Thermoplastic material: Better to preform or do co-curing with rest of the material ? Curing cycle ?

[audacious2121]

We are making curved panel with thermoplastic face sheet + Nomex core + thermoplastic face sheet lay up in a tool and then using oven, I was wondering is it a better practice to preform the facesheet to required curvature prior to putting in tool ? Also where can I find guidance/ reading material on how to come up with appropriate curing cycle ?

Thanks a lot

 

[Compositepro]

Thermoplastics do not cure (chemically react to cross-link). So your question boils down to "how do I come up with an appropriate manufacturing process"? You do it by applying your knowledge of scientific and engineering principles to the specific shapes and materials you are using. Being able to do this requires a good education in basic principles, experience in applying these principles, and exposure to the tools and processes normally used. There is no short cut. Go out into your plant and critically observe how things are done now. Read all you can about the materials you are working with (material data sheets and application bulletins). Watch YouTube videos of similar processes. A mentor within your company would be helpful.

My experience tells me that bonding thermoplastics to Nomex core is challenging. You have not provided nearly enough details for anyone to offer much other advice.

 

[audacious2121]

Some additional information:
Thermoplastic skin we are planning to use comes in RTL solid laminate it has CTE of 3.1/F
Adhesive we are using is fabric type with activation temp around 270F
We are making curved panels about 0.50-0.75" thick and like you said I am trying to come up with appropriate manufacturing process.
Mainly in regards to tooling design, curing cycle and details of the process.
For tooling design/ material: I am focusing on thermal expansion (CTE difference), number of cycles also using thermal stresses to predict life of tool.
Curing cycle: Area needs more research, we started with A cycle but it is causing skin to shift during the curing process as well as core to shift or even break
May be the adhesive we are using is not good or may be we need to add more indexing feature or may be we need to form the curved shape of the skin prior to layup.
Any book/ research material you recommend ?
Note that this is for aircraft interior application
Thanks

 

[Compositepro]

Have you even read any product literature that your material suppliers provide? I assume that this is the type of material you are using:

https://www.toraytac.com/products/thermoplastic/reinforced-thermoplastic-laminates

I think you need far more help than we can provide here.

 

[audacious2121]

Yes, I am reading that material as we speak, I actually have handbook from them, but it doesn't go in to details of the what cure cycles work best for this material. My original question is what are the recommended books/ research in this area, I do like to read Thanks for the response anyways.

 

[audacious2121]

Compositepro: Hate to do it here, but couldn't find your contact information, do you do consulting ?