Composite Course

Lesson 1 • What Are Composite Materials

Defines composites by constituent phases and synergistic behavior. Anchors all subsequent material selection and processing decisions.

Lesson 2 • Fiber Reinforcement Types and Properties

Surveys glass, carbon, aramid, and natural fibers with mechanical data. Enables informed reinforcement selection for target applications.

Lesson 3 • Composite Architecture and Geometry

Explains laminate, sandwich, and chopped-fiber architectures and their structural implications. Prepares learners for layup and design chapters.

Lesson 4 • Key Mechanical Properties

Introduces stiffness, strength, fatigue, and anisotropy concepts specific to composites. Provides the property baseline needed for design and testing chapters.

Lesson 1 • Material Specification Development

Teaches how to translate design requirements into material specifications. Links performance targets to measurable material properties.

Lesson 2 • Resin and Adhesive Selection

Evaluates cure schedules, pot life, viscosity, and environmental resistance for resin selection. Connects resin properties to processing and service conditions.

Lesson 3 • Fiber Selection Criteria

Applies mechanical, thermal, and cost criteria to fiber selection decisions. Reinforces fiber knowledge from Chapter 1 with practical trade-off analysis.

Lesson 4 • Supplier Qualification and Storage

Establishes supplier audit criteria and material storage protocols to maintain quality. Prevents defects caused by out-of-date or improperly stored materials.

Lesson 1 • Prepreg Layup and Autoclave Cure

Details prepreg handling, ply sequencing, and autoclave cure cycle management. Introduces the high-performance process standard used in aerospace and motorsport.

Lesson 2 • Vacuum Infusion and Resin Transfer Molding

Explains closed-mold infusion processes that improve fiber volume fraction and surface quality. Builds on wet layup skills with controlled resin flow concepts.

Lesson 3 • Hand Layup and Wet Layup Techniques

Covers manual ply placement, resin application, and consolidation methods. Establishes baseline process skills applicable to all subsequent methods.

Lesson 4 • Automated Fiber and Tape Placement

Introduces AFP and ATL machine programming, tow steering, and defect monitoring. Prepares learners for advanced automated production environments.

Lesson 1 • Mold Fabrication Methods

Details plug construction, splash molding, and CNC-machined tooling workflows. Provides practical fabrication routes for different production scales.

Lesson 2 • Mold Surface and Geometry Design

Covers draft angles, radii, parting lines, and surface finish requirements for successful demolding. Prevents common geometric defects before fabrication begins.

Lesson 3 • Thermal Management in Tooling

Explains embedded heating, oven cure, and autoclave thermal uniformity for consistent cure. Ensures learners can design tooling that meets cure cycle requirements.

Lesson 4 • Mold Maintenance and Life Extension

Establishes inspection, repair, and release agent regimes to maximize mold service life. Reduces production downtime and scrap from tooling degradation.

Lesson 1 • Finite Element Analysis for Composites

Introduces shell and solid element modeling, ply definition, and result interpretation for composites. Bridges analytical methods with computational design tools.

Lesson 2 • Ply Orientation and Stacking Sequence

Optimizes fiber angles and stacking order to meet stiffness, strength, and stability targets. Builds directly on CLT knowledge to produce manufacturable ply schedules.

Lesson 3 • Classical Laminate Theory

Derives ABD stiffness matrices and predicts laminate response to in-plane and bending loads. Provides the analytical foundation for all design decisions.

Lesson 4 • Sandwich Structure Design

Applies sandwich beam and panel theory to size face sheets and core for bending and shear. Extends laminate design skills to lightweight structural panels.

Lesson 1 • Common Composite Defects

Catalogs voids, delaminations, dry fiber, inclusions, and resin-rich zones with root causes. Establishes defect literacy needed for all inspection and repair activities.

Lesson 2 • Thermography and Other Advanced NDT

Introduces flash thermography, shearography, and X-ray computed tomography for complex geometries. Expands the NDT toolkit beyond ultrasonics for challenging inspection scenarios.

Lesson 3 • Inspection Planning and Disposition

Develops inspection plans, accept/reject criteria, and nonconformance disposition workflows. Integrates NDT results into quality management and production decisions.

Lesson 4 • Visual and Tap Testing Methods

Covers systematic visual inspection and coin-tap techniques for surface and near-surface defects. Provides low-cost first-line inspection skills applicable in any facility.

Lesson 1 • Surface Preparation for Repair

Covers sanding, scarfing, and solvent cleaning to achieve bond-ready surfaces. Ensures adhesion quality that determines repair structural performance.

Lesson 2 • Repair Validation and Documentation

Applies NDT and mechanical testing to verify repair quality and documents results for traceability. Closes the repair loop with quality assurance and regulatory compliance.

Lesson 3 • Wet Layup and Injection Repairs

Executes resin injection for delaminations and wet layup patch repairs for damaged plies. Provides the most widely used field and depot repair methods.

Lesson 4 • Damage Assessment and Classification

Applies NDT results and damage maps to classify damage as cosmetic, repairable, or beyond limits. Connects inspection chapter skills to repair decision-making.

Lesson 1 • Design for Manufacture and Assembly

Applies DFM principles to reduce layup complexity, tooling cost, and assembly operations. Synthesizes all prior chapters into producible, cost-effective designs.

Lesson 2 • Statistical Process Control for Composites

Implements control charts, capability indices, and measurement system analysis for composite processes. Provides data-driven tools to maintain and improve process stability.

Lesson 3 • Waste Reduction and Sustainability

Identifies material waste streams and applies lean principles to reduce scrap and energy use. Addresses growing industry pressure for sustainable composite manufacturing.

Lesson 4 • Production Ramp-Up and Scaling

Manages the transition from prototype to full-rate production with risk mitigation strategies. Prepares learners to lead industrialization of new composite programs.