Effect of Carbon Nanofibers on Mold Filling in a Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding System

Abstract

In this article, a new manufacturing method was used to prepare the hybrid composite, wherein carbon nanofibers were sprayed and bonded onto continuous fiber mats instead of pre-mixing them in the polymer resin. The effect of carbon nanofibers on the mold filling characteristics in a vacuum assisted resin transfer molding system was investigated. A simple one-dimensional flow model was used to correlate the permeability and porosity to the mold filling time. It was found that the dispersion and loading of the carbon nanofibers affected the permeability and porosity of the reinforcement system, and hence the mold filling time.