Prediction of Permeability for Braided Preform

브레이드 프리폼의 투과율 계수 예측

Complete prediction of second order permeability tensor for three dimensional circular braided preform is critical to understand the resin transfer molding process of composites. The permeability can be predicted by considering resin flow through the multi-axial fiber structure. In this study, permeability tensor for a 3-D circular braided preform is calculated by solving a boundary problem of a periodic unit cell. Flow field through the unit cell is obtained by using a 3-D finite volume method (FVM) and Darcy's law is utilized to obtain permeability tensor. Flow analysis for two cases that a fiber tow is regarded as impermeable solid and permeable porous medium is carried out respectively. It is found that the flow within the intra-tow region of the braided preform is negligible if inter-tow porosity is relatively high but the flow through the tow must be considered when the porosity is low. To avoid checkerboard pressure field and improve the efficiency of numerical computation, a new interpolation function for velocity variation is proposed on the basis of analytic solutions. Permeability of the braided preform is measured through a radial flow experiment and compared with the permeability predicted numerically.