Abstract
Thermoplastic composites have high impact resistance and are good material for the vane of jet engine that sometimes suffer bird strike damage. Matched-die press molding process is employed for the fabrication of the vane to meet its high precision requirement. The molding process, however, containes many parameters to be optimized, and several preliminary tests would be necessary to determine the condition. Utilizing the in-mold sensor can significantly reduce the number of test moldings. The procedure for controlling the molding process of CF/PEEK composite vane was established. A CF/PEEK stator vane model is made up with using two controlling dielectric sensors. The procedure includes AC (Alternate Current) conductivity to control the timing of pressurizing. The temperature distribution of the mold also controlled by AC conductivity. The vane model was successfully molded by the process. The density of the void in the vane model was reduced by controlling with the dielectric sensor.
