Publications Details
Status of the DOE/SANDIA blade manufacturing program
A DOE/Sandia project termed the Blade Manufacturing Program was established at Sandia to develop means of advancing manufacturing processes in ways that lower costs and improve the reliability of turbine blades. Through industry contracts, manufacturers are improving processes such as resin infusion, resin transfer molding, and thermoplastic casting. Testing and modeling research at universities and national labs are adding to the knowledge of how composite materials perform in substructures and sub-scale blades as a function of their fabrication process.