Measurement of the in-plane thermal conductivity of long fiber composites by inverse analysis

In the present work, inverse thermal analysis of heat conduction is carried out to estimate the in-plane thermal conductivity of composites. Numerical simulations were performed to determine the optimal configuration of the heating system to ensure a unidirectional heat transfer in the composite sample. Composite plates made of unsaturated polyester resin and unidirectional glass fibers were fabricated by injection to validate the methodology. A heating and cooling cycle is applied at the bottom and top surfaces of the sample. The thermal conductivity can be deduced from transient temperature measurements given by thermocouples positioned at three chosen locations along the fibers direction. The inverse analysis algorithm is initiated by solving the direct problem defined by the one-dimensional transient heat conduction equation using a first estimate of thermal conductivity. The integral in time of the square distance between the measured and predicted values is the criterion minimized in the inverse analysis algorithm. Finally, the evolution of the in-plane composite thermal conductivity can be deduced from the experimental results by the rule of mixture.