Swim-RTM

By participating in the Swim-RTM consortium DYNAmore intensifies the development work in the field of composite materials even more. Together with academic partners such as the University of Stuttgart (ITV), the University of the Armed Forces in Munich, the Universities of Applied Sciences in Kempten and Regensburg and industrial partners like FluiDyna and BMW AG, the latter in a consulting partnership, algorithms and software tools for process engineering and design, applied to the  RTM method (resin transfer molding) will be developed. LS-DYNA is to be applied in this case to both the mechanical as well as to the thermo-fluid part of the problem.

Fiber-reinforced plastics are important materials in lightweight design because they have excellent material properties in terms of strength and stiffness in relation to the weight of the material. Currently new possibilities for efficient mass production of components made of fiber-reinforced plastics are examined especially in the automotive industry. For their parts the orientation of the reinforcing fibers are to be designed to follow the load bearing directions. For industrial mass production of such components the RTM process represents a promising method. Here the dry fabrics are laid out (draping process) in the negative form (mold), that is subsequently closed and filled with liquid resin initiated with pressure at injection points.

The now funded project will help to develop a software tool that allows the analysis and optimization of the production of continuous fiber-reinforced components within the RTM process based on simulation. Hence the possibility to predict component properties beginning with the production of individual parts is targeted. The simulation tool will be designed to support either the use of high performance GPUs (graphical processing units) and possibly combine the available CFD-codes with the FE solver LS-DYNA. The aim is to analyze the structural properties of components by the finite element simulation of textile fabrics based on micro- and macro-modeling. Furthermore the fluid-mechanical processes during the resin injection phase of the production process shall be investigated in parallel. Both issues need to be considered to ensure optimization of the component properties as well as the manufacturing process.

Specifically, this leads to:

• Specific design of the production process for geometrically complex, endless fiber reinforced composite parts.
• Detailed knowledge of the main sensitivities throughout production process, such as the fiber position and orientation. Hence more accurate prediction of the properties of the final product is achieved.
• Optimization for resin injection in shorter time, thus reducing production times.
• Improved positioning of the inlets and outlets for the resin injection.
• Ensuring a consistent part quality by understanding the production process better.