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Refined simulation of temperature distribution in molds during autoclave process

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Abstract

Since the production of advanced composites, they have gained popularity in many industrial applications because of their unique performances. The advantages of these materials are very important, especially in the area of aviation. Among all the molding methods adopted in their production, the autoclave stands out as distinct method. Considering the temperature distribution in molds, it is one of the crucial aspects to impart quality to composite components during the process of autoclave molding, and it is necessary to do research and analysis on temperature distribution in molds, especially those of large frame-type molds. In previous studies, many authors improved the simulation accuracy simply by changing the grids or boundary conditions. A few of them took boundary layer grids into consideration for further precision. With the aid of computer softwares, this paper conducts simulation on large frame type of molds. Given that the boundary layer grids will largely determine the simulation precision, this study attempts to give emphasis on the study of boundary layer grids to make the simulation results more accurate, and finally make a comparison with the experimental data. The error between simulation and experiment results was within 5 %. This indicated that the boundary layer grids had great influence on the accuracy of simulation of the paper conducted, and should be given more attention. Therefore, the method of simulation in this study can be further used to accurately simulate the temperature distribution in molds.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Light Alloy Research Institute of CSU, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, China

    Fei Chen, Lihua Zhan & Shujian Li

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  1. Fei Chen
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  2. Lihua Zhan
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  3. Shujian Li
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Correspondence to Lihua Zhan.

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Chen, F., Zhan, L. & Li, S. Refined simulation of temperature distribution in molds during autoclave process. Iran Polym J 25, 775–785 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13726-016-0466-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13726-016-0466-0

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