Abstract
The out-of-autoclave process is being used instead of the autoclave process due to its lower manufacturing costs to obtain products of the same quality. It is seen that in the out-of-autoclave, pre-cure processes like compaction in the vacuum bag, the bagging sequence, vacuum pressure as well as the application time of vacuum are the major factors to produce acceptable quality parts, especially aero structure parts. In this study we will discuss how the bagging sequence, along with a change in the consumable materials, affects the final porosity. The void content for different bagging sequence conditions was analyzed by means of C-scan and microsection analysis on OOA prepreg laminates. It was noted that the bagging sequence and consumable materials may cause the porosity to be as low as approximate to 0.23% to as high as approximate to 4.24%.