Abstract
Liquid composite moulding (LCM) of plant fibre composites has gained much attention for the development of structural biobased composites. To produce quality composites, better understanding of the resin impregnation process and flow behaviour in plant fibre reinforcements is vital. By reviewing the literature, we aim to identify key plant fibre reinforcement-specific factors that influence, if not govern, the mould filling stage during LCM of plant fibre composites. In particular, the differences in structure (physical and biochemical) for plant and synthetic fibres, their semi-products (i.e., yarns and rovings), and their mats and textiles are shown to have a perceptible effect on their compaction, in-plane permeability, and processing via LCM. In addition to examining the effects of dual-scale flow, resin absorption, (subsequent) fibre swelling, capillarity, and time-dependent saturated and unsaturated permeability that are specific to plant fibre reinforcements, we also review the various models utilised to predict and simulate resin impregnation during LCM of plant fibre composites.
Highlights
It has been observed for natural fibre reinforcements that the saturated permeability is higher than the unsaturated permeability
Jute fabrics consistently exhibit capillary pressures two to three times higher than synthetic reinforcements [66], implying that capillary effects and micro-flow are more dominant in natural fibre reinforcements
Permeability studies and data are imperative to understanding and modelling the mould filling stage in the Liquid composite moulding (LCM) of composites
Summary
Resin infusion or liquid composite moulding (LCM) processes accounted for 11% (ca. 1.3 Mtonnes) of the 2019 global composite production market [1]. While the ratio of thermoset-to-thermoplastic composites has evolved from 98:2 in the 1980s to almost 60:40 at present (2019), the use of a wide range of principally thermosetting resin-based LCM processes [2], such as vacuum infusion and resin transfer moulding, has grown consistently over the last few years and decades. The latter is primarily due to a decline in manual processes such as hand lay-up and spray-up [1]. We consider the processing of plant-fibre-reinforced plastics via LCM
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