COMPOSITE COMPONENTS

Abstract

A fibre-reinforced polymer component is provided which comprises a main portion comprising fibre-reinforced polymer and at least one surface and at least one raised feature extending from said surface. The at least one raised feature consists of non-reinforced polymer and is shaped to incur visually perceptible damage when the component is subject to an impact with an energy above a predetermined impact energy threshold and to resist an impact with an energy below the predetermined impact energy threshold. The at least one raised feature thus provides a clear visual aid as to when a component has experienced an impact with an energy above the impact energy threshold. Because the raised feature consists of polymer without fibre reinforcement, it is more fragile than the fibre-reinforced polymer main portion 204 and thus reduces the energy at which impacts may be detected.

Claims

1. A fibre-reinforced polymer component comprising: a main portion comprising fibre-reinforced polymer and at least one surface; and at least one raised feature extending from said surface; wherein the at least one raised feature consists of non-reinforced polymer and is shaped to incur visually perceptible damage when the component is subject to an impact with an energy above a predetermined impact energy threshold and to resist an impact with an energy below the predetermined impact energy threshold.

2. The fibre-reinforced polymer component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the predetermined impact energy threshold is selected based on the fibre-reinforced polymer of the main portion.

3. The fibre-reinforced polymer component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the predetermined impact energy threshold may be selected to be at or below an impact energy at which the main portion would incur severe damage.

4. The fibre-reinforced polymer component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one raised feature comprises a cross-sectional profile that is selected to ensure the at least one raised feature resists impacts with an energy below the impact energy threshold whilst reliably incurring visually perceptible damage when subject to an impact with an energy above the impact energy threshold.

5. The fibre-reinforced polymer component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one raised feature comprises a triangular cross-sectional profile.

6. The fibre-reinforced polymer component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one raised feature comprises a curved cross-sectional profile.

7. The fibre-reinforced polymer component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one raised feature comprises a plurality of raised features.

8. The fibre-reinforced polymer component as claimed in claim 7, wherein the plurality of raised features comprises at least two different raised features.

9. The fibre-reinforced polymer component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the non-reinforced polymer of the at least one raised feature includes one or more non-fibre material additives.

10. The fibre-reinforced polymer component as claimed in claim 1, wherein the component is a fluid transfer conduit.

11. A method of manufacturing a fibre-reinforced polymer component, the method comprising: moulding a main portion comprising fibre-reinforced polymer and at least one surface; and moulding at least one raised feature to extend from said surface; wherein the at least one raised feature consists of non-reinforced polymer and is shaped to incur visually perceptible damage when the component is subject to an impact with an energy above a predetermined impact energy threshold and to resist an impact with an energy below the predetermined impact energy threshold.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising: providing a mould comprising a primary region and at least one groove extending from said primary region; placing fibre reinforcement into the primary region such that it does not extend into the at least one groove; and introducing a polymer material to the mould such that it penetrates into the primary region, the fibre reinforcement and the at least one groove to produce a fibre-reinforced polymer component; wherein the main portion comprises fibre-reinforced polymer and at least one surface formed by the primary region, and the at least one raised feature extending from said surface consists of non-reinforced polymer.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein introducing a polymer material to the mould comprises a resin transfer moulding process.

14. The method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising: providing a mould comprising a primary region and at least one groove extending from said primary region; placing a first polymer material into the at least one groove; placing fibre reinforcement into the primary region such that it does not extend into the at least one groove; introducing a second polymer material to the mould such that it penetrates into the primary region and the fibre reinforcement to produce the main portion with at least one surface formed by the primary region and to produce the at least one raised feature consisting of the first polymer extending from said surface.

15. The method as claimed in claim 11, further comprising over moulding at least one raised feature to extend from said surface.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0047] FIG. 1 schematically illustrates the effect of BVID on a cylindrical composite pipe;

[0048] FIG. 2 schematically illustrates the effect of BVID on a composite pipe with a bend;

[0049] FIG. 3 shows a fibre-reinforced polymer pipe according to an example of the present disclosure;

[0050] FIG. 4 shows a fibre-reinforced polymer pipe according to another example of the present disclosure;

[0051] FIGS. 5-9 are cross-sectional views of a variety of raised features on a fibre-reinforced polymer component according to the present disclosure; and

[0052] FIGS. 10-15 illustrate a method of manufacturing a fibre-reinforced polymer component according to an example of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0053] FIG. 1 shows in cross-section a composite pipe 2 which has been subject to an impact on an outside surface 4 of the pipe 2 at an impact point 6. The impact has caused little damage to the outside surface 4 but has caused severe damage to the internal structure of the pipe e.g. has caused one or more constituent layers of the composite pipe 2 to fracture. This internal damage is visible to an inspector 8 looking along the inside of the pipe 2. If the inspector 8 judges the damage to be bad enough, the pipe 2 may be quickly taken out of service for repair or replacement. If the damage is within acceptable limits, the pipe 2 may continue to be used.

