Development of a Sensor for Continuously Monitoring the Degree of Cure of Composite Materials during Pultrusion

摘要

Technology has been developed to produce a sensor capable of withstanding the hostile environment of high temperature, pressure, and abrasion inside the pultrusion die that will allow the state of the matrix material to be continuously monitored. Data from the sensor could be used by a smart control system to maintain product quality. The approach was to combine a commercially available sensor with plasma spray technology to protect the sensor with a thin ceramic coating. Researchers identified methods for transfering the conductive elements of the sensor to a ceramic insert which could be installed in a pultrusion die, established techniques for casting a ceramic insert or an all ceramic die, proved a method of protecting the sensor with a ceramic coating, and tested sensor prototypes. They developed a computer simulation program to predict the viability of the coating concept, fabricated the ceramic substrate with the silk-screened conducting electrodes, and operated the Eumeric II Dielectric cure monitoring equipment.