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Carbon reinforced PPS tapes
TECHNOLOGY
Thermoplastic reinforced with curauá fibre SABIC Innovative Plastics has introduced LNP Thermocomp PX07444, a polyamide (PA) 6 thermoplastic compound that is reinforced with up to 20% curauá fibre. According to SABIC, curauá fibres offer the environmental advantages of being renewable, biodegradable and require less energy to produce glass fibres. SABIC also maintains that curauá fibres weigh less than glass fibres and are not as abrasive as glass or mineral reinforcements, thereby reducing wear and tear on moulding machinery. Curauá (Ananas erectifolius) is a plant from Bromeliad (pineapple) family, cultivated in the Brazilian Amazon region. Curauá fibres have been traditionally used for hammocks, fishing lines, ropes and nets. The leaves from curauá plant reach up to 5 m in length and 4 cm in width and are straight and flat. When the plant is about 8 months old, its leaves yield about 8% fibre on a dry weight basis.
Curauá fibres have a higher mechanical strength than other natural fibres such as sisal, jute and flax.
Once the fibre has been extracted, the residue can be used as animal food or as organic fertiliser. The fibres have a higher mechanical strength than other natural fibres such as sisal, jute and flax. Plastic composites made using polyamide (PA) 6 and curauá fibre exhibit similar mechanical properties to mineral filled composites and only about a 20% reduction in mechanical properties when compared
A&P Technology, Cincinnati, USA, is currently qualifying the tape for use in aircraft interior components and an automotive application.
“Fortron PPS is an ideal for applications where parts need to be moulded in a few minutes,” according to Michael R. Favaloro, Ticona Technical Marketing - Fortron Composites. “Unlike a thermoset-based system, it is also recyclable, requires much less energy to process and contains no volatile organic compounds.”
It is claimed that the use of carbon reinforced PPS tape allows the production of cost effective, braided performs that offer much faster cycle times than would be the case with thermoset resin systems.
“We see new expanding opportunities for Fortron in applications such as airframe/wing structures, seat frames, structural stiffeners, window frames and floor panels where it can help reduce cost and weight without
REINFORCEDplastics
■ Scott Bader’s Crystic
Crestomer® 1196PA adhesive has been approved by RINA for use in bonding core materials and skin laminates in composite sandwich structures for leisure craft deck and hull construction. www.reinforcedplastics.com/ view/2635/scott-bader-adhesiveobtains-rina-approval-for-corebonding ■ Bayer MaterialScience
to glass filled products. On a density basis, curauá filled products have a higher specific tensile strength and modulus than mineral filled composites. One of the first users for LNP Thermocomp PX07444 is the Brazilian company Pematec who is using the compound to mould the frame and bracket for an automotive sun visor. SABIC Innovative Plastics; www.sabic-ip.com
Carbon reinforced PPS tapes BRAIDED TEXTILE specialist A&P Technology Inc is now using carbon fibre reinforced Fortron polyphenylene sulphide (PPS) tape for aircraft interior applications.
In brief
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2009
sacrificing strength and stability,” he adds. Manufactured by Ticona (the engineering polymers business of Celanese Corporation), Fortron is a semi-crystalline polymer that meets the fire, smoke and toxicity (FST) required for aircraft interiors. Ticona maintains that Fortron also offers high temperature performance (up to 240°C), resistance to aircraft fluids and excellent hardness, stiffness and dimensional stability. A&P Technology; www.braider.com Ticona; www.ticona.com
LLC will receive a US$750 000 grant from the US Department of Energy (DOE) to support the development of composite technologies for blades of wind turbines of 1.5 MW and above. The project is called Carbon Nanotube Reinforced Polyurethane Composites for Wind Turbine Blades. www.reinforcedplastics.com/ view/2920/bayer-materialsciencewins-doe-grant-to-supportturbine-blade-research ■ A 25% glass fibre reinforced
polyamide (PA) 6 compound from Chem Polymer is designed to provide moulders with an alternative to halogenated flame retardant (FR) formulations. The product is already being used in an automotive air filter housing. www.reinforcedplastics. com/view/2868/polyamidecompound-an-alternative-tohalogenated-fr-formulations/ ■ Researchers at the Fraunhofer Wilhelm-KlauditzInstitut (WKI), Germany, have developed a method of detecting defects in composite wind turbine blades using infrared thermography. This technique is reported to be fast, relatively cheap and does not cause any damage. www. reinforcedplastics.com/view/2452/ infrared-thermography-revealsdefects-in-composite-turbineblades
www.reinforcedplastics.com
Thermoplastic reinforced with curauá fibre SABIC Innovative Plastics has introduced LNP Thermocomp PX07444, a polyamide (PA) 6 thermoplastic compound that is reinforced with up to 20% curauá fibre. According to SABIC, curauá fibres offer the environmental advantages of being renewable, biodegradable and require less energy to produce glass fibres. SABIC also maintains that curauá fibres weigh less than glass fibres and are not as abrasive as glass or mineral reinforcements, thereby reducing wear and tear on moulding machinery. Curauá (Ananas erectifolius) is a plant from Bromeliad (pineapple) family, cultivated in the Brazilian Amazon region. Curauá fibres have been traditionally used for hammocks, fishing lines, ropes and nets. The leaves from curauá plant reach up to 5 m in length and 4 cm in width and are straight and flat. When the plant is about 8 months old, its leaves yield about 8% fibre on a dry weight basis.