[0054] FIG. 2 shows in cross-section another composite pipe 102 which has also been subject to an impact on an outside surface 104 of the pipe 102 at an impact point 106. Again, the impact has caused little damage to the outside surface 104 but has caused significant damage to the internal structure of the pipe 102. Unlike the pipe in FIG. 1 however, the composite pipe 102 comprises a bend such that the damage caused by the impact is not visible to an inspector 108 looking along the inside of the pipe 102.

[0055] As the damage is not visible to the inspector 108 it is not possible to evaluate its magnitude, extent or even its presence. If the impact was witnessed (i.e. the inspector knows there is some damage, but is unsure of its extent) the pipe 102 must either be retired out of an abundance of caution (which may be entirely unnecessary), or further time and resource-intensive investigation must be undertaken to properly assess the damage (e.g. using an inspection scope).

[0056] Alternatively, damage caused by a non-witnessed impact would only be detected by a thorough and resource-intensive investigation. As a result, such damage may go undetected for some time (i.e. between scheduled inspections), possibly leading to reduced performance or component failure.

[0057] FIG. 3 shows a side view of a fibre-reinforced polymer pipe 202 according to an example of the present disclosure. The pipe 202 comprises a main portion 204 which extends along a central axis C and two raised features 206, which extend from an outer surface of the pipe 202 and continue in a helix along the outer surface of the pipe 202 around the central axis C. Dashed lines are used to indicate the path of one of the raised features 206 on the reverse side of the pipe 202.

[0058] The main portion 204 is constructed from fibre-reinforced polymer (e.g. carbon fibre-reinforced polymer, CFRP). This provides the main portion 204 with high strength and resilience, but also means that an impact to the outer surface 202 may cause significant damage to the internal layers of main portion 204 without leaving a visually perceptible indication on the outer surface 202.

[0059] The raised features 206, however, consist only of polymer with no fibre reinforcement. The raised features 206 may be made from the same polymer as in the main portion or a different polymer. At least due to the lack of fibre reinforcement, the raised features 206 are, therefore, more fragile than the main portion 204. As a result, when the pipe 202 is subject to an impact above a threshold impact energy, the raised features 206 incur visually perceptible damage even when the main portion 204 may not. By appropriate design of the raised features 206, the threshold energy above which the raised features 206 are sensitive (i.e. when visually perceptible damage is incurred) is selected to be an energy at which impacts would cause severe damage (i.e. damage that impacts the pipe's performance) to the main portion 204. Impacts below this energy do not cause visible damage to the raised features 206 but also do not cause substantial damage to the main portion 204. As such, the exterior of the pipe 202 (whatever its internal geometry) can quickly reveal evidence of severe damage-causing impacts while insignificant impacts are not recorded. The presence and magnitude of impact damage to the pipe 202 can therefore be assessed quickly without requiring an in-depth investigation. Visually perceptible damage to the raised features 206 may, for example, comprise a portion (or the entirety) of the raised feature 206 breaking off. It may alternatively comprise a dent or other significant deformation.

[0060] The shape and/or layout of the raised features 206 are carefully selected to give them the required sensitivity. As will be discussed in more detail below, with reference to FIGS. 5-9, the cross-sectional profile of the features 206 may be selected to give the features 206 a certain level of impact resistance. The raised features 206 of FIG. 3 have a triangular cross-sectional profile similar to that shown in FIG. 5.

[0061] FIG. 4 shows a side view of a fibre-reinforced polymer pipe 302 according to another example of the present disclosure. The pipe 302 comprises a main portion 304 which extends along a central axis C and raised features 306 which extend from an outer surface of the pipe 302 and continue in a crosshatched pattern along the pipe 302.

[0062] Again, the main portion 304 is constructed from fibre-reinforced polymer while the raised features 306 consist only of polymer, with no fibre reinforcement. Similarly to those shown in FIG. 3, the raised features of FIG. 4 comprise a triangular cross-sectional profile. However, as mentioned above, many different profiles of raised feature may be utilised to give the raised features a desired impact resistance/sensitivity.

