Compacting assembly and method of fabricating a composite blade for a turbine engine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016243777-A1
Application number	US-201415026282-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Oct 3, 2014
Priority date	Oct 4, 2013
Publication date	Aug 25, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

Compacting assembly comprising a shaper mold ( 24 ) defining an upwardly open housing suitable for receiving a woven preform ( 10 a ) that has previously been cut out, and a vertically movable compacting tool ( 128 ) that, together with the shaper mold ( 24 ), forms a compacting assembly for compacting said preform previously placed in the housing. The compacting tool ( 128 ) comprises at least a root portion ( 128 A). The invention is applicable to fabricating turbine engine composite blades.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A compacting assembly for compacting a woven preform obtained by three-dimensionally weaving yarns in order to form a composite blade for a turbine engine, said preform having portions for predefining the airfoil, the root of the blade, and between the airfoil and the root, the tang of the blade, the compacting assembly comprising a shaper mold defining an upwardly open housing suitable for receiving a woven preform, and a vertically movable compacting tool for co-operating with the shaper mold to form a compacting assembly enabling said preform to be compacted when it is placed in the housing, wherein the compacting tool comprises at least a root portion, further comprising a deformable skin covering at least part of the compacting tool facing the sharper mold.

2 . A compacting assembly according to claim 1 , wherein said compacting tool further comprises at least one tang portion.

3 . A compacting assembly according to claim 2 , wherein the root portion and the tang portion are separate.

4 . A compacting assembly according to claim 3 , wherein the root portion and/or the tang portion is/are subdivided into at least three separate compacting blocks, including a central compacting block, said compacting blocks being configured to move down towards the shaper mold in independent manner, beginning with the central compacting block.

5 . A compacting assembly according to claim 3 , wherein the root portion is a single block and wherein the tang portion is subdivided into at least three separate compacting blocks.

6 . (canceled)

7 . A compacting assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the deformable skin covers at least the entire surface of the tang portion facing the shaper mold.

8 . A compacting assembly according to claim 1 , wherein the compacting tool has at least one window configured to view the position of at least one tracer yarn when the preform is placed in the housing.

9 . A method of fabricating a composite blade for a turbine engine, the method comprising the following steps:
a) making a preform by three-dimensionally weaving yarns, said preform having portions defining the airfoil, the root of the blade, and between the airfoil and the root, the tang of the blade, the yarns including tracer yarns that are visually identifiable arranged at least at the surface of the preform; b) cutting out said preform while leaving intact a series of tracer yarns situated along a reference face of the preform, thereby obtaining a cut-out preform configured to predefine the shape and the dimensions of portions constituting the blade; c) pre-deforming said cut-out preform, thereby obtaining a pre-deformed preform; d) pre-compacting said pre-deformed preform, thereby obtaining a pre-compacted preform; e) wetting and drying the pre-compacted preform, thereby obtaining a stiffened preform; f) providing an injection mold in which said stiffened preform is placed; g) injecting a binder comprising a thermosetting resin into said injection mold in order to impregnate the entire stiffened preform and maintain the relative positioning between the yarns of the stiffened preform; h) heating said injection mold; and i) extracting from the mold a composite molded part presenting substantially the shape and the dimensions of said blade; wherein, during step c), said pre-deformation is performed by placing the cut-out preform in a housing defined by a shaper mold and in that, during step d), the pre-compacting is performed.

10 . A method according to claim 9 , wherein, during step d), at least the root portion of the preform is pre-compacted.

11 . A method according to claim 9 , wherein, during steps c) and d), use is made of a compacting assembly according to claim 1 .

12 . A turbine engine composite blade having a root, an airfoil, and a tang constituting a transition part between the root and the airfoil, the blade comprising a preform of three-dimensionally woven fibers that have been compacted and impregnated with binder, the fibers of the outer layer of the preform, situated in the tang zone adjacent to the airfoil and running along the leading or trailing edge of the blade presenting respective deflection angles of less than 20°.

13 . A turbine engine including a composite blade according to claim 12 .

Assignees

• Snecma

Inventors

• Marchal Yann
• Gimat Matthieu

Classifications

• B29C45/0005

  using fibre reinforcements · CPC title

• B29C70/48

  and impregnating the reinforcements in the closed mould, e.g. resin transfer moulding [RTM] {, e.g. by vacuum} · CPC title

• B29C43/006

  Pressing and sintering powders, granules or fibres · CPC title

• F01D5/282

  Selecting composite materials, e.g. blades with reinforcing filaments · CPC title

• B29D99/0025 Primary

  Producing blades or the like, e.g. blades for turbines, propellers, or wings · CPC title