Periodic Reporting for period 1 - DOMMINIO (Digital method for imprOved Manufacturing of next-generation MultIfuNctIOnal airframe parts)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2021-01-01 al 2022-06-30
In the last few decades the aeronautical industry has experienced a drastic transformation in the manufacturing philosophy in response to the growth of aircraft production (by 60% in the last 10 years), due to the increase in the passenger transport demand (by 6.3% in 2016 compared to 2015 and by 7.6% in 2017 compared to 2016). The transition to the use of more advanced and sustainable composites together with the increase in aircraft performance and productivity rate have increased the challenges faced by designers and manufacturers to produce cost-effective structures and components using greener materials and technologies, allowing cost, weight and fuel consumption reduction with shorter manufacturing cycles and increasing energy efficiency in aircraft fabrication. More modern design techniques, including model-based engineering resilient systems, have been developed to reverse this trend by utilizing more detailed modelling techniques across different disciplines during early design (so called, Multi-Disciplinary Optimization -MDO- methods). With the introduction of novel multifunctional materials together with high-value manufacturing technologies, novel design-process-and-performance-based criteria need to be included to identify the impact of new designs along the life-cycle and ensure the cost-effective, efficient and ecological manufacturing of high-quality multifunctional airframe parts. In particular, there are also some design aspects which have not been properly expressed in MDO tools, such as the manufacturing processes, the product maintenance and the operating environments.
DOMMINIO aims at developing an innovative data-driven methodology to design, manufacture, maintain and pre-certify multifunctional and intelligent airframe parts (composed of high-quality in-situ consolidated composite laminates and high-performance 3D-printed reinforcement elements) through a cost-effective, flexible and multi-stage manufacturing system based on the combination of robotized ATL and FFF technologies, supported by advanced simulation tools, on-line process & quality monitoring, SHM systems-enabled by embedded novel CNT-based fibre sensors and data analytics. Innovative multifunctional thermoplastic filaments will be employed to incorporate novel continuous CNT fibre-based piezoresistive strain sensors in the laminate, to enable reversible joining (using magnetic NPs) and increase the structural integrity (using continuous CF) of the 3D-printed reinforcements. Flexible automation of ATL and FFF manufacturing processes will be enabled by the development of new laser-scanning and smart nozzle systems, the simulation of ATL plies consolidation and interlaminar delamination in FFF and the development of novel air-coupled ultrasound quality monitoring systems. Besides, advanced modelling will support the selection of right process window parameters and the optimal production planning strategy, ensuring the quality of the final component. In addition, physics- and data-driven models (Digital Twin) will provide real-time data-driven fault detection capabilities supporting the implementation of new methodologies for SHM&M of multifunctional airframe parts. The DOMMINIO multi-stage manufacturing systems and digital pipeline will be tested and validated at lab-scale in two representative airframe parts (a multifunctional access door panel and a leading-edge wing prototype), enabling the realization of the DOMMINIO solutions in a laboratory environment, in order to assess novel MDO and MRO methodologies, their life analysis and virtual certification potential.
• Why is it important for society?
Enhancing life quality of EU Citizens. It is of extremely importance for the society of the 21st century that the right goods must be produced at the right cost, quality and volume that markets require. Goods must be created with new sustainable processes and most qualified jobs to support each regional economy. DOMMINIO eases the manufacturing of customised products at a lower cost and minmizing resource consumption than traditional processes, creating a wider availability for affordable solutions, based on digitised and transformed EU aviation industry. Furthermore, enhanced performance of next generation multifunctional airframe enabled by DOMMINIO solutions (resistance, electromagnetic shielding, self-sensing, etc.) will contribute to the improvement of safety in transport, therefore protecting EU Citizens from injuries from failures in aircrafts. On the other hand, regions and countries benefiting from highly productive industrial capacities developed at DOMMINIO will generate skilled jobs with decent salaries, thus contributing to European social cohesion. In addition, DOMMINIO contributes to tackling climate change, one of the main concerns of EU citizens (92% of EU citizens see it as a serious problem and 74% a very serious problem), through the reduction of energy demand, use of resources. Most of the emissions in Europe are concentrated in the energy sector and certain manufacturing industries. Moreover, the reduction of GHG emissions contributes to improve air quality within the EU and worldwide. Estimates of the health impacts attributable to exposure to air pollution indicate that PM2.5 concentrations in 2016 were responsible for about 412,000 premature deaths due to long-term exposure in EU.
• What are the overall objectives?
DOMMINIO has 4 high level objectives:
• Enable flexible multistage robotic-based production processes for manufacturing of multifunctional composite airframe parts
• Develop novel data-driven pipeline supporting the design, simulation and production planning of multifunctional and intelligent composite airframe components
• Develop a Quality-by-Design (QbD) manufacturing strategy, based on the development of process control and advanced quality monitoring systems
• Develop a new digital-combined-physical driven methodology for Monitoring and Management of the Health of multifunctional airframe parts.
