We Have Made the RTM Simulation Setting Process Simple

 

The Resin Transfer Molding (RTM) Process is used to produce polymer reinforced composite products. This process is widely used in the aerospace, wind power, automotive, and sports industries. This process is divided into the fiber cloth laying stage, filling stage, heating and aging stage, and demolding stage.

 

In order to master the molding process in the RTM process, the industry will combine mold flow analysis and structural analysis software to predict the manufacturability of the product and make corrections in time. The closer the input information of the simulation project is to the site, the closer the result will be to the real situation.

 

For example, in the setting of fabric orientation, users will use the structural analysis software LS-DYNA for laying analysis; then use the Moldex3D RTM Wizard function to import the LS-DYNA analysis results to automatically generate a mesh and map the orientation.

 

When creating an RTM project in Moldex3D, you need to use the RTM Wizard in Moldex3D-Mesh to generate a solid mesh and set the fabric orientation. The new version of Moldex3D R17 optimizes the mesh generation and orientation setting process, omitting or merging many steps in the mesh generation process, improving the situation where the same steps need to be repeated when there are many layers. In addition, the new version also allows users to generate multi-layer solid meshes and distinguish layer groups at one time by setting the number of groups and different thicknesses during the set stage.

 

Fabric stretching at the corners of the draping process will cause changes in fiber orientation and fabric material properties, which in turn affect the resin flow behavior. The RTM Wizard supports the function of importing the draping analysis result mesh in the step of setting the fabric orientation. This function can map the orientation results of the LS-DYNA draping analysis to the solid mesh created by the user, so that the orientation setting at the corners in the model is closer to the fabric orientation of the draping on site.

 

In order to accelerate the aging, the RTM process will increase the mold temperature during the aging stage to accelerate the resin reaction. Moldex3D provides a multi-stage aging temperature setting function, which makes the aging stage temperature setting step simpler and smoother. Users can set the number of layer groups and layer thickness to generate multi-layer solid meshes at once (Fig. 1) and map the LS-DYNA orientation (Fig. 2). Finally, the pre-processed meshes can be input into Moldex3D Studio for subsequent analysis (Fig. 3). Fig. 4 shows the multi-stage mold temperature settings and simulation results during the curing stage.

 

Fig. 1 RTM Wizard can grow multiple layers of solid mesh simultaneously

 

Figure 2 RTM Wizard image LS-DYNA orientation function

Figure 3 Importing the grid file into Studio for analysis

Fig. 4 Multi-stage setting of mold temperature during the curing stage

 

Due to the complex structure of RTM layers, the pre-processing time required to establish a simulation project is very long. Therefore, Moldex3D has developed new functions to optimize the setting process to address common problems faced by users, reducing many unnecessary setting steps in pre-processing. In this way, users will be able to focus more on discussing simulation results and solving problems encountered in production.