SBIR Phase I: 5-Axis Continuous Carbon Fiber 3D Printing

SBIR 第一阶段：5 轴连续碳纤维 3D 打印

• 批准号: 1648522
• 负责人: Michael Chapiro
• 金额: $ 22.5万
• 依托单位: Mantis Composites
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2016-12-01 至 2017-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1648522&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; Axis; Continuous; Carbon

This SBIR Phase I project intends to develop an automated and cost-effective method of producing complex carbon fiber parts with a 3D printing process that manages to achieve the full performance of traditional carbon fiber parts while allowing greater use of carbon fiber in applications where machined aluminum was previously the only option. This project involves first testing basic mechanical properties and adjusting processing parameters, and then looking towards using the 5-axis capabilities of the machine to place carbon fibers in multiple directions, allowing for complex parts that need strength in all directions. This novel manufacturing method for carbon fiber reinforced high temperature thermoplastic parts will greatly expand the markets that can benefit from increased use of carbon fiber materials, including aerospace, high-performance automotive, and custom biomedical parts. By lowering barriers to high performance part development, this technology will also allow smaller companies to fabricate high performance products and create a variety of technical and non-technical jobs within small businesses.This project seeks to prove the feasibility of producing high performance carbon fiber parts with a 3D printing process. A 5-axis machine and nozzle has been designed for use with continuous carbon fiber reinforced high temperature thermoplastics that will be able to produce complex parts that are able to take complex, multi-axial loads. The primary focus of this project is to generate laminates with comparable properties to traditional continuous carbon fiber manufacturing processes, which would indicate the viability of using this process for high performance parts in aerospace applications, which no composite 3D printing has yet to achieve. After demonstrating the capability of forming high performance laminates, this project will begin focusing on the generating representative parts with reinforcing layers printing in the z-axis. Prior to printing multi-axial parts, this project will focus on achieving novel layered composite structures including variable stiffness laminates and integrated honeycomb cores. The combination of high mechanical properties at a laminate level, tailorability of properties through precise fiber orientation, and the ability to effectively transfer loads to fibers in any direction, will signify a new frontier in the technology and markets for carbon fiber reinforced polymers.

该SBIR I期项目旨在开发一种具有3D打印过程的复杂碳纤维零件的自动化和成本效益的方法，该过程设法实现了传统碳纤维零件的全部性能，同时允许在加工铝的应用中更多地使用碳纤维，这是唯一的选择。该项目涉及首先测试基本的机械性能和调整处理参数，然后旨在使用机器的5轴功能将碳纤维放置在多个方向上，从而使需要在所有方向上需要强度的复杂零件。这种新型的用于碳纤维增强高温热塑性零件的制造方法将大大扩展市场，这些市场可以从增加使用碳纤维材料（包括航空航天，高性能汽车和定制生物医学零件）中受益。通过降低高性能零件开发的障碍，该技术还将允许较小的公司在小型企业内制造高性能产品并创造各种技术和非技术工作。该项目旨在证明具有3D打印过程的高性能碳纤维零件的可行性。已经设计了一台5轴机器和喷嘴，用于连续碳纤维增强的高温热塑性塑料，能够产生能够承受复杂的多轴负载的复杂零件。该项目的主要重点是生成具有与传统连续碳纤维制造工艺相当特性的层压材料，这表明将此过程用于航空航天应用中的高性能零件的生存能力，这尚未复合3D打印尚未实现。在展示了形成高性能层压板的能力之后，该项目将开始专注于在Z轴上打印的代表性零件。在打印多轴零件之前，该项目将着重于实现新型的分层复合结构，包括可变的刚度层压板和集成的蜂窝核。高度机械性能在层压水平上的结合，通过精确的纤维取向对性能的可调整性以及有效地将载荷转移到任何方向上的纤维的能力将表示碳纤维增强聚合物的技术和市场中的新边界。