Novel TAPE termination method for automated fibre placement: cutting characteristics and delamination suppression

Tharan Gordon, Xiaodong Xu, Michael R Wisnom, Byung Chul (Eric) Kim*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle (Academic Journal)peer-review

23 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A novel tape termination method for tapering the ply end and removing the fibre discontinuity owing to a dropped ply in a tapered composite was demonstrated. The forces required for this process - referred to as scarfing - were experimentally investigated with respect to blade speed, scarfing ratio, tape thickness and width. Tensile tests were conducted on unidirectional laminate specimens with a scarfed ply at two different aspect ratios to examine the effect of scarfing ratio on the delamination behaviour of the specimens. The results showed that the ply scarfing ratio is a critical parameter controlling the cutting force and delamination behaviour in a tapered specimen, and upon reaching a certain threshold delamination can be completely suppressed. The method demonstrated has potential for implementation in commercial AFP machines, theoretically realising a more compact cutting mechanism, with the capability of preventing delamination in the ply drop regions.
Original languageEnglish
Article number106023
Number of pages11
JournalComposites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing
Volume137
Early online date4 Jul 2020
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Oct 2020

Keywords

  • Prepreg
  • Delamination
  • Automated Fibre Placement (AFP)
  • Cutting

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