Determined adjustment of tailored properties by using the In situ Hybridization of the manufacturing of thermoplast-based tailored fiber metal laminates

• Applicants: Professor Dr.-Ing. Noomane Ben Khalifa; Professor Dr.-Ing. Frank Henning; Professor Dr.-Ing. Kay A. Weidenmann
• Subject Area: Primary Shaping and Reshaping Technology, Additive Manufacturing ; Materials in Sintering Processes and Generative Manufacturing Processes
• Term: from 2015 to 2022
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 269244876

The first period of the project targeted the development of a one-step process for the manufacturing of fiber metal laminates (FML), which could be realized in basic experiments and the manufacturing of fiber metal laminate parts. This process helps decreasing the time and cost for the manufacturing of fiber metal laminates. For the realization of this new manufacturing method, two process routes using the wet pressing and the resin transfer molding were developed and used. A reactive thermoplastic matrix is injected in the fibers between the metal blanks. The polymerization starts during the forming process, which causes the bonding in the boundary surface between the fibers and the metal blanks. Therefore, the selection of the geometry of the semi-finished material is flexible and different geometries can be combined without being dependent on material combination of suppliers. However, the structure of the parts is not optimized regarding the load initiation. The potential of lightweight design is not realized, yet.In the second period, the lightweight potential and the potential of highly flexible combinations are targeted, so that fiber metal laminates with tailored properties are developed and manufactured. Within this strategy, load optimized and functionally graded parts using material in needed positions and in needed orientations are produced. In the field of metal blank forming, this method is known as “tailored blanks”. Due to the hybrid architecture, the part can not be infiltrated homogenously.Therefore, it is necessary to know the flow of the matrix system during the forming operation to ensure the correct infiltration of the fibers. In the first funding period the flow could be investigated indirect in forming experiments. Beside the aim of the manufacturing of tailored fiber metal laminates, the second funding period will focus on the experimental and the numerical investigation of the infiltration of inhomogeneous fiber layers in tailored fiber metal laminates. For the realization, the filling simulation will be integrated in the simulation of the forming process because the variation of layers of fabrics causes variations in filling. Detailed information concerning the permeability of the textiles in dependency of the fiber volume content which itself is dependent of the fiber compaction and the shear angle are needed. As a result, the filling simulation will be combined with the forming simulation. Not only for homogeneous layers of fabrics but especially for inhomogeneous amount and orientations of fiber layers, the filling of the matrix can be predicted, which is an additional value for the process of the in-situ hybridization.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants