The composite material forming process is the foundation and condition for the development of the composite material industry. With the expansion of the application field of composite materials, the composite material industry has rapidly developed, and some forming processes are becoming increasingly perfect. New forming methods are constantly emerging. Currently, there are more than 20 forming methods for polymer based composite materials, which have been successfully used in industrial production, such as:

(1) Hand layup molding process - wet layup molding method;

(2) Spray forming process;

(3) Resin transfer molding technology (RTM technology);

(4) Bag pressing method (pressure bag method) for molding;

(5) Vacuum bag compression molding;

(6) Hot pressing can forming technology;

(7) Hydraulic kettle forming technology;

(8) Thermal expansion molding technology;

(9) Sandwich structure forming technology;

(10) Production process of molding materials;

(11) ZMC molding material injection technology;

(12) Molding process;

(13) Laminate production technology;

(14) Rolling tube forming technology;

(15) Fiber winding product molding technology;

(16) Continuous board production process;

(17) Casting molding technology;

(18) Pultrusion molding process;

(19) Continuous winding pipe manufacturing process;

(20) Manufacturing technology of woven composite materials;

(21) Manufacturing technology and cold stamping forming process of thermoplastic sheet molding materials;

(22) Injection molding process;

(23) Extrusion molding process;

(24) Centrifugal casting pipe forming process;

(25) Other forming technologies.

Depending on the selected resin matrix material, the above methods are applicable to the production of thermosetting and thermoplastic composite materials, and some processes are applicable to both.

Characteristics of composite material product forming process: Compared with other material processing processes, the composite material forming process has the following characteristics:

(1) In general, the production process of composite materials, also known as the forming process of products, is completed simultaneously with material manufacturing and product forming. The performance of materials must be designed according to the usage requirements of the product. Therefore, when selecting materials, designing ratios, determining fiber layers, and forming methods, it is necessary to meet the physical and chemical properties, structural shape, and appearance quality requirements of the product.

(2) The molding of products is relatively simple. Generally, the resin matrix of thermosetting composite materials is a flowing liquid before molding, and the reinforcing material is soft fibers or fabrics. Therefore, the process and equipment required to produce composite material products using these materials are much simpler than other materials. For some products, only one set of molds is required for production.