidence angle would have two
effects:
1) Direct irradiation would be incident at points closer
to the nip; and
2) the intensity of radiation on the substrate surface
would be reduced, thus decreasing the high
maximum temperatures calculated here.
The geometric calculations described above were
repeated for an incidence angle of 10°, resulting in a
revised distribution of heat flux. The effect on the
temperature distributions for 2 plies at 6 m rain -1 lay up
speed is an increase of 6% in the maximum tape
t e m p e r a t u r e (Ttmax), while the maximum substrate
t e m p e r a t u r e (Ts max) is lower by - 1 1 % . The combined
effect is to increase nip temperatures (Tn) by 8%.
Although this only amounts to - 3 0 K, it could have a
significant effect on processing conditions, either by
reducing the laser power required for permitting an
increase in lay up speed. This topic warrants further
detailed study, but is beyond the scope of this paper.
Effect of tape surface reflectance
The wide variation in measured surface reflectance
(minimum 0.14, maximum 0.42) referred to above
occurred over a short length of tape, and the use of an
average value is considered to be a reasonable
approximation. However, it is of interest to note the
rather large sensitivity of the calculated temperature
distribution to the value of surface reflectance.
Calculations were repeated for minimum and
maximum reflectances and indicated corresponding
changes in the 7 key temperatures of approximately
+15%.
POS T-CONSOLIDA TION COOLING RATES
In this section, the numerical model is used to
investigate the thermal behaviour of material following
consolidation by the welding head. This is of interest
because:
1) Cooling rates from the molten state and thermal
cycling below the melting point may affect polymer
crystallinity.
2) The consolidated sheet may not have sufficient time
to return to ambient temperature before the next
ply is added to the laminate, thus affecting the initial
temperature distribution assumed above.
Methodology
Although the longitudinal thermal conductivity of
unidirectional APC2 is a factor of 10 greater than the
transverse value, post-consolidation heat transfer in
thin laminates (of the order of a few mm thick) will be
dominated by conduction through the base of the lay up
table, which is assumed to be a heat sink at constant
temperature. Two and three-dimensional models of
laminates were investigated, but it was found that a
one-dimensional representation could be used with no
loss of accuracy.
372
The primary variable considered is the initial
temperature distribution, which will depend on the
processing conditions and on the thickness of the
laminate. This temperature distribution has been
determined by the calculations above, and is defined by
Tt~ and Ts~. For consistency with previous calculations,
the heat transfer coefficient between laminate and heat
sink was taken as 500 W m -2 K -1, while the upper
surface was assumed to be losing heat by free
convection into still air with a transfer coefficient of
7 W m - 2 K -1.
Results
There is potentially a large set of results for post-
consolidation cooling, since each combination of
processing conditions results in a different initial
temperature distribution. Fortunately, the results for
each laminate thickness can be normalized, giving a
single set of results valid for all processing conditions.
Consider the temperatures at the top and bottom of the
laminate (Tu and Tb). This are expressed in a
normalized form according to:
~u = (Tu - To)/(7`- To) (1)
% = (Tb - 7"o)/(7"- To)
where To is the constant temperature of the heat sink
(taken as 20°C in these calculations). 7"is the average
initial laminate temperature:
7"-- (ru e + The)/2 (2)
where Tue and Tbe are the temperatures at top and
bottom of the laminate immediately after
consolidation.
Each laminate thickness was found to give consistent
values of normalized temperatures within about 1% for
all initial values. The normalized cooling curves for 2, 4
and 8 ply laminates are given in Figs 11-13. The actual
temperatures for any case may be obtained by
calculating 7" from Equation (2), then inverting
Equation (1). It should be noted that the normalized
temperatures have no defined values at time = 0, since
here they depend individually on Tt~ or Tb~.
1.0
0.8
N
~- 0.6
k.
0.2
0 I I I
0 0.5 I .0 I .5 2.0 2.5 3.0
Time (s)
Fig. 11 Post consolidation cooling of upper and lower surfaces
of 2 p l y l a m i n a t e (normalized t e m p e r a t u r e is defined in
E q u a t i o n s (1) and (2)). ( ) T o p ; ( - - - - - - ) base
COMPOSITES. SEPTEMBER 1988
 1.0 Thermal histories of laminates
The nature of the consolidation process means that
0.8 ~ material at different levels in a given laminate has
experienced a different history of heating and cooling
cycles. In terms of the effects of processing on polymer
~ 0.6
properties, it will be of interest to ascertain the time
spent at excessive temperatures (with a risk of
degradation) and the time within the temperature
range for crystallite growth (assumed to >200°C)
without melting.
~ 0.2
This information may be synthesized for any given
laminate from the calculations presented so far. Two
0.0 I I 1 examples will be given here, for basic processing
0 1 2 3 L
Time (s)
conditions of 2 kW power, 6 m min -1 lay up speed.
Fig. 12 As Fig. 11 for a 4 ply laminate. ( ) Top; ( - - - - - - ) base Consider the lowest surface of the first ply in the
laminate. Fig. 14 shows the superimposed thermal
1.5 response of this layer for a single heating/cooling cycle
for total laminate thicknesses of 2, 3, 4 and 8 plies. The
polymer exceeds its melting point only during the first
cycle, and exceeds 200°C only during the first two
1.0
cycles. Thus the thermal history above 200°C of
material at this location is determined by two
temperature-time curves, and is applicable to a
finished laminate of any thickness. The thermal history
N is given as a histogram in Fig. 15.
% 0.5
E
t- 500
o
z

