Properties of a thermoplastic composite skin-stiffener interface in a stiffened structure manufactured by laser-assisted tape placement with in situ consolidation

Properties of a thermoplastic composite skin-stiffener interface in a stiffened structure manufactured by laser-assisted tape placement with in situ consolidation

Bandaru, Aswani Kumar (University of Limerick)
Clancy, Gearóid (University of Limerick)
Peeters, D.M.J. (TU Delft Aerospace Manufacturing Technologies; University of Limerick)
O'Higgins, Ronan M. (University of Limerick)
Weaver, Paul M. (University of Limerick)

2019

A critically important consideration of stiffened structural panels is the interfacial properties between skin and stiffener. In the present study a novel implementation of laser-assisted tape placement (LATP) was used to produce a representative skin-stiffener of a wingbox from carbon fibre reinforced PEEK. First, a stiffener is manufactured using this method and subsequently the skin is attached using the same method without need for a secondary bonding process. The interfacial properties between the skin and stiffener have been characterised in terms of interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) and fracture toughness (Mode-I and Mode-II) properties. LATP laydown direction and laser power was found to influence the skin-stiffener interface Mode-I fracture toughness, but not affect the Mode-II fracture toughness. The values of ILSS and fracture toughness compare favourably with those results reported in the literature, in particular for those reported for equivalent aerospace certified CF/PEEK material (APC-2).

Automated fibre placement
Interface properties
Mechanical testing
Thermoplastic

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:a790f3f0-afb4-4bfb-8e2c-9655ad66ff91

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compstruct.2019.02.011

2021-02-10

0263-8223

Composite Structures, 214, 123-131

Institutional Repository

journal article

© 2019 Aswani Kumar Bandaru, Gearóid Clancy, D.M.J. Peeters, Ronan M. O'Higgins, Paul M. Weaver