A core metal includes, on an outer circumference thereof, a plurality of attachment surfaces to which a plurality of strings are attached, and a plurality of guided portions are formed along an axial direction of the core metal and disposed between two of the attachment surfaces. A string supply device includes a string supply unit that supplies the strings to the outer circumference of the core metal, an attaching unit that arranges and attaches the strings on the attachment surfaces of the core metal in a circumferential direction of the core metal, and a plurality of guiding units, in contact with the guided portions of the core metal, which guides the core metal.

A hybrid preform comprises a bundle of unidirectionally aligned fibers, and at least one partial cut that extends part of the way, but not all of the way, through a transverse cross section of the bundle of fibers at least one location along the length of the bundle.

A semi-finished product for the manufacture of a structural component has a plurality of prepreg tapes, each having unidirectionally arranged reinforcing fibers embedded in a thermoplastic matrix material, and with a plurality of connecting strands containing a thermoplastic material. The prepreg tapes and the connecting strands are either joined to form a textile sheet structure or the prepreg tapes are arranged to form a multiaxial fabric, individual layers of the fabric being joined by the connecting strands. Further, a method for manufacturing a curved structural component from such a semi-finished product is described.

A method of forming a sandwich structure including at least partially filling an open volume of an open cellular core with a sacrificial mold material, consolidating the sacrificial mold material to form a sacrificial mold, laying up a composite facesheet on each of at least two surfaces of the open cellular core, co-curing the composite facesheets by applying a consolidation temperature and a compaction pressure to the composite facesheets to form the sandwich structure, and removing the sacrificial mold. The compaction pressure is greater than a compressive strength of the open cellular core and less than a combined compressive strength of the open cellular core and the sacrificial mold.

A fiber-reinforced resin composite having high peeling strength between a fiber-reinforced resin and a resin foam. The fiber-reinforced resin composite (10) is a fiber-reinforced resin composite (10) including a skin (11) and a resin foam (12), the resin foam including a foamed resin (16), the skin including a fiber sheet (14), a thermoplastic matrix resin (15), and the foamed resin (16) that is continuous from the resin foam and is impregnated into the skin.

A fiber reinforced plastic molded body includes a layered body, a resin member, unidirectional fiber reinforced resins each constituted from a unidirectional continuous fiber, a matrix resin, and a woven fabric fiber reinforced resin of one or two or more layers, wherein when the layered body is divided into equal halves in its thickness direction, an amount of the resin member present in a region (R1) which is a side from a dividing center line whereon the woven fabric fiber reinforced resin is layered is referred to as Am1, and an amount of the resin member present in a region (R2) which is a side whereon the woven fabric fiber reinforced resin is not layered is referred to as Am2, Am2/Am1 is 2 to 25.

Structurally enhanced preformed layers of multiple rigid unidirectional rods are constructed and arranged for use in fabricating load-bearing support structures and reinforcements in a variety of composite components, e.g. wind turbine blades. Individual preform layers include multiple elongate unidirectional strength elements or rods arranged in a single layer along a longitudinal axis of the preform layer. Individual rods include aligned unidirectional structural fibers embedded within a matrix resin such that the rods have a substantially uniform distribution of fibers and high degree of fiber collimation. The relative straightness of the fibers and fiber collimation provide rods and the preform layers with high rigidity and significant compression strength. A plurality of rods are loosely attached, e.g. knitted, together with a coupling that allows for each rod to be axially displaced, e.g. slideable, relative to another rod.

A three-dimensional fibrous preform of a fan blade includes a blade root and a blade airfoil between the blade root and a free end of the preform. The airfoil has an area with two skins and a longitudinal stiffener between the skins and, in a transverse plane, transverse yarns of the skins woven in pairs in the first and in the second skin either side of the stiffener, the yarns of a first pair of the first skin are separated into two unit yarns at the stiffener, the unit yarns being woven separately with longitudinal yarns, the yarns of a second pair of the second skin are separated into two unit yarns at the stiffener, the yarns being woven separately with longitudinal yarns, and a yarn of each pair cross over each other twice in the stiffener.

Disclosed is a laminate having a carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastic resin woven layer (X) and a thermoplastic resin foam layer (Y) layered in the order of layer (X)/layer (Y)/layer (X), wherein the fabric contains unidirectional fiber reinforced resin sheets as warp and weft, the unidirectional fiber reinforced resin sheet containing continuous carbon fibers and a thermoplastic resin, and the carbon fibers are aligned in a longitudinal direction of the unidirectional fiber reinforced resin sheet, and the ratio (y/x) of the thickness (y) of the layer (Y) and the thickness (x) of the layer (X) is 3-40, and the density of the layer (Y) is 0.2-0.6 g/cc. Also disclosed are: a three-dimensional molded laminate in which a three-dimensional shape is given to said laminate; and a method for producing a three-dimensional molded laminate.

Systems and methods are provided for fabricating composite parts. The method includes subdividing a laminate into zones, laying up tows of fiber reinforced material for the laminate over a layup mandrel via multiple laminations such that each lamination head applies tows in a different zone, and splicing the zones together to form the laminate during the laying up of the tows while moving the layup mandrel in a process direction during fabrication of the composite parts.