Fariborz Parsi
Professor of Composite Materials Engineering
Flow Induced Architecture: Fiber Orientation in Molded Composites When chopped-fiber-reinforced polymers are injection or compression molded, the flow during mold-filling (and packing in injection molding) stage create preferred microstructure in the part. This will lead to point-to-point variation and anisotropy in the properties of the molded material. Fiber length distribution, fiber orientation distribution, and crystallinity are the three major components of microstructure. Understanding the factors that enhance the development of desired or undesired microstructure is of prime importance to both the material supplier and the molder. Furthermore, successful prediction of the microstructure using computer simulation can in fact reduce the development time to convert pellets of reinforced thermoplastics to successful products at a minimum time and expense.
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