Tool‐Ply Friction In Composite Forming

Friction between fibre composite laminates and rigid tool materials is an important phenomenon in composite forming processes and the resulting product geometry, fibre orientations and fibre stresses. Pull‐out experiments are presented and compared with a novel meso mechanical model based on Reynolds’ equation for thin film lubrication. The film thickness is derived from this analysis, rather than postulated as in earlier publications. Good agreement is found between the experiments, the meso mechanical model results and earlier empirically determined master curves.