FRP Manufacturing Mesh Flow Medium and Flow Suppressor
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for manufacturing fiber reinforced plastic structures, such as those used in aircraft bodies and windmill blades, face challenges in achieving uniform plastic impregnation, leading to impregnation defects and unimpregnated areas due to non-uniform fluid plastic flow, especially in thick or long structures.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method that incorporate a mesh plastic flow medium and a plastic flow suppressing member, which can be a soft material or sponge, to control the flow front of fluid plastic and ensure uniform impregnation by suppressing the advance of the plastic flow front, using a combination of main and sub plastic supplying units.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a plastic flow medium is used to achieve two-dimensional diffusion uniformity of fluid plastic, then the uniformity of plastic distribution is improved, but the flow rate uniformity deteriorates when manufacturing thick FRP products
Solution Approach 1:
The cavity is divided into multiple injection regions with separate injection ports, allowing independent control of plastic flow in different areas. This segmentation enables uniform flow rate distribution across the entire cavity while maintaining two-dimensional diffusion uniformity through the plastic flow medium.
Solution Approach 2:
Injection ports are strategically positioned at specific locations within the cavity, and the plastic flow medium is configured with varying pore structures in different regions. This local optimization ensures that each area receives appropriate plastic flow rates according to its specific requirements, achieving both uniform distribution and flow rate consistency.
2Productivity
If the plastic injection rate is increased to shorten manufacturing cycle, then productivity is improved, but impregnation defects increase due to non-uniform flow
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple injection ports distributed throughout the cavity enable simultaneous injection from different locations, effectively increasing the total injection rate while maintaining uniform flow distribution. This allows high productivity without sacrificing impregnation quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The plastic flow medium acts as an intermediary that receives high-rate injection from multiple ports and redistributes the plastic uniformly across the fiber laminate. This mediator enables high injection rates to be converted into uniform impregnation, preventing defects while maintaining short manufacturing cycles.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If vacuuming is performed from the edge of the cavity, then air removal is achieved, but unimpregnated parts are generated in thick or long structures
Solution Approach 1:
The cavity is divided into multiple injection zones with distributed injection ports that simultaneously supply plastic to different regions. This segmentation ensures that even in thick or long structures, plastic reaches all areas before the vacuuming process completes, preventing unimpregnated parts.
Solution Approach 2:
Plastic injection is initiated from multiple locations simultaneously before the vacuuming process fully removes air from the cavity. This preliminary action ensures that plastic begins impregnating the fiber laminate early, and the combined effect of multi-point injection and vacuuming guarantees complete impregnation even in challenging geometries.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach effectively prevents impregnation defects by enhancing fluidity and diffusability of the plastic, ensuring complete impregnation of the fiber laminate and shortening the manufacturing cycle, particularly suitable for large structures like aircraft bodies and windmill blades.
Implementation Method 1
a vacuum pump 30 that removes air from the cavity 110
Implementation Method 2
a mesh plastic flow medium 22 that is disposed on a side of the second mold 12 and increases a volume of the plastic 16 to be impregnated to the fiber laminate 15
Data Source
AI summary
In an apparatus for manufacturing a fiber reinforced plastic structure, a cavity is formed by a first mold and a film second mold covering the first mold, and plastic is impregnated to a fiber laminate provided in the cavity in a depressurized state. The apparatus includes: a mesh plastic flow medium that is disposed on the side of the second mold and increases the volume of the plastic to be impregnated to the fiber laminate; and a plastic flow suppressing member that is disposed on the side of the first mold of the plastic flow medium, and suppresses advance of a flow front of fluid plastic injected from a main plastic supplying unit (a first plastic supplying unit).