The Intra-Ply Shear Behaviour of Non-Isothermal Thermoplastic Composite Laminates

Abstract

During the thermoforming of fibre-reinforced thermoplastic (FRTP) organosheets, the desire to minimise tool temperatures leads to non-isothermal temperature profiles through the laminate thickness. The aim of this study was to understand the influence of these non-isothermal conditions on FRTP intra-ply shearing. Novel non-isothermal bias extension tests were conducted, revealing that an average between the isothermal shear curves of both laminate faces approximately represented the respective non-isothermal condition. However, these findings were irrespective of FRTP thickness, and only applied to laminates that wholly remained above the crystallisation onset temperature. Upon the onset of crystallisation in a single ply, the non-isothermal shear resistance skewed heavily towards that (within 5%) of the crystallised ply and inhomogeneous shear angles were observed. Non-isothermal thermoforming validated these findings with the presence of wrinkles on non-isothermal hemispheres in which a single ply had reached crystallisation. This reaffirms the importance of accurate thermal monitoring during FRTP processing.