| abstract |
DAMAGE FIBERGLASS STRUCTURES ARE REPAIRED BY SUBSTANTIALLY FILLING THE IRREGULAR SURFACED DAMAGED AREA WITH A LIQUID, SELF-CURING RESIN, PREFERABLY AN EPOXY RESIN MIXED WITH CHOPED FIBERGLASS, AND THEN APPLYING TO THE RESIN SURFACE THE FIRST OF SEVERAL WOVEN FIBERGLASS SWATCHES WHICH HAS STITCHING IN A ZIG-ZAG PATTERN PARALLEL TO EACH OF ITS EDGES AND A FRINGE OF WARP AND FILL GLASS FIBERS ABOUT THE EDGES OUTWARD OF THE STITCHING, COATING THE APPLIED SWATCH WITH THE LIQUID, SELF-CURING RESIN, AND APPLYING ADDITIONAL SWATCHES IN A SIMILAR MANNER, EACH OF A LARGER DIMENSION THAN THE PRECEDING SWATCH IN A MANNER TO OVERLAP A PORTION OF THE FRINGE OF ADJACENT, SWATCHES, UNTIL THE FIBERGLASS SWATCH AND RESIN COMPOSITE THAT IS FORMED COVERS THE AREA TO BE REPAIRED, AND ALLOWING THE RESIN TO CURE. THE METHOD IS ESPECIALLY APPLICABLE TO REPAIR OF FIBERGLASS ROCKET ENGINE CASINGS AND IS PARTICULARLY ADVANTAGEOUS SINCE IT TESTORES THE REPAIRED FIBERGLASS STRUCTURE TO SUBSTANTIALLY ITS ORIGINAL STRENGTH WITHOUT ANY SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN THE GEOMETRY OR MASS OF THE STRUCTURE. |