Tooling effects on the formation of a radius using carbon fibre, epoxy resin composites components

The purpose of this thesis was to evaluate methods of many processing techniques that are available in the field of Advanced Fibre Reinforced Composites. The methods for fabricating, trimming and inspecting these components were covered.;The samples manufactured using the matched tooling method gave the best CBS results. The average strength was 497.0 N. The second best result was the sample fabricated using the female tooling with an average strength of 478.7 N. The worst result came from the sample fabricated on the male tool with an average strength of 416.1 N.;Three different tooling styles were used to fabricate radius samples for testing. The samples were compared through a standard inspection process. The samples were tested using a modified version of ASTM-D-6415. Each sample was subject to the same testing criteria and final results of Curved Beam Strength were compared.