Characteristics and Processability of Bindered Dry Fibre Material for Automated Fibre Placement

Automated Fibre Placement (AFP) of bindered dry fibre material has emerged as a potential manufacturing process for advanced composites. The technology is in its early stages of development and material suppliers are entering the market with a range of different materials. This paper addresses the current knowledge gaps by assessing the fundamental differences between five of the available materials. The differences between the as supplied raw materials were characterised in terms of their geometrical tolerances (width, thickness and areal weight) and their manufacturability was assessed in terms of the number of faults during automated fibre placement lay-up, the fibre volume fraction of the preform and the infusion time. The procurement challenges (lead time, risk and customer support) were also taken into account. The results were compiled in a decision matrix using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to define a suitability index for each material. Two materials were identified as viable options.