Statistical study of delamination area distribution in composite components fabricated by autoclave process

As the most frequent defect in composite structures during fabricated by autoclave process, delamination has evidently influence on compressive behavior of delaminated composite panels. For structure design purposes, delamination area is of great importance parameter to be considered. Based on considerable delamination information from non-destructive identification for composite components, a statistical study was in detail presented to investigate how delamination area in different composite components distributed. The distribution model of delamination area was hypothesized and tested by normal W test and normal D test. With consideration combined by the dispersibility and the qualified rate of delamination area, an effective method for estimating the manufacturing quality of composite components was also established. The results indicated that a lognormal distribution was found to represent the delamination area quite well and about 100 mm² had the maximum probability. Moreover, the complexity and the thickness of composite structures had significantly influence on the qualified rate of delamination area. The more complex structure and the thinner or the thicker composites decreased the qualified rate of delamination area.