Curauá fibres have a higher mechanical strength than other natural fibres such as sisal, jute and flax.
Once the fibre has been extracted, the residue can be used as animal food or as organic fertiliser. The fibres have a higher mechanical strength than other natural fibres such as sisal, jute and flax. Plastic composites made using polyamide (PA) 6 and curauá fibre exhibit similar mechanical properties to mineral filled composites and only about a 20% reduction in mechanical properties when compared
A&P Technology, Cincinnati, USA, is currently qualifying the tape for use in aircraft interior components and an automotive application.
“Fortron PPS is an ideal for applications where parts need to be moulded in a few minutes,” according to Michael R. Favaloro, Ticona Technical Marketing - Fortron Composites. “Unlike a thermoset-based system, it is also recyclable, requires much less energy to process and contains no volatile organic compounds.”
It is claimed that the use of carbon reinforced PPS tape allows the production of cost effective, braided performs that offer much faster cycle times than would be the case with thermoset resin systems.
“We see new expanding opportunities for Fortron in applications such as airframe/wing structures, seat frames, structural stiffeners, window frames and floor panels where it can help reduce cost and weight without
REINFORCEDplastics
■ Scott Bader’s Crystic
Crestomer® 1196PA adhesive has been approved by RINA for use in bonding core materials and skin laminates in composite sandwich structures for leisure craft deck and hull construction. www.reinforcedplastics.com/ view/2635/scott-bader-adhesiveobtains-rina-approval-for-corebonding ■ Bayer MaterialScience
to glass filled products. On a density basis, curauá filled products have a higher specific tensile strength and modulus than mineral filled composites. One of the first users for LNP Thermocomp PX07444 is the Brazilian company Pematec who is using the compound to mould the frame and bracket for an automotive sun visor. SABIC Innovative Plastics; www.sabic-ip.com
Carbon reinforced PPS tapes BRAIDED TEXTILE specialist A&P Technology Inc is now using carbon fibre reinforced Fortron polyphenylene sulphide (PPS) tape for aircraft interior applications.
In brief
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2009
sacrificing strength and stability,” he adds. Manufactured by Ticona (the engineering polymers business of Celanese Corporation), Fortron is a semi-crystalline polymer that meets the fire, smoke and toxicity (FST) required for aircraft interiors. Ticona maintains that Fortron also offers high temperature performance (up to 240°C), resistance to aircraft fluids and excellent hardness, stiffness and dimensional stability. A&P Technology; www.braider.com Ticona; www.ticona.com
LLC will receive a US$750 000 grant from the US Department of Energy (DOE) to support the development of composite technologies for blades of wind turbines of 1.5 MW and above. The project is called Carbon Nanotube Reinforced Polyurethane Composites for Wind Turbine Blades. www.reinforcedplastics.com/ view/2920/bayer-materialsciencewins-doe-grant-to-supportturbine-blade-research ■ A 25% glass fibre reinforced
polyamide (PA) 6 compound from Chem Polymer is designed to provide moulders with an alternative to halogenated flame retardant (FR) formulations. The product is already being used in an automotive air filter housing. www.reinforcedplastics. com/view/2868/polyamidecompound-an-alternative-tohalogenated-fr-formulations/ ■ Researchers at the Fraunhofer Wilhelm-KlauditzInstitut (WKI), Germany, have developed a method of detecting defects in composite wind turbine blades using infrared thermography. This technique is reported to be fast, relatively cheap and does not cause any damage. www. reinforcedplastics.com/view/2452/ infrared-thermography-revealsdefects-in-composite-turbineblades
www.reinforcedplastics.com