Development of a Hard-Patch Approach for Scarf Repair of Composite Structure

摘要

The pre-moulded (hard) patch approach for scarf repair of composite structures has several advantages compared with the conventional prepreg lay-up (soft-patch) approach, which involves forming the patch directly in the repair cavity. These include the development of patch properties which match the parent structure, much improved patch geometry (no wrinkling or ply distortion) and, importantly for aircraft employing high temperature-composites designed to operate at 177C/350F (such as JSF), reduced application temperature-depending on the repair adhesive chosen.