Predictive Simulation of Induction Heating for Unidirectional Thermoplastic Composites – Characterisation, Validation and Process Sensitivity

Advancing induction welding for unidirectional (ud) tape-based thermoplastic composites (tpcs) requires predictive capabilities regarding the heating response through physics-based numerical simulation. This research focuses on modelling induction heating enabled by accurate characterisation of the orthotropic electrical conductivity tensor. The obtained material data was used in comsol Multiphysics® for simulating the induction heating response of various ud-ply based lay-ups. These simulations were validated experimentally using infrared thermography. Furthermore, the validated model enabled a sensitivity analysis of the induction heating patterns, significantly enhancing our understanding of the origins of process sensitivity in induction welding and suggesting strategies to the industry for improving process stability.