400
I I
I 2 3 4

Time (s) 300

Fig. 13 A s Fig. 11 f o r a 8 ply l a m i n a t e . ( ) Top; ( - - - - - - ) base

~ 200
Although the normalized results are a concise form of E
representation, they disguise the fact that in the early I- / ~ql
100 / ~e--- _
part of the cooling phase, material at the base of the
laminate actually warms noticeably. This may seem
suprising in view of the high cooling rate of the base, 0
1 I L I I
but is explained by conduction of heat downwards from -I 0 l 2 3 4
the top layers of the laminate. The effect is not seen in Time (s)
the 2 ply laminate, in which the base is initially hotter Fig. 14 S u p e r i m p o s e d t h e r m a l responses o f the l o w e r surface
than the top. of a laminate, fabricated at 2 kW laser power, 6 m min -~ lay up
speed. (11) 2 plies; (n) 3 plies; (O) 4 plies; (©) 8 plies
Thus, for laminates greater than 2 plies thick, the
greatest cooling rates are seen to occur at the top 1.0
surface. Of relevance is the mean cooling rate between
the melting point (343°C) and the glass transition
0.8
temperature (143°C). These are readily calculated to be
~120 K s -~ (7200 K min-1). These values lie well
beyond the limit at which the ~olymer may be expected 0.6
03
to show reduced crystallinity.
The 2 ply laminate cools faster than thicker sections, ~. 0.4
and maximum rates of approximately 200 K s -1 are
calculated. However, the material which forms the top
of the 2 ply laminate will receive subsequent annealing 0.2
as further plies are added to the laminate.
The calculated cooling rates indicate that the 0
assumption that the laminate has returned to ambient
temperature before subsequent passes of the lay up
head is valid. Typically, temperatures have fallen to Fig. 15 T h e r m a l h i s t o r y in h i s t o g r a m f o r m f o r the surface
~40-50°C after only 4 s. d e f i n e d in Fig. 14

COMPOSITES. SEPTEMBER 1988 373

 500 At first sight, the nature of the flat bed tape laying
process is not particularly conducive to thermal
analysis, involving high aspect ratio geometries (long,
400 •
thin prepreg tape) and rapidly changing boundary
conditions. However, the geometry enabled the
o
300 modelling to be considerably simplified, since one and
two-dimensional representations of the heat transfer
were found to be good approximations. The transient
~_ 200 nature of the process was dealt with by using a
coordinate system fixed relative to the lay up head.
Analysis of the consolidation process itself has
identified 'windows' of appropriate processing
conditions. These will depend on what criteria are used
0 I I I I to define effective consolidation. If, for example, an
-I 0 1 2 3 4
interface temperature of 350°C is considered necessary,
Time (s) then reference to Fig. 7 gives maximum possible lay up
speeds of 5, 7 and 9 m min -1 at laser powers of 1.5, 2.0
Fig. 16 As Fig. 14 for material at 0.125 m m above the lower
surface of a laminate
and 2.5 kW respectively.
The thermal behaviour of laminates following
consolidation was also analysed. The highest cooling
i-2I rates were calculated for 2 ply laminates, with the
upper ply cooling at up to 200 K s -1. As the laminate is
1.Or
built up from successive plies, however, this material
will experience thermal cycling at temperatures below
0.8 the melting point and become annealed. The analysis
shows that all laminates comprising more than 2 plies
0.6 have their highest cooling rates at the top surface, and
E that this cooling rate (-120 K s -1) is independent of
0.4 laminate thickness. It should be noted that the last ply
to be laid in any given laminate will not receive any
0.2 further heat treatment, and that a subsequent
annealing operation may be required to achieve
optimum crystallinity.
0
The derivation of a thermal history for laminates has
% '5 "5 been demonstrated. It is hoped that this information
Fig. 17 Thermal history at 0.125 mm from laminate base as Fig.
will be of use in studies of the interaction between
15, for the material defined in Fig. 16 polymer morphology and processing conditions.

Consider now the same processing conditions, but a
location at the top of the first ply. This is 0.125 mm
from the base of the laminate, and is part of the first
welded interface. As before, the thermal responses for
successive cycles are shown in Fig. 16. Here, the
polymer is molten only during the first cycle, and
exceeds 200°C in the first three. It is difficult to
estimate the time spent above 400°C from Fig. 16, and
reference must be made to the detailed calculations in
the previous section. The resultant thermal history is
given in Fig. 17, and shows that at this location, the
polymer spends more time in a higher temperature
range. This demonstrates the possibility of non-uniform
morphology occurring in a given laminate due to
different thermal histories at different locations.
CONCLUSlONS
The thermal analyses described here give detailed
information on the absorption of laser energy by
APC2, the temperature distributions in the composite
during the flat bed tape laying process and the
post-consolidation cooling of laminates.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This work was funded by the APC Development
Laboratory, ICI Chemicals and Polymers Group,
Wilton, Middlesbrough. The author is grateful to R.
Hasler for permission to publish, and for valuable
discussions with P. White, U. Measuria and others at
ICI, and M. Watson (Welding Institute).
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A U THOR
Dr S. M. Grove is with the Advanced Composites
Manufacturing Centre, Department of Mechanical
Engineering, Plymouth Polytechnic, Drake Circus,
Plymouth PL4 8AA, UK.
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