Fiber-reinforced composites processing

Thermosetting unsaturated polyester resins constitute the most common fiber-reinforced composite matrix today. According to the Committee on Resin Statistics of the Society of Plastics Industry (SPl), 454,000 t of unsaturated polyester were used in fiber-reinforced plastics in 1990. These materials are popular because of thek low price, ease of use, and excellent mechanical and chemical resistance properties. Over 227 t of phenoHc resins were used in fiber-reinforced plastics in 1990 (1 3). PhenoHc resins (qv) are used when thek inherent flame retardance, high temperature resistance, or low cost overcome the problems of processing difficulties and lower mechanical properties. 

Ease of cure, easy removal of parts from mold surfaces, and wide availabiHty have made polyesters the first choice for many fiber-reinforced composite molders. Sheet mol ding compound, filament winding, hand lay-up, spray up, and pultmsion are all weU adapted to the use of polyesters. Choosing the best polyester resin and processing technique is often a challenge. The polyester must be a type that is weU adapted to the processing method and must have the final mechanical properties requked by the part appHcation. Table 1 Hsts the deskable properties for a number of fiber-reinforced composite fabrication methods. 

Unlike most conventional materials, there is a very close relation between the manufacture of a composite material and its end use. The manufacture of the material is often actually part of the fabrication process for the structural element or even the complete structure. Thus, a complete description of the manufacturing process is not possible nor is it even desirable. The discussion of manufacturing of laminated fiber-reinforced composite materials is restricted in this section to how the fibers and matrix materials are assembled to make a lamina and how, subsequently, laminae are assembled and cured to make a laminate. 

Three principal layup processes for laminated fiber-reinforced composite materials are winding, laying, and molding. The choice of a layup process (as well as a curing process) depends on many factors part size and shape, cost, schedule, familiarity with particular techniques, etc. 

The actual experimental moduli of the polymer materials are usually about only % of their theoretical values [1], while the calculated theoretical moduli of many polymer materials are comparable to that of metal or fiber reinforced composites, for instance, the crystalline polyethylene (PE) and polyvinyl alcohol have their calculated Young s moduli in the range of 200-300 GPa, surpassing the normal steel modulus of 200 GPa. This has been attributed to the limitations of the folded-chain structures, the disordered alignment of molecular chains, and other defects existing in crystalline polymers under normal processing conditions. 

According to the composite theory, tensile modulus of fiber reinforced composites can be calculated by knowing the mechanical constants of the components, their volume fraction, the fiber aspect ratio, and orientation. But in the case of in situ composites injection molded, the TLCP fibrils are developed during the processing and are still embedded in the matrix. Their modulus cannot be directly measured. To overcome this problem, a calculation procedure was developed to estimate the tensile modulus of the dispersed fibers and droplets as following. 

The lower thermal stability of natural fibers, up to 230°C, the thermal stability is only small, which limits the number of thermoplastics to be considered as matrix materials for natural fiber composites. Only those thermoplastics whose processing temperature does not exceed 230°C are usable for natural fiber reinforced composites. These are, most of all, polyolefines, such as polyethylene and polypropylene. Technical thermoplastics, such as poyamides, polyesters, and polycarbonates, require... 

Figure 19 Tensile strength of different types of fiber reinforced composites, produced by the express-processing [62].

Figure 7.91 Schematic diagram of the filament winding process. Reprinted, by permission, from P. K. Mallick, Fiber-Reinforced Composites, p. 352. Copyright 1988 by Marcel Dekker, Inc.

In most materials selection processes, it is virtually impossible to make materials choices independent of the product shape. This includes not only the macroscopic, or bulk, shape of the object such as hammer or pressure relief valve, but also the internal or microscopic shape, such as a honeycomb structure or a continuous-fiber-reinforced composite. Shape is so important because in order to achieve it, the material must be subjected to a specific processing step. In Chapter 7, we saw how even simple objects made from a single-phase metal alloy could be formed by multiple processes such as casting or forging, and how these processing steps can affect the ultimate properties of the material. As illustrated in Figure 8.6, function dictates the choice of... 

Among the more common thermoplastics from ring opening polymerization of interest in composite processing are polylactams, polyethers, polyacetals, and polycycloolefins. It has also been shown that polycarbonates can be produced from cyclic carbonates [22], Anionic ring opening polymerization of caprolactam to nylon 6 is uniquely suited to form a thermoplastic matrix for fiber-reinforced composites, specifically by the reaction injection pultrusion process [23-25]. The fast reaction kinetics with no by-products and the crystalline... 

The use of advanced composites has increased significantly in the last decade. The properties of high-specific strength and stiffness make composites ideal for many aerospace, automotive, and infrastructure applications. Fiber-reinforced composites, which commonly use thermosetting resins such as epoxies as the matrix material, have some inherent deficiencies. These include the need for multistep processing, limited shelf-life, low toughness, sensitivity to moisture, and the inability to reprocess or reform the material [1]. 

Liquid Composite Molding (LCM) is the common name for several similar processes for the manufacturing of polymeric fiber reinforced composites. Widely used processes that belong to this class are Resin Transfer Molding (RTM), Vacuum-Assisted Resin Injection (VARI), and Structural-Reaction Injection Molding (S-RIM). 

Calado, VM.A., Advani, S.G. Processing of Continuous Fiber Reinforced Composites Ch. 2, Hanser... 

Plastics are by far the largest group of polymeric materials being processed by electron beam irradiation. Cross-linking of polyolefins, PVC, polyesters, polyurethanes, fluoropolymers, and fiber-reinforced composites is a common practice. 

M.L. Shofner, F.J. Rodriguez-Macfas, R. Vaidyanathan, and E.V. Barrera, Single wall nanotube and vapor grown carbon fiber reinforced polymers processed by extrusion freeform fabrication, Composites Part A, 34(12) 1207-1217, December 2003. 

FIBERS. The field of fibers is an evolving one. with new technologies being developed constantly. With ihe increasing use of fibers in non-traditional textile applications, such as geoiexliles (qv). fiber-reinforced composites, specialty absorption media, and as materials of construction, new fiber types and new processing technologies can be anticipated. 

MIC of Materials. Many cases have been documented of the biodeterioration by bacteria and/or fungi of architectural building materials, stonework, fiber-reinforced composites, polymeric coatings, and concrete.66 Biodeterioration then proceeds by the processes of staining, patina formation, pitting, etching, disaggregation, and exfoliation. (Dexter)5... 

In the presentation of the elevated temperature mechanical behavior of ceramic matrix composites, some degree of separation has also been made between fiber-reinforced and whisker- or particulate-reinforced composites. This has been necessary because of the way the field has evolved. The continuous fiber-reinforced composites area in many ways has evolved as a field in its own right, driven by developments in fiber processing technology. 

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