Quality Control of Structural Nonmetallics.
Abstract
Nonmetallic materials are now being used in primary structural applications, principally as advanced composites and adhesives. These resin systems are initially subjected to several years of extensive qualification testing ranging from coupon testing to the destructive testing of large substructures to establish a statistical base for design analysis and to establish environmental durability. The processability, strength and durability of any material must ultimately depend on their physical and chemical characteristics. However, most state-of-the-art adhesive and composite prepreg resin systems are proprietary in nature and are not identified as to their chemical composition. The user must rely almost entirely on performance tests such as short-term mechanical testing, flow times, etc., as a means of batch-to-batch quality control. While these performance type quality control tests have served acceptably during the introduction of these materials, the user must move toward additional quality assurance test capabilities to insure chemical consistency to that formulation which was initially qualified. During this program, chemical characterization test methods applicable to structural epoxy resin systems have been developed and the viability of these techniques for in-plant quality control and the establishment of acceptance criteria with statistically valid accept/reject limits have been demonstrated. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1977
- Accession Number
- ADA042853
Entities
People
- J. F. Carpenter
Organizations
- McDonnell Aircraft Corporation