Processing of composite

components
V.Krishnaraj
Faculty of Mechanical Engg.
PSG College of Technology
Manufacturing Polymer
Composite Materials
Polymers, and Polymer Composites
Manufacturing Processes
The popular idea of “COMPOSITES”

+ =

Polymer “Matrices” “Reinforcement” “Composite Components”

 Material Options Available Today
Researchers continue to develop new materials
for use in society:
• Ceramics• Plant Products • Metals• Polymers
• Glasses• Wood • Pure • Thermoplastic
• • Natural Fibres • Alloys• Thermoset
• Resins
Crystalline • Rubbers
Ceramics
• Composites• Bio-composites • Nano-composites

What will be developed next? How will we

process these new materials?
 Is there one “perfect material” that will do
everything?
NO
Must consider the required application…
Lightweight? Conducts Electricity?
Stiff? Bonds to Bone?
Absorbs Impact Energy?
Conducts Heat Efficiently?
• Engineers must understand PROS and
CONS of materials they use!
• An Engineer should develop their
knowledge of the materials they employ.
Successful development of a PRODUCT requires
a concurrent approach to;

Performance

Materials PRODUCT Costs

Manufacturing
During this course we will focus on;
… understanding their important
Materials
properties.

… introducing processes.
Manufacturing
… analyzing processes.

We will briefly consider;

… what is this product
Performance
required to do?
… can we really make any
Costs
profit from this product?
 COST
Cost as a Driving Factor for Design
Young engineers often underestimate the limitations
imposed by MATERIAL and MANUFACTURING cost.
If you want to make any money, the applied material and
processing technique must justify the required expense.
High Vf Carbon Fibre, High Grade Epoxy?

hmmm… OK.

Carbon Fibre, Epoxy?

NO!

Chopped Glass Fibre, Polyester

Composites often have only two phases
• Matrix phase
– continuous - surrounds other phase
• Dispersed phase
– discontinuous phase

Matrix (light)
Dispersed phase (dark)
 Properties of Composites
Dependent on:
• constituent phases
• relative amounts
• geometry of dispersed phase
– shape of particles
– particle size
– particle distribution
– particle orientation
 Composite Parameters

For a given matrix/dispersed phase

system:
• Concentration
• Size
• Shape
• Distribution
• Orientation
 Parameters

Distribution Concentration Orientation

Shape Size
 Manufacturing the glass fiber
Glass fiber is the least energy intensive fiber to produce on Mars.
Three main types of fiber glass
1. C glass (uncommon) used in corrosive environments. It is a soda-lime-borosilicate
composition
2. E glass used in printed circuit boards. Has the greatest number of components.
3. S glass used in aerospace for its high strength and resistance to moisture. It has the highest
strength and modulus of all these fibers and it is the simplest composition of only silica,
alumina, and magnesia or simply magnesium aluminosilicate
Glass Silica Alumina Calcium Magnesia Boron Soda Calcium other
type SiO2 Al2O3 oxide MgO oxide Na2O fluoride minor
CaO B2O3 CaF2 oxides
E 54 14 20.5 .5 8 1 1 1
S 64 25 10 .3 1
C 66 4 13 3 5 8.5 1.3

Since we want the strongest fiber, and it is the simplest composition using compounds
that we know exist on Mars, we will make S glass fiber.
 Homogenizing the glass
composition
The first steps -
• homogenizing the glass composition and
• controlling the outflow temperature so that the viscosity of the drawn glass is constant
 Drawing the glass fiber

Next steps:
• Pulling fibers from the melt
• drawing them down from 1 mm to
10.0E-6 m, a reduction ratio of 100
• Organosilane coatings are applied
to protect the filament surfaces and
also to promote better wetting and
bonding between the glass filaments
and the thermosetting resin during
the filament winding process.
• taking them up as a single strand on
the forming winder or to fiber
chopper
 Manufacturing Methods for
Composites
Using pressure and elevated temperature to aid infiltration of matrix around fibers
1. Autoclave Cure - Best properties, but requires massive pressure vessel/oven
2. VARTM (vacuum assisted resin transfer molding) - Uses woven dry fiber preforms and a
massive weaving machine to create them. Best properties for very large structures (a/c wings)
uses the pressure differential of 1 atm on Earth to pull the resin into a preform of fibers. But on
Mars the ambient pressure differential will be ~1/2 bar or less.
Low pressure and low temperature cure processes include:
1. Filament winding
2. Open Mold processes
• Sprayup
• Hand layup

We will use filament winding and sprayup

Filament winding the pressure
vessel modules
A Filament Winder is
like a lathe with a long
“cutting arm”
that adds material
(fiber and resin)
instead of removing
material
The composites
filament winding area
may have to be ~30 m
high to accommodate
vertical winding of
Homestead modules
A large crane is
required to support the
mass and to maneuver
it from vertical to
horizontal
Sprayup Method for low pressure
chambers

This method of building up a 15% chopped fiber

reinforced structure could have real value for the
internal walls of low pressure underground chambers.
It is a fast and non-labor intensive method of providing
a seal.