Compression moulding of stiffened brackets using randomly-oriented strands thermoplastic composites

Randomly-oriented strands (ROS) composites offer the possibility to mould complex parts with fast processing cycles. This material is ideal for small complex parts such as brackets and hinges where varying wall thickness, tight radii and rib features are common. In this paper, the manufacturing of a ROS composite bracket with a rib feature is presented. The bracket was designed to have similar stiffness to that of an aluminum angle bracket. A four-point bending test method (ASTM D6415) was used to quantify the stiffness of the ROS and aluminum parts. Per weight basis, the ROS composite part was 19% stiffer than the aluminum bracket. The main findings show the use of ROS as a good material candidate to mould complex parts which could inherently replace typical metallic brackets that are commonly used in aircrafts.Peer reviewed: YesNRC publication: Ye