Simulation analysis of parametric effects on consolidation ofangle bended composites

In the previous study, the finite element formulation has been developed by our group based on two-dimensional resin flow and fiber compaction model. Good agreement between simulations and experimental results was found under the one-dimensional flow condition. In this paper, the two-dimensional model was used to simulate the consolidation of angle-bended laminates with the convex tool in autoclave process. The effects of material properties and geometry dimensions on the consolidation were studied. It was found that the fiber bed shear modulus significantly affects the compaction behavior in the corner section of angle-bended laminate, the fiber bed compaction property decide the laminate deformation, the resin viscosity and fiber bed permeability affect the rate of laminate compaction. Laminate geometry dimensions have little influence on the characteristics of the laminate deformation. Experimental data also show the similar deformation feature with the simulations. These results are greatly helpful for the optimization of processing parameters, improvement of composite parts quality, reduction of the fabrication research and development cycle and cost.