[0063] FIG. 5 shows a magnified cross-sectional view of a raised feature 402 with a triangular cross-sectional profile, similar to that of the raised features 206, 306 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

[0064] FIG. 6 shows a raised feature 404 with a triangular cross-sectional profile, similar in dimensions to that shown in FIG. 5. Unlike the raised feature 402 of FIG. 5, however, the raised feature 404 has a rounded point 406. The point of the triangle is the most sensitive (i.e. fragile) portion of the raised feature and as such this minor alteration can have a large effect on the resultant sensitivity/impact resistance of the raised feature 404. The rounded point 406 lowers the sensitivity of the raised feature 404 (i.e. it increases the energy of impacts to which it is resistant), as the point 406 is less susceptible to breaking off or being damaged than a non-rounded version.

[0065] FIG. 7 shows a raised feature 408 with a curved cross-sectional profile. The lack of sharp corners gives this shape high impact resistance/low sensitivity.

[0066] As well as the overall profile shape, the dimensions of a given profile shape may also be adjusted to modify its sensitivity. FIG. 8 shows a raised feature 410 with a triangular cross-sectional profile similar to that shown in FIG. 5. However, the base of the raised feature 410 is much narrower than that of the raised feature 402 shown in FIG. 5. This makes the raised feature 410 more fragile and susceptible to damage and thus sensitive to impacts of lower energy.

[0067] In contrast, FIG. 9 shows a raised feature 412 that has a triangular cross-section with a very wide base. This decreases its sensitivity.

[0068] An exemplary method of manufacturing a fibre-reinforced polymer component according to an example of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to FIGS. 10-15. The exemplary method utilises a RTM technique.

[0069] As seen in FIG. 10, a two-part mould 502 comprises an upper mould 504 and a lower mould 506. The upper mould 504 comprises an input channel 508, two vent channels 510 and a seal 512.

[0070] The upper mould 504 comprises an upper tool surface 514 and the lower mould 506 comprises a lower tool surface 516. A primary region of the mould 502 is generally formed between the upper and lower moulds 504, 506 when they are brought together. The upper tool surface 514 comprises a plurality of grooves 516 extending from the primary region. While in this example the grooves 516 comprise a triangular cross-sectional profile (similar to that shown in FIG. 5), the upper mould 504 may be produced with grooves 516 of any profile, to produce a composite component with raised features having a desired impact resistance.

[0071] As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, a preform 518 consisting of fibre reinforcement with a rectangular cross-section is placed into the two-part mould 502 and the mould 502 is closed by bringing the upper mould 504 and the lower mould 506 together. This traps the preform 518 in a primary mould region 520 between the upper and lower moulds 504, 506. The preform 518 holds its rectangular shape such that none of the fibre reinforcement extends out of the primary mould region 520 into the grooves 516 of the upper mould 504. The mould 502 is clamped shut and the seal 512 seals the interface between the upper and lower moulds 504, 506. Optionally, a polymer material may be introduced into the grooves 516 before closing the mould 502, for example when it is desired to make a composite component having raised features that consist of a different polymer to the main portion.

[0072] A vacuum is applied to the vent channels 510 and a polymer material e.g. resin 521 is injected under pressure into the mould 502 through the input channel 508. The combination of injection under pressure, and the vacuum applied to the vent channels 510, draws the resin 521 through the mould 502, such that it penetrates both into the fibre reinforcement preform 518 and into the grooves 516 (unless they have already been prefilled). The polymer resin 521 may optionally contain a conductive additive (e.g. carbon black).

[0073] Heat is then applied to the mould 502 to cure the polymer resin 521. This causes the wetted-out preform 518 and grooves 516 to set into, as shown in FIG. 15, a solid composite component 522 comprising a main fibre-reinforced portion 524 and non-reinforced triangular raised features 526 having a shape formed by the grooves 516. In examples where the grooves 516 are not prefilled, the raised features 526 are produced by the polymer resin 521 flowing into the grooves 516 (in which there was no fibre reinforcement). As seen in FIGS. 13, 14 and 15, the mould 502 is unclamped and opened and the resulting composite component 522 is removed. The composite component 522 may optionally be further treated to improve damage identification. For example, the raised features 526 may be given an outer coating having a colour which is contrasting with a colour of the underlying non-reinforced polymer (e.g. the non-reinforced polymer may be black due to the addition of a carbon black additive, while the coating is white). This may enable any damage to the raised features 526 to be more readily identified.

[0074] In addition, or alternatively, an over moulding process may be used to form one or more raised features and/or one or more structural features on a surface of the main portion.

[0075] FIGS. 10-15 depict a method for producing a composite component with a simple planar structure, but the techniques described could be equally applied to produce other structures with more complex shapes, for example curved surfaces or hollow pipes.