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Design of an apparatus for measuring tool/fabric and fabric/fabric friction of woven-fabric composites during the thermostamping process

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Abstract

The thermostamping of prepreg woven fabrics shows promise as a low-cost high-volume manufacturing process for composite parts. One concern associated with the process is the unwanted formation of defects in the form of fabric wrinkling. This wrinkling can be prevented during the thermostamping process by inducing in-plane forces through the use of one or more metal binder rings. However, if the in-plane forces are too low, then the fabric may wrinkle as the fabric conforms to the shape of the punch, and conversely, if the in-plane forces are too high, then the yarns in the fabric can separate and the fabric may tear and yarns can break. The in-plane forces are a result of the friction between the fabric and the metal binder rings. As the fabric slides over the surfaces of the punch and die, further friction is induced between the metal tooling and the fabric part. In addition, most composite parts consist of multiple layers, and therefore as the fabric is drawn into the die adjacent layers of fabric may slide relative to one another. Thus, the friction at the tool/fabric interface and the interlaminar friction must be understood and quantified to predict part quality as a function of the processing parameters. In this paper, the design and implementation of a load-control test apparatus used to measure the friction between the tool and the fabric and between adjacent layers of fabric during a composite forming process is presented.

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Acknowledgements

This research was completed partially under NSF Award # DMII-0522923. The inputs from Dr. Patrick Blanchard of Ford Research Lab are appreciated.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell, One University Ave., Lowell, MA, 01854, USA

    Konstantine A. Fetfatsidis, Lisa M. Gamache, Jennifer L. Gorczyca, James A. Sherwood, David Jauffrès & Julie Chen

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  1. Konstantine A. Fetfatsidis
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  2. Lisa M. Gamache
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  3. Jennifer L. Gorczyca
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  4. James A. Sherwood
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  5. David Jauffrès
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  6. Julie Chen
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Correspondence to James A. Sherwood.

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Fetfatsidis, K.A., Gamache, L.M., Gorczyca, J.L. et al. Design of an apparatus for measuring tool/fabric and fabric/fabric friction of woven-fabric composites during the thermostamping process. Int J Mater Form 6, 1–11 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12289-011-1058-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12289-011-1058-3

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