Composite Technologies for Future Demands

Abstract

Within the last decade, the manufacturing of fibre-reinforced parts has changed from mainly manual production to automated production. Reliable automated equipment is now available, but the processing time for high performance components is still poor and therefore the production rate is low. Within this paper, several solutions are shown to overcome that problem. For example preforming of dry fabrics, an innovative selective heating system based on electromagnetic field induction, has been tested with very promising results. This technology, which is already common for metal bonding and welding, allows the transfer and conversion of electrical energy directly into the fibre-layup to consolidate the binder. Other very time consuming steps in the manufacturing chain are the resin preparation- and the infusion step. One reason for that is the low heat transfer due to conventional heaters. Different microwave heating systems have been invented and successfully tested to couple the heat energy directly into the resin without necessarily heating up pipes, tools or the equipment. The overall processing time can dramatically be reduced by combining these technologies with available materials.