Advanced thermoplastic composite materials offer many advantages for use in space structures (excellent mechanical performance, low CTE, minimal out-gassing, environmental resistance, good cryogenic properties). However, use of these materials has been hindered to date by the lack of viable manufacturing and assembly processes. This has been mainly caused by the stiff, boardy nature of the raw material pre-preg and also the requirement for very high temperatures (circa 400 deg C) and forming pressures for consolidation (approx. 1 MPa recommended). Recently, advances have been made using 'out-of-autoclave' (OOA) processing, specifically using Automated Tape Placement (ATP) technology. This processing technique allows a continuous pre-heated reinforced tape to be placed directly onto a tool surface and consolidated in-situ. This offers significant advantages for large composite structures (for example future launcher fuel tanks and outer skirts) where existing high temperature autoclave processing is not possible for large component sizes. For assembly of separate components into a larger structure, new joining methods need to be developed for thermoplastic composites. This paper summarises work carried out recently to investigate using two different joining techniques for thermoplastic composites applied to ATP-processed structures: resistance welding and amorphous interlayer bonding. Resistance welding involved placing a metallic mesh at the interface between the two surfaces to be joined. Electrical current was passed though the mesh introducing heat and under an applied localised compression force, two tapered CF/PEEK cylinder sections were joined. Amorphous interlayer bonding utilised a thin film of amorphous PEI placed at the bondline. When heated, the PEI melted and fused the surfaces of the two cylinder sections together. Lap shear testing was done to evaluate the bond performance subsequently. Results of this work indicate very good potential for both processes, with a more reliable bondline being formed using the interlayer bonding technique. Lap shear test results also indicated better performance using this technique.


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    Titel :

    New assembly techniques using advanced thermoplastic composites for space structures


    Beteiligte:


    Erscheinungsdatum :

    2009


    Format / Umfang :

    16 Seiten, 18 Bilder, 7 Quellen



    Medientyp :

    Aufsatz (Konferenz)


    Format :

    Datenträger


    Sprache :

    Englisch





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