Optimizing Bladder Resin Transfer Molding Process to Manufacture Complex, Thin-Ply Thermoplastic Tubular Composite Structures: An Experimental Case Study

To manufacture a complicated hollow product without any assembly process, for example, the plastic intake manifold, is difficult by the traditional injection molding method. The fusible-core technique, which uses a low-melting-point alloy as a sacrificial core, was developed to solve this problem; however, the limited selection of resin type and the huge capital investment have caused this technique to spread slowly. In this work, a novel method is established that can produce similar products without the limitation of resin type, as well as a lower-energy-consumption process. The concept of the enveloped core defined by a water-soluble core assembled with a shell is proposed herein; it provides both rigidity and toughness to resist the pressure during the injection molding process. The shape of the enveloped core equals the internal contour of the designated product. An insert molding process was introduced to cover the enveloped core with a skin layer. Cut out the end of the enveloped core and immerse it into a water bath. When the water-soluble core inside the shell is dissolved, the product with a special internal contour is accomplished. A tee-joint is presented to demonstrate how the proposed method can be utilized. The optimal ingredient of the core and processing parameters are determined by the Taguchi method. The result shows that the proposed product is molded successfully when the compressive strength of the core is larger than 2 MPa. In addition, the eccentricity measurement of internal contour of the optimal sample exhibits a 56% improvement, and the required time for the core removal is less than 154 s.

Section: Water-soluble Core Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Water-Soluble Core for Manufacturing Hollow Injection-Molded Products

Lin

Yang

2022

“…Binder in the form of water suspension based on bisphenol-A epoxy resin, dicyandiamide as a curing agent, polyacrylamide as a thickener, and imidazole catalyst was proposed for use with such compatible matrices as vinyl ester, polyester, phenolic thermoplastics, and most preferably, urethane polymers [ 73 ]. Similar epoxy binder can even be used with novel thermoplastic resin system [ 74 , 75 ].…”

Section: Binders For Other Matricesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Binders Used for the Manufacturing of Composite Materials by Liquid Composite Molding

Terekhov

Chistyakov

2021

Binders, or tackifiers, have become widespread in the production of new composites materials by liquid composite molding (LCM) techniques due to their ability to stabilize preforms during laying-up and impregnation, as well as to improve fracture toughness of the obtained composites, which is very important in aviation, automotive, ship manufacturing, etc. Furthermore, they can be used in modern methods of automatic laying of dry fibers into preforms, which significantly reduces the labor cost of the manufacturing process. In this article, we review the existing research from the 1960s of the 20th century to the present days in the field of creation and properties of binders used to bond various layers of preforms in the manufacturing of composite materials by LCM methods to summarize and synthesize knowledge on these issues. Different binders based on epoxy, polyester, and a number of other resins compatible with the corresponding polymer matrices are considered in the article. The influence of binders on the preforming process, various properties of obtained preforms, including compaction, stability, and permeability, as well as the main characteristics of composite materials obtained by various LCM methods and the advantages and disadvantages of this technology have been also highlighted.

“…Hollow composite structures are extensively used in many engineering applications such as marine, automobile, aerospace industries and especially in sporting equipment [ 1 , 2 ]. From an engineering point of view, fibre provides outstanding properties in an in-plane direction ( x , y -axis).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Behaviour of Rectangular Hollow Thin Ply Carbon Thermoset and Thermoplastic Composite Tubes Subjected to Bending

Bhudolia

Gohel

Vasudevan³

et al. 2022

Self Cite

Tubular composites are widely used in many industrial applications, and there is need to use new material and reliable manufacturing processes to improve the performance and process aspects. The current research presents a detailed study to understand the flexure response of rectangular tubular composites based on thin ply carbon fibres and Elium® resin. Another aim was to understand the failure mechanisms of novel tubular thermoplastic composite systems and carry out a baseline comparison with Epoxy-based tubular systems. In the current research, a bladder-assisted resin transfer moulding process was used to manufacture hollow thermoplastic composite tubes, and the bending behaviour of thin ply carbon (TPC) composite parts with novel Elium® (EL) and Epoxy (EP) resin as the matrix material was studied using a detailed experimental study. A testing method with optimized support span and a saddle was used to carry out three-point bending tests on the tubular composite structures. The TPC/EL composite tubes have shown 10% higher bending strength, with a noticeable increase in deformation due the presence of extended plasticity attributes for acrylic Elium resin. Failure mechanisms studied with the detailed microscopic investigation have shown severe catastrophic failure for epoxy-based composite tubes; however, acrylic Elium®-based composite tubes have shown different damage modes such as fibre splitting, resin infragmentation, and fibre resin-interfacial cracking.