Study on laser irradiation temperature field of carbon fiber reinforced plastic composites

Abstract

Based on Abaqus software, the temperature profiles during laser heating CFRP materials in different fiber directions was investigated in this research. The 3D temperature distribution and temperature history of laminates with different ply directions were analyzed and compared through the homogenous model. It is found that the focusing characteristics of laser causes a large temperature gradient. Meanwhile, the temperature field of CFRP laminate extends toward the direction of fibers because of the large axial thermal conductivity of carbon fibers. The thermal conduction in the thickness direction is poor, so the lower layer will not reach the melting temperature. In order to verify the validity of the model, a real-time temperature field measurement device consisting of thermal imager and thermocouples was built. The results show that the model can effectively simulate the temperature field of composite materials irradiated by laser.

Keywords

• temperature field
• carbon fiber reinforced plastic composites
• laser
• finite element simulation