Development of a Workflow for the Design of Liquid Composite Moulding Processes

摘要

Liquid Composite Moulding (LCM) processes, such as Resin Transfer Mouldingrn(RTM), Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Moulding (VARTM) or Resin Film Infusionrn(RFI) are considered attractive processes for manufacturing low-to-medium volumerncomposite parts of various sizes. In addition, LCM offers the versatility to producernparts of complex shapes and features. When designing an LCM process, a number ofrnparameters must be considered. Some are constrained, some are flexible, and othersrnare completely unconstrained and therefore the focus of the design process. Overrnrecent years, numerical simulations of LCM processes have gained popularity as a toolrnto help engineers simulate the process prior to production. To run these simulationsrnaccurately, these techniques require the constituent materials to be characterized. Thernpermeability of the reinforcement, and the rheological and kinetics behavior of thernresin system are key parameters. Also, depending on the complexity of the part,rnmeshing the model can be very time-consuming. The objective of this work is torndevelop a workflow for the design of an LCM processes and reduce the time/monetaryrncost of the simulation. By classifying the process based on constraints such asrngeometrical complexity and size, structural response, and inlet/outlet ports placement,rnan optimal simulation tool (from simple closed form to extensive numericalrnsimulations) can be selected for the specific application. By implementing thernappropriate technique for the situation, the user should be able to analyze the processrnand select an acceptable injection strategy. This paper presents a method forrnclassifying a part based on the flow complexity, including a technique for breakingrndown a geometry into simple elements that can be analyzed using closed formrntechniques.1