EVALUATING CONSOLIDATION DYNAMICS - STUDY OF KEY CONSOLIDATION PARAMETERS IN A VACUUM BAG ONLY (VBO) CURE

摘要

The process of pre-preg consolidation and void removal is critical to fabricating high quality out of autoclave (OOA) parts. A partially impregnated prepreg material was connected to a vacuum source and heated during vacuum bag only (VBO) cure. The matrix resin flows, filling the evacuated regions of the material, and polymerizes. To better understand the dynamics of the consolidation and void removal portion of the cure process, an experiment was designed to study laminate consolidation dynamics. The experiment divided the consolidation portion of a cure into segments. Laminate condition at these distinct times was captured by quickly lowering the laminate temperature once the cure segment was reached. To study these static segments of the consolidation, the laminate samples were cured without heating and mounted for photo microscopy. The results derived illustrate void removal, matrix flow and compositional changes during a specific portion of the cure cycle.