Advances In RTM Manufacturing Of Metal-FRP Hybrids By Self-Sealing And In-Mold Cleaning Techniques

The importance of fiber-reinforced plastics for lightweight construction applications is steadily increasing due to their outstanding weight-specific property values. However, a decisive disadvantage of these composite materials has so far been the high material and process costs, which is why fiber-reinforced plastics are almost exclusively used in small to medium-sized series. Optimization of manufacturing methods is of great importance to reduce the production cost. In this study, two concepts are proposed that can optimize vacuum assisted light resin transfer molding (VA-LRTM) further, leading to a possibility of fully automatic process. Conventional VA-LRTM methods are used to produce complex fiber-reinforced plastics (FRP) and hybrid components. Traditional molds used to produce components via VA-LRTM are sealed using polymer materials to prevent the leakage of matrix system. The seals undergo tremendous amounts of thermal, chemical, and mechanical loadings. Thus, sealings must be replaced in short intervals. In the current study, a concept where sealing is achieved by accelerating the curing of matrix system itself with the help of heating elements and catalysts resulting in a self-sealing approach is proposed. Another concern is mold surface contamination during component production. To address this, a modified automatic cleaning technique based on ultrasonic cleaning was proposed which can be integrated into the production line with minimum modification. Both the proposed concepts were validated and optimized using experiments, simulations, and analytical approaches by producing metal-FRP hybrid shafts.