Исследование кинетики процесса отверждения тонкостенной конструкции из углепластика

Abstract

The paper presents a computational method and an example of using it to derive parameters of a high-pressure filament-wound carbon fibre vessel designed for unmanned aerial vehicle applications. A feature of the vessel design is its variable thickness, which may result in temperature gradients, residual stresses, and diminished strength. We propose a method for assessing curing kinetics that takes into account the heat emitted during this process. We used the ESI PAM-RTM software package for simulation and determined that at the initial stage of the curing process the temperature and degree of curing in the thinner part of the product exceed those in its thicker part. As the degree of curing increases, the exothermic reaction taking place affects the temperature fields, which leads to an increase in temperatures and degree of curing in the thicker regions. In order to level the temperature gradients and degree of curing over the whole vessel, we propose to heat it at different rates. Our investigation results allowed us to establish the optimum manufacturing conditions ensuring the minimum temperature gradient values