vacuum bagging carbon fibre over pva filament

[darrenc 0]

hi guys quick question could u print a inner mold out of pva then vacuum bag carbon fiber over the top or would the resin in carbon fiber  attack pva before it set looking at new ways to make carbon race car parts 

thanks

 

[IRobertI 521]

I think heat might be the biggest issue here. Depending on how hot the resin gets as it cures it could be enough to cause the PVA-mold to deform due to the high stresses that gets put on it due to the vacuum.

[geert_2 558]

In addition to the heat-problem described by |Robert|:

 

The resin will most likely glue firmly to the PLA. You would need a very good release coating to prevent that. Test the compatibility of the release sprays or coating with the resin: if incompatible, it might prevent curing, and you would end up with a sticky mess. Release-sprays might make painting difficult; you would need to degrease thoroughly.

 

Concerning heat: in the old days, when mixing epoxy resin in plastic cups, or even in metal (lead) cups, I often saw these melt due to the heat in the left-over resin. So you would need a slow-curing or low-exotherm resin.

 

If you keep these things in mind, I think it is worth trying.

 

Another option would be to make a silicone mould from a 3D-printed part, and use that silicone as base for applying the carbon fiber and resin. Silicone can withstand much higher temps, and it is by itself non-stick. But even then, thoroughly applying release spray greatly increases mould-life. Silicone is porous for oils, solvents and resin-vapours: so they would soak in, and over time cure in there and destroy the silicone's flexibility.

 

 

 

[hellraiser6662 0]

question, are you putting it in a autoclave to cure? or what resins are you using? ive got a cousin who works in formula 1 and I know the processes in making car parts. ive seen a autoclave that a whole car can go into and a door that thicker than a bank vault.. 

[AndersK 59]

HIPS might be a better choice over PVA in this case.