Spirit
AeroSystems announced on Thursday its Advanced Technology Centre in Prestwick,
Scotland has developed an improved method for manufacturing composite parts,
including wind turbine blades.
Working in
partnership with the University of Strathclyde and the Scottish Innovation
Centre for Sensor and Imaging Systems (CENSIS), Spirit developed anintelligent heated tool for
curing composite components, replacing the traditional autoclave “curing”
process.
The new
"intelligent and tailored" heating tool could cure composite parts,
from wind turbine blades to car panels and composite aircraft, 40 percent
faster, reducing operating costs and reducing cycling times, reports CENSIS.
“Instead of
curing components at a standard temperature for hours at a time, we can now
tailor the cycle time to match individual part geometries,” Stevie Brown, lead
engineer at Spirit’s Advanced Technology Centre in Prestwick, explains.
“The autoclave
has been a bottleneck in manufacturing lines, and removing it will reduce cycle
times for components, cut production costs and decrease energy consumption.”
New tool
replaces autoclave curing
Typically, large
industrial autoclaves are used to process materials in a mold at high pressures
and temperatures. Basically, the part is placed in a vacuum within an autoclave
and then a combination of pressure and heat is applied during a predetermined
cycle – usually taking two hours after the cure temperature is reached.
This method has
been used for years, with parts cured for a standard period of time, at a set
temperature, regardless of how they respond to the curing process. The new
"smart" tool does away with the need for the autoclave process,
allowing users to monitor and match a cure cycle to a component’s geometric characteristics and
how it is reacting to the process.
CENSIS supported
the collaboration with funding and provided project management. The University
of Strathclyde provided technical support and developed the control algorithm
and software for the intelligent tool, according to North American Wind Power. Spirit
says the collaboration will continue through 2018 with the new technology being
applied to research and manufacturing projects.
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