Introduction

Prepreg Manufacturing Development: Treater Automation Andrew Hollcraft, Eric Leone, John Murphy Department of Engineering Technology, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA

Implemented Solution

Proposed Solution

Future Work

AcknowledgementsSpecial thanks to•Zodiac Aerospace: Mark Harper Kevin Bussard• Kalin Karich• John Murphy•Andrew Hollcraft•Bill Karman• Steve James• Vince Hill•Will Rasnack

• 115V Gear Motor• Variable Frequency Drive• Chain drive system• Safety Guards• Modular T-bar Slot Design• 18” Fabric Width

Zodiac Aerospace is developing new prepreg resin systems suitable as a replacement for current phenol formaldehyde prepreg. This automated treater will reduce the variability currently observed in micro scale lab prepregging, allowing for a greater degree of accuracy during formulation characterization and process optimization. Student Benefit:• Deeper understanding of a current industry standard

process not currently available at WWU• Custom resin formulation and characterization• Readily available prepreg for current and future

student useWashington Aerospace Benefit:• Local source of engineers familiar with current

composite technologies The treater is now capable of batch processing with water-based phenolic resin. Future work (which begins this quarter) will focus on incorporating this machine into a continuous processing method capable of manufacturing prepreg using various resin systems. Areas of primary concern for this improved method will be:• Machine Qualification

• Designed experiment to investigate effects of multiple process factors on prepreg mechanical properties

• Volatile Management and Ventilation• Adherence to OSHA standards to protect the safety

of all WWU students, staff, and visitors• B-staging Method

• Lab scale oven which meets process requirements

• Up-take Rollers• Final process procedure capable of

sufficiently covering B-staged prepreg with olefin film for safe shipment and adequate storage

• Treater Cleaning and Maintenance• Efficient and safe cleaning of the machine after use

for various resin systems

High tack tape provided by AirtechStandard fabric stitchingUpon delivery of the lab-scale manual prepreg treater, slight complications had to be addressed prior to moving forward. Machining modifications were carried out in order to solve a roller runout issue with the primary roller, enabling the treater to maintain a consistent thickness between rollers. Thereafter, variable speed automation, was made possible by incorporating the following components to the machine:• Gear motor and power inverter (for 115V input)

mounted on machined bracketry• Potentiometer• Chain drive system (currently 2:1 drive ratio, easily

modified)