Comparative experimental and numerical analysis of bending behaviour of dry and low viscous infiltrated woven fabrics

Abstract Wet compression moulding (WCM) provides high-volume production potential for continuous fibre-reinforced composite components via simultaneous draping and infiltration. Experimental and theoretical investigations proved strong mutual dependencies between resin flow and fabric deformation, which are not fully understood yet. This limits development of suitable process simulation methods and applies in particular for the characterisation of infiltrated bending behaviour - essential for an accurate prediction of draping effects. Therefore, a comparative characterisation of the bending behaviour of dry and infiltrated woven fabrics is presented using a modified cantilever and a rheometer bending test. Experimental results reveal both, rate- and viscosity-dependencies. A comparison of the quantitative results exposed an explicable systematic deviation between the two tests, whereas qualitative results are comparable. Finally, Finite Element forming simulations, comprising two bending models corresponding to cantilever and rheometer test are performed to evaluate the experimental findings on component level.