Controlled Resistive Heating of Carbon Fiber Composites

Temperature control is the key to effective resistive heating for composite rigidization. The ability to monitor and even control the temperature provides an active control strategy in prescribing and predicting the stiffness of the hardened composite. Further, understanding how the material responds to an electrical input determines both the type of control to be used as well as the level of control that can be attained. This chapter investigates how temperature control of carbon-fiber reinforced polymer composites is implemented. The material was investigated experimentally and modeled analytically for use in the final control scheme. A PID feedback controller was applied to the resistive heating process and the control gains were then experimentally tuned. Infrared imaging of the composite during heating was also performed as a method for visualizing the heating process.