THERMOCHEMICAL AND MECHANICAL ASPECTS OF COMPOSITE TAPE LAYING

The overall objective of this investigation was to study the manufactu re of organic matrix composites by the tape laying process. Specifical ly, the effects of the processing conditions on the quality of composi te parts were investigated. Models were developed which relate the app lied heating, applied pressure, tape laying speed, and mold material t o the thermochemical and mechanical response of the material. On the b asis of these models, computer codes were written to generate numerica l results. With these computer codes, parametric studies were performe d which indicated the influence of the various processing parameters o n the temperature, degree of cure (for thermosetting matrix composites ), crystallinity (for thermoplastic matrix composites), viscosity, and stresses inside the composite. From the numerical results, the proces sing conditions required for manufacturing good quality parts were ide ntified.