Experimental study of the induced residual stresses during the manufacturing process of an aeronautic composite material

A methodology is proposed for predicting the formation and the development of the manufacturing residual stresses, this approach is based on the study of the evolution of the resin yield stress. In order to evaluate our method, a comparison has been made between the yield time (corresponding to the formation of a yield stress) and the gel time. A self-consistent model is used to determine the cure-dependent chemical shrinkage coefficient of the composite material. This model allows considering for the composite material behavior an anisotropic chemical shrinkage, which is not represented by a classical linear model. An experimental approach based on the peel-ply method is used to determine the distribution of the residual stresses through the thickness. © Maxwell Scientific Organization, 2010.