Motorsport Composite Fundamentals: Lamination

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Lamination

04.59

00:00	Now, we have all our materials ready, a plan in mind and our mould prepared with release agents.
00:05	So, we're ready to start working on our lamination.
00:08	Before we begin, have another quick check we've got all our tools, equipment, consumables and materials ready to go before we catalyse our resin and add time pressure.
00:18	To start we can pour 200 millilitres of our laminating resin into two mixing containers.
00:23	Then we'll catalyse one batch of resin at 2% with 4 millilitres of MEKP.
00:28	Again, mixing thoroughly for at least two minutes and continuously scraping down the sides.
00:34	We'll catalyse the second batch as it's needed.
00:37	From here we have about 20 minutes of pot life so we need to keep that in mind.
00:41	Because our resin is waxed we won't be able to stop if we run out of time and complete a second stage.
00:47	We ideally need to get it all done in one stage.
00:50	So, we'll get straight into it and use our brushes to wet out the mould surface.
00:54	Don't be shy with the resin here, just get a good coat down.
00:57	I like to start in the details and then work out to the open surfaces.
01:02	We can then lay our first layer of reinforcement cut from our templates.
01:06	Pushing this up into position with the cut edges up into the internal corners of the mould.
01:12	There are a few things to pay attention to here.
01:14	While we lay out the first layer of reinforcement at 45 degree angles, we ideally want to prevent warping and distorting it as much as possible.
01:22	Some amount of distortion is inevitable but the less the better.
01:26	We also want to prevent bridging as much as possible where the reinforcement pulls tight across an internal corner rather than laying down into it.
01:34	If the part cures like this we're going to get huge voids and the part will most likely be useless.
01:39	When wet laying carbon fabrics into detailed moulds like this it's extremely difficult to get the fabric to lay down nicely and follow sharp contours.
01:47	This often means making relief cuts or darts on sharp corners to help the fabric fold into the shape.
01:54	Usually, trimming away excess reinforcement overhanging from the edges goes a long way here as well.
02:00	Typically a dabbing motion is used to ensure the reinforcement is fully wet out with no dry patches, air bubbles or bridges.
02:07	The rollers are the next step in consolidating the layout, forcing it into the tight corners and in some cases driving out excess resin.
02:15	After the main section is laid up we can use patches from the flanges that overlap the first piece and tie the first layer together.
02:22	Once the first layer is fully wet out and we're happy it's cut and consolidated into the details so we have reinforcement right up to the mould surface we can add the next layer.
02:32	It's essentially rinse and repeat at this point, laying up the reinforcement, cutting reliefs if needed, fully wetting out and consolidating, keeping in mind the 20 minute time limit that we have with our curing resin.
02:43	Once we've used our first batch of resin we can catalyze and mix up the second batch.
02:48	Again, while we want the laminate to be fully wet out, we want to avoid excess resin.
02:53	As we know this is heavy but large pockets of resin will create hot spots when curing, leading to local shrinkage and therefore stress and weak areas in the laminate.
03:03	With our three layers of reinforcement in place, wet out and consolidated, we'll finish with a layer of peel ply.
03:08	This is simply laid over the back of the laminate and consolidated like our reinforcement.
03:13	I want to highlight an issue you'll see here where there are creases in the peel ply, preventing it from laying perfectly flat over the back of the laminate.
03:22	You'll see in a coming module the issue this caused with irregularities in the surface texture on the back of the part once we removed the peel ply.
03:29	To avoid this it's important the peel ply is laid out so it conforms completely to the back surface, which may require cutting it and using smaller sections in some cases.
03:39	From here it's simply a matter of allowing the layup to cure.
03:42	In this case we laminated around midday and left the layup a full 24 hours to cure.
03:48	We're well into winter here in Queenstown with overnight temperatures around zero degrees Celsius, so we left the heat pump running overnight to keep the room above 20 degrees Celsius.
03:58	The last important process of the lamination stage is disposing of our excess catalyzed and exothermic resin safely.
04:05	Since we only had very small amounts remaining, we're safe to let this cure in the mixing container away from anything flammable or combustible and once fully cured it's safe to throw it in the trash.
04:15	With that let's recap our lamination stage.
04:18	This began with the moulds already prepped with release agents.
04:21	The first batch of laminating resin was catalyzed with MEKP at 2%.
04:26	Once catalyzed we need to keep in mind the pot life.
04:29	The typical approach to hand lamination is simply laying up reinforcement as per our plan, fully wetting out and consolidating each layer.
04:37	The important considerations, especially with woven fabrics, is preventing distortion of the weave and avoiding bridging of the reinforcement over sharp corners which often requires relief cuts in the fabric.
04:49	Once we're happy with the layer it's left to cure and we dispose of any excess resin safely to avoid fire risks.