Polyester core materials and structural sandwich composites thereof
OwnerWenguang Ma, Kurt Feichtingerinventors
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Abstract
High-strength, chemically and thermally stable, closed-cell foams, useful as structural core materials in sandwich composites. The core materials of the invention display anisotropic properties. The core materials of the invention are amenable to vacuum-mediated resin bonding to composite skins to provide lightweight, high-strength structural sandwiches suitable for use in a variety of applications, such as marine applications, construction, aviation, rapid transit, and recreational vehicles.
Claims50
A method for making a composite comprising:
- (a) extruding a foamable gel comprising a blowing agent and a foamable polyester through a multi-orifice die to give a plurality of strands;
- (b) foaming the strands to form a multi-stranded foamed article;
- (c) shaping the multi-stranded foamed article to give a core material;
- and
- (d) bonding the core material to one or more structural skins.
A composite comprising a foamed polyester core material bonded to one or more structural skins, wherein the core material comprises a plurality of discrete volumes, each discrete volume comprising an interior section and a corresponding jacket, wherein the average cell size in the interior section is larger than the average cell size in the jacket.
A composite comprising a foamed polyester core material bonded to one or more structural skins, wherein the core material comprises a plurality of foamed strands, wherein there are substantially no inter-strand voids.
A composite comprising a foamed polyester core material bonded to one or more structural skins, wherein the core material is anisotropic.
A core material comprising foamed polyester, wherein the foamed polyester comprises a plurality of discrete volumes, each discrete volume comprising an interior section and a corresponding jacket, wherein the average cell size in the interior section is larger than the average cell size in the jacket.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.