Induction melt thermoforming of advanced multi-axial thermoplastic composite laminates

On-line Adaptive Control for Thermoforming of Large Thermoplastic Sheets

Large sheet thermoforming is widely used for the manufacture of parts such as twin sheet formed gas tanks, body panels and windshields. These complex technical parts require a precise temperature map to be realized prior to forming. In particular, the material used for forming gas tanks incorporates an EVOH barrier layer that is susceptible to tearing when exact processing conditions are not st...

Examining the Relationship Between Ballistic and Structural Properties of Lightweight Thermoplastic Unidirectional Composite Laminates

The pursuit for lightweight personal protection (helmets, body armor, etc.) has been a key issue for the Army in recent years. Previous efforts have shown that the variation of orientation and architecture in ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) composite panels can significantly affect ballistic performance characteristics. In our experiments, an architecture now referred to as “A...

Novel Thermoplastic Polyimide Composite Materials

Genetic optimization of two-material composite laminates

This paper describes the optimization of a composite laminate made from two materials. The use of two materials in the laminates design can offer improved designs, as it is possible to combine the desirable properties of the two materials. In this paper, we consider the use of graphite-epoxy, which has high stiffness properties, but is expensive, and glass-epoxy, which is not as stiff, but has ...

Fuzzy Modeling of Thermoplastic Composites' Melt Volume Rate

Melt volume-flow rate (MVR) is one of the most important quality indicators of composite materials, which depends on the proportion of the component materials. This paper reports the development of a low complexity fuzzy model that describes the relation between percentage amount of multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT), acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), polycarbonate (PC) and MVR of the resul...