Pi2Enhanced Reliability and Confidence Effort- 2 (PiERCE 2)

The aerospace industry has been transitioning to the use of pi joints as an assembly technique for primary structure to reduce both the weight and costs of these assemblies by eliminating the cost and weight of using fasteners.  The pi-joint is a woven preform co-bonded between a skin and a stringer. While these joints are inherently weight-effective for highly loaded structural applications, the structures are susceptible to process-related variations and nonconformance issues, including variable porosity, resin pooling, and thickness variations. Maher Advanced Manufacturing has developed a process to improve the reliability of the pi-Joint through processing techniques and a new carbon fiber format.  The Phase II program continues to mature this technology as well as demonstrate utility in sub-scale component demonstrations.