UC San Diego

A continued desire for increased mobility in the aftermath of natural disasters, or on the battlefield, has lead to the need for improved light-weight bridging solutions. This research investigates the development of a carbon/ epoxy composite bridging system to meet the needs for light-weight bridging. The research focuses on two main topics. The first topic is that of processing composite structures and the second is the design and testing of these structures. In recent years the Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding (VARTM) process has become recognized as a low-cost manufacturing alternative for large Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) composite structures for civil, military, and aerospace applications. The success of the VARTM process (complete wet-out) is very sensitive to the resin injection strategy used and the proper placement of flow distribution materials and inlet and vacuum ports. Predicting the flow front pattern, the time required for infusing a part with resin, and the time required to bleed excess resin at the end of filling, is critical to ensure that the part will become completely impregnated and desired fiber volume fractions achieved prior to the resin gelling (initiation of cure). In order to eliminate costly trial and error experiments to determine the optimal infusion strategy, this research presents a simulation model which considers in-plane flow as well as flow through the thickness of the preform. In addition to resin filling, the current model is able to simulate the bleeding of resin at the end of filling to predict the required bleeding time to reach desired fiber volume fractions for the final part. In addition to processing, the second portion of the dissertation investigates the design and testing of composite bridge deck sections which also serve as short-span bridging for gaps up to 4 m in length. The research focuses on the design of a light-weight core material for bridge decking as well as proof loading of short-span bridge sections in the lab and extensive field testing using a variety of wheeled and tracked vehicles at different crossing speeds and crossing conditions