Research on the surface flattening model for carbon fiber plain-woven composite preforming processing

The prediction of the flattening pattern of carbon fiber woven composite material is crucial in preforming processing for composite component manufacturing. However, the variable curvature of component mold surface challenges the prediction, resulting in expensive material waste and difficulty in following manual or automated laying-up processing. A surface flattening model for carbon fiber plain-woven composite preforming processing is presented to solve the above problem. The flattening model for the saddle-like non-developable surface based on woven material characteristics is proved with simulating and material forming tests. The results show that, compared with the simple mass-spring unfolding model, the new model can adapt to the variety of fiber angles, and the prediction accuracy of the near-net shape is high: The margin of the 45 degrees /135 degrees formed prepreg predicted by the new model is reduced by 53%. And the margin of the 0 degrees /90 degrees prepreg is reduced by 76%, and there is no material shortage defect.