Cutting of aramide fiber-reinforced plastics by Co2 laser

Abstract

The rapid development of aviation engineering during the past few decades is basically associated with the design and introduction of a new class of structural materials, namely polymeric composite materials (PCM). PCM axe known for their strength characteristics, which are often similar to those of metals, resistance to corrosive media, high electrical-insulation properties, and workability. AFRPs, belonging to such materials, are used as the interior lining and the load-carrying covering of multflayered panels and the load-carrying and frame elements in different constructions of aircraft.Sizing (cutting) of AFRP in aircraft industry is performed in practice only by traditional mechanical cutting on belt saw machines. This method is one of the simplest and cheapest, but the quality of the treated surfaces is poor. Along the cut edge, there arise defects in the form of delaminations at a depth of 2-4 mm, whereas at the place where the saw leaves the material they reach 10 ram. Moreover, since this technology requires an additional labor-consuming manual finishing (smoothing of edges), it cannot be automated.A somewhat better quality of the surface can be obtained when cutting AFRP with a galvanically made abrasive diamond tool. However, it should be taken into account that the working layer of the tool becomes "loaded" rather soon, thus considerably reducing the productivity of the process with a significant growth of temperature in the working zone. This leads to an increase in the necessary cutting force, which considerably decreases the quality os treatment. The working characteristics of the diamond tool can be restored by chemical etching. However, similar procedures are appropriate to chemical industry; they require special equipment, pollute the environment, and are associated with harmful working conditions. Therefore, it is reasonable to use an abrasive tool for cutting AFRP only in specific cases, but not in mass production.In our opinion, the problem of qualitative sizing of articles made of AFRP up to 6 mm thick can be solved by applying technological lasers of power greater than 500 W, equipped with a cutting table with digital program control.

Secondary Processing of Aramid with AWJ and Optimization with NSGA-III

“…Numerous studies in the literature investigated aramid with conventional machining, [40][41][42][43] cryogenic cooling, 44,45 and laser cutting. 46 However, very few studies investigated AWJ on aramid.…”

Analysis of friction and cutting parameters when milling honeycomb composite structures

“…Poor machining of Nomex honeycomb materials is characterized by the appearance of tearing at the cells and uncut aramid fibers. [27][28][29] These defects constitute the set of shape defects. 30 The determination of this defect is of paramount importance to validate the use of this type of structure as the high-performance core for sandwich materials.…”