Abstract In this paper, a multi-zone self-heating composite tool is developed to manufacture out-of-autoclave complex and high-quality business jet lower wing stiffened composite panel. Autoclave manufacturing is regarded as a benchmark for manufacturing aerospace-grade composite parts. However, high accruing operational costs limit production rates thereby not being practical for smaller-scale companies. Therefore, significant work towards developing out-of-autoclave manufacturing is underway. In this study, a production line tool is developed with embedded heating fabric that controls temperature at the desired zones, replacing the need for autoclave cure. It investigates and identifies the optimal design parameters of the self-heating setup namely the placement of the heating fabric, zones, thermal management system, temperature distribution, heating rate and thermal performance using a thermal FEA model. The associated thermal characterisation of the tooling material and the part are measured for accurate simulation results. The design developed in this study will be used as production guideline for the actual tool.

中文翻译：

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用于非高压釜航空航天部件制造的新型多区自热复合材料工具

摘要 本文开发了一种多区自热复合工具，用于制造非高压釜复杂和高质量的公务机下机翼加筋复合板。高压釜制造被视为制造航空级复合材料部件的基准。然而，高额的累积运营成本限制了生产率，因此对于规模较小的公司来说是不切实际的。因此，开发非高压釜制造的重要工作正在进行中。在这项研究中，开发了一种带有嵌入式加热织物的生产线工具，可控制所需区域的温度，取代高压灭菌器固化的需要。它研究并确定了自加热装置的最佳设计参数，即加热织物的放置、区域、热管理系统、温度分布、使用热 FEA 模型的加热速率和热性能。测量工具材料和零件的相关热特性以获得准确的模拟结果。本研究中开发的设计将用作实际工具的生产指南。