DOMMINIO aims at developing an innovative data-driven methodology to design, manufacture, maintain and pre-certify multifunctional and intelligent airframe parts (composed of high-quality in-situ consolidated composite laminates and high-performance 3D-printed reinforcement elements) through a cost-effective, flexible and multi-stage manufacturing system based on the combination of robotized ATL and FFF technologies, supported by advanced simulation tools, on-line process & quality monitoring, SHM systems-enabled by embedded novel CNT-based fibre sensors and data analytics. Innovative multifunctional thermoplastic filaments will be employed to incorporate novel continuous CNT fibre-based piezoresistive strain sensors in the laminate, to enable reversible joining (using magnetic NPs) and increase the structural integrity (using continuous CF) of the 3D-printed reinforcements. Flexible automation of ATL and FFF manufacturing processes will be enabled by the development of new laser-scanning and smart nozzle systems, the simulation of ATL plies consolidation and interlaminar delamination in FFF and the development of novel air-coupled ultrasound quality monitoring systems. Besides, advanced modelling will support the selection of right process window parameters and the optimal production planning strategy, ensuring the quality of the final component. In addition, physics- and data-driven models (Digital Twin) will provide real-time data-driven fault detection capabilities supporting the implementation of new methodologies for SHM&M of multifunctional airframe parts. The DOMMINIO multi-stage manufacturing systems and digital pipeline will be tested and validated at lab-scale in two representative airframe parts (a multifunctional access door panel and a leading-edge wing prototype), enabling the realization of the DOMMINIO solutions in a laboratory environment, in order to assess novel MDO and MRO methodologies, their life analysis and virtual certification potential.
• Why is it important for society?
Enhancing life quality of EU Citizens. It is of extremely importance for the society of the 21st century that the right goods must be produced at the right cost, quality and volume that markets require. Goods must be created with new sustainable processes and most qualified jobs to support each regional economy. DOMMINIO eases the manufacturing of customised products at a lower cost and minmizing resource consumption than traditional processes, creating a wider availability for affordable solutions, based on digitised and transformed EU aviation industry. Furthermore, enhanced performance of next generation multifunctional airframe enabled by DOMMINIO solutions (resistance, electromagnetic shielding, self-sensing, etc.) will contribute to the improvement of safety in transport, therefore protecting EU Citizens from injuries from failures in aircrafts. On the other hand, regions and countries benefiting from highly productive industrial capacities developed at DOMMINIO will generate skilled jobs with decent salaries, thus contributing to European social cohesion. In addition, DOMMINIO contributes to tackling climate change, one of the main concerns of EU citizens (92% of EU citizens see it as a serious problem and 74% a very serious problem), through the reduction of energy demand, use of resources. Most of the emissions in Europe are concentrated in the energy sector and certain manufacturing industries. Moreover, the reduction of GHG emissions contributes to improve air quality within the EU and worldwide. Estimates of the health impacts attributable to exposure to air pollution indicate that PM2.5 concentrations in 2016 were responsible for about 412,000 premature deaths due to long-term exposure in EU.
• What are the overall objectives?
DOMMINIO has 4 high level objectives:
• Enable flexible multistage robotic-based production processes for manufacturing of multifunctional composite airframe parts
• Develop novel data-driven pipeline supporting the design, simulation and production planning of multifunctional and intelligent composite airframe components
• Develop a Quality-by-Design (QbD) manufacturing strategy, based on the development of process control and advanced quality monitoring systems
• Develop a new digital-combined-physical driven methodology for Monitoring and Management of the Health of multifunctional airframe parts.
The work performed so far focuses on:
1. Definition of DOMMINIO technical requirements from the point of view of manufacturing technologies, digitalization and conceptual design of demonstrators
2. Process simulation: Development of an ATL simulator based on a parametric PGD model, ATL tape classifiers based on TDA tool, and a preliminary model of the FFF process
3. Advanced materials: Development of a manufacturing process of multifunctional FFF filaments and CNT-based SHM sensor
4. Manufacturing technology: Development of FFF nozzles with integrated sensors for high temperature polymer reinforced with carbon fibre and first setup of laser-based scanning heating system for AFP process.
1. Definition of DOMMINIO technical requirements from the point of view of manufacturing technologies, digitalization and conceptual design of demonstrators
2. Process simulation: Development of an ATL simulator based on a parametric PGD model, ATL tape classifiers based on TDA tool, and a preliminary model of the FFF process
3. Advanced materials: Development of a manufacturing process of multifunctional FFF filaments and CNT-based SHM sensor
4. Manufacturing technology: Development of FFF nozzles with integrated sensors for high temperature polymer reinforced with carbon fibre and first setup of laser-based scanning heating system for AFP process.
DOMMINIO includes the following progress beyond the state of the art in the field of advanced manufacturing of composite structures:
• Multi-stage ATL combined FFF manufacturing of multifunctional composites
• Numerical simulation of plies consolidation
• Novel controllable laser-scanning system for customized heating in ATL process
• Novel sensorized FFF nozzle for high-performance TPs
• Advanced non-contact UT methods for quality monitoring in ATL process
• Innovative piezoresistive-based CCNT fibre strain sensors
• Data-driven pipeline for MDO of airframe parts
• Multi-stage ATL combined FFF manufacturing of multifunctional composites
• Numerical simulation of plies consolidation
• Novel controllable laser-scanning system for customized heating in ATL process
• Novel sensorized FFF nozzle for high-performance TPs
• Advanced non-contact UT methods for quality monitoring in ATL process
• Innovative piezoresistive-based CCNT fibre strain sensors
• Data-driven pipeline for MDO of airframe parts