US 10,099,435 B2 · Method of splitting fiber tows

Abstract

A fiber tow and methods for separating a fiber tow are disclosed. The fiber tow may include adjacent filaments and a polymer coating covering at least a portion of the adjacent filaments. The polymer coating may include a polymer that is configured to contract in a direction generally parallel to the adjacent filaments and expand in a direction generally perpendicular to the adjacent filaments. The polymer coating may contract/expand in response to an energy source, such as heat or a UV light source. The methods may include coating at least a portion of a plurality of filaments with a polymer, bundling the filaments into a fiber tow, and exposing the fiber tow to an energy source to contract the polymer in a direction generally parallel to the filaments and to expand the polymer in a direction generally perpendicular to the filaments. The filaments may be carbon fiber filaments.

Claims16

Dependent claims

A method of separating filaments coated with a polymer in a fiber tow, comprising:

cutting the fiber tow into segments;
dropping the segments such that the segments fall in a vertical direction;
and
as the segments fall, exposing the segments to first energy sources aligned in a first plane orthogonal to the vertical direction and second energy sources aligned in a second plane vertically spaced from and parallel to the first plane.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Method of splitting fiber tows

Life of this patent

Method of splitting fiber tows

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims16