Influence of one-dimensional material flow on mechanical properties and fiber orientation distribution of thin-ply carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastics sheet molding compounds

Date published

2024-11

Free to read from

2024-10-24

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Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Elsevier

Department

Type

Article

ISSN

2452-2139

Format

Citation

Zhao Z, Wan Y, Xu X, Takahashi J. (2024) Influence of one-dimensional material flow on mechanical properties and fiber orientation distribution of thin-ply carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastics sheet molding compounds. Composites Communications, Volume 51, November 2024, Article number 102071

Abstract

The molding flow of carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastic sheet molding compounds (CFRTP-SMC) is complex and requires a comprehensive understanding of underlying processes. This study investigates the material behavior during compression molding processes, focusing on the influence of the ratio of initial material charge area over mold area (charge ratio) on mechanical properties. The results highlight the CFRTP-SMC material's excellent flowability and moldability and confirm that the mechanical properties and internal morphology change with charge ratios. In addition, a correlation between mechanical properties and internal morphology is established through quantitative analysis of fiber orientation distributions using X-ray computed tomography. This comprehensive investigation not only sheds light on the molding ‘behavior of CFRTP-SMCs, but also underscores the importance of material charge ratios in influencing the mechanical properties. This study also provides a case study for validating numerical process models.

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Software Description

Software Language

Github

Keywords

Molding compounds, Directional orientation, CT analysis, Compression molding, 40 Engineering, 4016 Materials Engineering, 4016 Materials engineering

DOI

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Attribution 4.0 International

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Funder/s

This work was supported by Japan Science and Technology Agency's SPRING Program (JPMJSP2108). The work was also partially funded by the Royal Society (IEC\R3\213017) and Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JPJSBP 120225702).