For applications where the mechanical properties of unreinforced or short-fibre-reinforced semi-finished plastic products such as extruded sheets or rods are not sufficient, continuous-fibre-reinforced composites can be an excellent alternative. Thanks to continuous fibre reinforcement (usually woven glass or carbon fibre fabrics), these sheets offer high mechanical properties otherwise only achieved by metals, while being significantly lighter than them.
Thanks to the use of thermoplastic matrix materials, the sheets have the same advantages as unreinforced thermoplastic sheets, such as high impact strength, consistent mechanical properties over a wide temperature range, chemical resistance and high elongation at break. In addition, these sheets are characterised by their low thermal expansion and very high mechanical properties. The matrix material can be selected according to the application and covers a wide range of customer requirements.
Sheets of continuous fibre-reinforced thermoplastics can be processed into finished parts of excellent quality with minimum tolerances by waterjet cutting as well as by conventional machining methods. It is important to note that suitable equipment and processing parameters are required.
By using thermoplastic composite materials, sheets up to 95 mm thick can be produced. In addition to the standard materials, customised material combinations or fibre angles are also possible on request.
Our thermoplastic composite plates can be supplied in a thickness ranging from 1 mm to 95 mm with maximum dimensions of 525 x 625 mm.
Standard products are woven glass fibre reinforced PEI as well as woven carbon fibre reinforced PC and PPS. Other matrix and fibre combinations, fibre architectures or customised fibre lay-ups can be offered upon request.
The composite plates have densities between 1.5 and 1.8 g/cm³, giving them a similar specific weight to unreinforced or short fibre-reinforced plates. Nevertheless, the reinforcing fibres increase their mechanical properties dramatically to a level similar to metal. Compared with unreinforced polymer plates, continuous fibre-reinforced plates achieve values that are 5 times higher for both tensile strength and Young’s modulus.
Continuous fibre-reinforced thermoplastics exhibit extremely low coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) in a range around 5x10-6 K-1. This property is of great importance for applications in which the parts are subjected to temperature fluctuations over a broad range and where high precision is required.
The thermoplastic matrix gives the plates high impact toughness, with the value significantly higher than in plates with a thermoset matrix such as epoxy or phenolic resins. Moreover, the high elongation at break of the thermoplastics ensures tough, non-brittle fracture behaviour. For some applications, the intrinsic vibration damping of the matrix can also be a relevant advantage.
Achieve your goals in thermoplastic composites without long and costly development times. For our TECATEC PC, PEI and PPS plates, no minimum order quantity is required.
