Characterization of Flow Front in Resin Transfer Molding

The nature of the resin flow front through the preform affects the quality of resin transfer molded (RTM) parts. The resin flow varies as the permeability of the preform. Race tracking occurs when the resin flows at a faster rate along the mold periphery than in the middle section and arrives at the vents before mold filling is complete. While race tracking is natural to the RTM process, very severe race tracking could adversely affect the filling process. A parameter has been developed to assess the skewness of the flow and is being extended to quantify the severity of this race-tracking.