Effects of vacuum infusion configuration on homogeneity of glass fiber reinforced polymer composites for automotive components

Abstract

In this study, the effects of vacuum infusion configuration on the homogeneities of glass fiber reinforced vinyl ester composites have been evaluated. Three different sizes of samples (100x100, 500x500, and 1000x1000 mm) were fabricated. Three different configurations were used to fabricate the samples. The first two configurations had one inlet, while the third configuration had two inlets for resin infusion. Thickness variations and hardness (Shore D) measurements were performed to determine the homogeneities of the samples. The results revealed that, for small size samples, the configurations have no obvious effect on the homogeneity of the samples, both in terms of thickness variations and hardness values. However, for larger samples, the configuration where the resin is introduced into the preform in the center of the component showed better homogeneity than other configurations. Even a better distribution is assessed with the introduction of the resin in the center of the sample, although this configuration also resulted in thickness swellings in the central areas of the sample. The thickness swellings were observed around the inlet areas for all configurations. The study shows that the resin flow in the center of the component is preferable but thickness swelling must be considered when dimensional tolerances are critical.