Apparatus for forming thermoplastic composite materials
OwnerLawrence V. Montsingerinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A composite with a thermoplastic matrix and fiber reinforcement is made by rotation of an exit die about a roving of continuous fiber in the presence of a thermoplastic melt. The rotation causes opposing inner and outer helical flow conditions which reduce the melt viscosity of the polymer by shear thinning while dragging and directing the polymer into the fiber roving thereby wetting and dispersing the fiber. A composite structure is formed with a polymer rich skin and a core region of unidirectionally aligned polymer and fiber. The polymeric skin is composed of helically aligned polymer chains which are coiled by the rotation around the core to compress the core region and enhance fiber wet out.
Claims15
An apparatus for producing a fiber reinforced thermoplastic material comprising:
- an impregnation chamber having an entrance end and an exit end, the exit end including an exit die;
- means for directing continuous filaments along a predetermined advancing path of travel into and through said impregnation chamber, entering through said entrance end and exiting through the exit die;
- an extruder for providing a supply of molten, thermoplastic polymer;
- means for directing molten thermoplastic material from said extruder into the impregnation passageway and into intimate contact with the filaments to promote wetting and impregnating of the filaments with the molten thermoplastic polymer;
- and
- means for imparting relative rotation by rotating the exit die about the axis of the advancing filaments.
An impregnation apparatus to impregnate continuous filaments with molten thermoplastic material comprising:
- an impregnation chamber for receiving molten thermoplastic material having an entrance end to receive said filaments and an exit end, the exit end including at least one rotatable exit die;
- wherein said at least one rotatable exit die contains a gear engagable to a drive gear to rotate the exit die about the axis of said filaments that pass therethrough.
An apparatus, comprising:
- an impregnation chamber to receive at least one continuous filament roving and having an entrance end and an exit end, the exit end including at least one rotatable exit die;
- an extruder for providing a supply of molten thermoplastic polymer to said chamber;
- and a puller for pulling said at least one filament roving through said chamber and through said at least one exit die, and wherein said at least one rotatable exit die contains a gear engagable to a drive gear to rotate the exit die about the axis of said at least one roving that passes therethrough.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.