Abstract
During VaRTM (Vacuum assisted Resin Transfer Molding) a distribution medium which is incorporated on fiber preform as a surface layer is used to shorten impregnation time of resin by increasing the flow rate of resin and is removed after molding. In this study, the distribution medium is replaced by a thermoplastic polyamide mesh, and the mesh is still remained in the fiber preform after VaRTM process. The mesh is expected not only to improve the resin flow but also to suppress impact damage in the composite laminates after molding. Multipoint measurements for resin flow during VaRTM process are carried out by using embedded fibre optic sensors. It is confirmed that the polyamide mesh inserted in the fiber preform increased the flow rate during the impregnation of resin. Drop weight impact tests have been found that impact responses are improved and interlaminar delamination in GFRP laminates is suppressed by inserting the polyamide mesh. From these results it is shown that improvements in both resin flow and impact damage suppression can be achieved by the single action of inserting the polyamide mesh.
