Composite materials are widely used in aerospace applications such as aircraft panels, fuselages, satellites and spacecraft. However, manufacturing processes are expensive due to the need for advanced equipment, including autoclaves. OOA technologies offer significant cost-saving opportunities by reducing both investment and operational costs. The challenge is that the lower pressure used during manufacturing makes it more difficult to achieve low porosity levels and maintain high material quality.
Within the project, an innovative OOA method was developed in which a thin air evacuation layer was introduced between the plies of conventional prepreg material. The method significantly reduced void content while maintaining mechanical properties comparable to conventional autoclave-manufactured laminates. The results were verified using C-scan inspections, microscopy analyses and interlaminar shear strength (ILSS) testing.
The ILSS tests showed promising results comparable to the reference laminate, indicating that the introduction of the thin air evacuation layer had no detrimental effect on mechanical performance.
The method is considered particularly suitable for reducing manufacturing costs, producing larger laminates that cannot fit into existing autoclaves, and enabling composite manufacturing in environments where autoclaves are not available.
Partners: RISE SICOMP, Oxeon
Funder: Vinnova
