2017/08/18 by Samuel Erland, Erland, S., Tim Dodwell +3
Engineering · #Applied Physics (physics.app-ph) #FOS: Physical sciences #Material Properties and Processing
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1709.07940
openalex publication_date 2017/08/18 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Understanding the bending mechanics of uncured carbon fibre prepreg is vital for modelling forming processes and the formation of out-of-plane wrinkling defects. This paper presents a modification of standard Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) to characterise the viscoelastic bending mechanics of uncured carbon fibre prepreg using Timoshenko beam theory. By post-processing DMA results, the analysis provides temperature and rate-dependent values of inter and intra-ply shear stiffness for a carbon fibre laminate and each individual ply with experimental results for AS4/8552 presented. The new methodology provides a means to parametrise process models, and also gives an indication of optimal manufacturing conditions to enable defect-free forming and consolidation processes.