Crystallization kinetics analysis and modeling of aerospace PAEK materials

Abstract

AbstractPolyaryletherketone (PAEK) thermoplastic composite materials have received increasing attention for the manufacturing of composite structures. One manufacturing process of great interest for PAEK composite structures is automated fiber placement, which can increase the throughput of complex part fabrication and reduce the use of autoclaves for assembly of composite parts. Understanding the thermal effects of the material allows the control and adjustment of manufacturing variables to assure the integrity of the composite structure. PAEK resins and carbon fiber reinforced composites have been analyzed using differential scanning calorimetry to study crystallization kinetics. Isothermal and non‐isothermal tests were conducted, and the time‐dependent crystallization kinetics were modeled using the Velisaris and Seferis model for isothermal processes and the Gaussian process regression method for non‐isothermal processes. The results show the influence of the thermal conditions and the chemical structures considering the ketone content, and the effects of the presence of the carbon fibers on crystallization kinetics. The models utilized describe with high accuracy the time‐dependent crystallization kinetics of PAEK composite materials. An artificial neural network application was also implemented using the non‐isothermal PAEK composite models for further prediction of relative volume crystallinity and crystallization rate.Highlights Polyaryletherketone (PAEK) materials crystallize differently depending on the crystallization conditions. Carbon fibers influence the crystallization response in PAEK polymers. Machine learning was used to characterize crystallization kinetics. Activation energies were obtained for different thermal treatments. Artificial neural network tool was developed for PAEK composites in non‐isothermal regimes.