Thermal press curing of advanced thermoset composite laminate parts

An alternative process to autoclaving, called Thermal Press Curing (TPC), is proposed, whereby an uncured composite laminate is pressed between a heated curing mold and customized rubber-faced mold that are designed to provide uniform temperature and pressure conditions. TPC was demonstrated by designing a complex 3-D ‘benchmark’ part shape, applying a simple computational algorithm to derive the required tool shapes, and fabricating the tooling. A comparative study was performed involving the benchmark part made from four plies of woven carbon/epoxy prepreg material. Identical laminates were pre-formed by double diaphragm forming and then cured and consolidated by autoclaving, Quickstep, and TPC using standard industry practice. Results of the study indicate that the TPC part is of similar quality as compared to those made by autoclaving and Quickstep, but, more importantly, requiring significantly less energy and resource consumption, lower cost (capital and recurring), and less preparation and cycle time.