Nonconforming elements for liquid composite molding process simulations

Abstract

Liquid Composite Molding (LCM) processes are now a prevalent group of manufacturing methods for advanced composite materials. They offer many advantages over more traditional manufacturing methods, such as the ability to deal with large and complex shapes. Numerical simulations can lead to better predictions of process parameters. The standard procedure for the simulation of these processes is to use a Control Volume (CV) method. One problem with the CV method is that resin mass is not conserved on an element level, and this has consequences for accuracy. An attractive alternative to the CV method is to use a single grid of non-conforming finite elements. Such non-conforming elements encompass essential mass conservation properties. In this study it is shown how the standard non-conforming triangular element can be adjusted to ensure mass conservation on the element level and to ensure continuity of the fluid flux across inter-element boundaries. Numerical experiments are carried out which show that single grids of such elements, and nonconforming quadrilateral elements, produce accurate results in the case of the Injection Compression Molding process.