Deepflow – Development and processability assessment of a new recycling Sheet Molding Compound material with numerical endorcement
Within the project Deepflow, the processability of a Sheet Molding Compound made of recyceled carbon fibers shall be developeded and investigated with numerical endorcement.
Project Partners
apppex Product Development Prototypes Parts GmbH (Germany), Kohlenia S.R.L. (Argentina)
Duration
01.10.2022 – 30.09.2024
Funding authority
Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action
Motivation
One of the main drawbacks of the currently wide spread winding process with wet fibers is the resulting scrap. Especially for open geometries produced with steering pins, the resulting scrap with a typical amount of 10% of the part’s weight is significant. Within the project the scrap shall be used to produce a demonstrator that is subject to mechanical loads. The project shall prove, that the scrap can be used for more than thermal recycling.
Method
The goal of the project is to develop a new Sheet Molding Compound made of recycled carbon fibers and its automatic production. Additionally its processing shall be investigated. In order to keep the production costs and the variability of the material low an automatic chopping unit will be developed for a fast and precise production. Furthermore, this prevents the already impregnated scrap from curing, as the time between the processing steps is not too long. To prove the processability of the material, a demonstrator shall be produced with a newly developed tooling technology. This technology will allow the integration of UD tapes, which widen the application spectrum of the new material. For an efficient and economic optimization of the process and the avoidance of process-induced defects, simulations will be performed. A material card showing the high variability of the raw material will be defined. The rheological behavior will be investigated with a newly developed test bench.
Acknowledgement
The Chair would like to thank the Federal Ministry of Economical Affairs and Climate Action for funding the "Deepflow" project with the funding scheme of the International Central Innovation Program for medium-sized enterprises (ZIM International). (Funding code: KK5135814KL1)
Contact Persons
Anna Julia Imbsweiler, M.Sc.; Dr.-Ing. Swen Zaremba