Project delivers high value out-of-autoclave manufacturing

The initiative – which involves Spirit AeroSystems working in collaboration with Strathclyde University, and supported by CENSIS, the Scottish Innovation Centre for Sensor and Imaging Systems – replaces the traditional autoclave “curing” process with what is described as ‘an intelligent and tailored heating tool’.

Autoclave vessels process materials in a mould at high pressures and temperatures. They typically cure high-performance components, placing the part in a vacuum within an autoclave and then applying a combination of pressure and heat during a pre-determined cycle – typically two hours at the cure temperature. The result is a high-strength, lightweight component for use in high-value manufacturing sectors.

Parts are normally cured for a standard period of time, at a set temperature, regardless of how they are responding to the curing process.

The consortium in Prestwick said it has improved on this by creating a tool that removes the need for an autoclave, which typically represents around $4m in upfront capital expenditure, while allowing users to monitor and match a cure cycle to a component’s geometric characteristics and how it is reacting to the process.