Application of 2-D and 3-D woven thermoplastic fibre preforms for aerospace components

Due to an increasing demand for improvements in damage tolerance and cost-effectiveness, the use of thermoplastic matrix composites for aerospace structural applications is gaining increasing attention. Especially by using 2-D and 3-D textile preforms incorporating reinforcing carbon fibres and thermoplastic fibres in the fabric by coweaving or commingling, a cost-effective manufacturing of highly damage-tolerant components is possible. The damage tolerance performance and the cost-effectiveness with regard to the manufacturing expenses of different composite materials were investigated in a comparative study. In a preliminary experimental study the inherent materials damage-tolerance performance of different 2-D and 3-D reinforced thermoplastic and thermoset composites was evaluated by performing fracture mechanical investigations and compression after impact tests. These tests were carried out both on flat specimens as well as on curved structures simulating a leading edge. Furthermore, the results of a comparative manufacturing cost evaluation are presented, taking material costs and labour time for the different processing steps into account. For this study a fin leading edge was chosen as a typical, impact critical aerospace component. The investigations have demonstrated the great potential of thermoplastic composites for cost-effective production of highly damage-tolerant aerospace components.