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composites and LFTs | technology


Right: Glass is introduced


direct into the melt in the plasticising unit in the joint Arburg/SKZ LFT-D process


The partners see applications in semi-structural parts and in primary body and chassis components, where the composite materials could be used on their own or in combination with short or long fibre rein- forced thermoplastics in hybrid structures produced using injection overmoulding techniques. An example of this hybrid approach can be seen in the seat pan developed for GM’s Opel Astra OPC sport coupe. Launched last year, this is the first production part to be produced using a continuous fibre reinforced Ultramid PA and it delivered a 45% weight saving over its metal prede- cessor. The pan’s hybrid structure combines an in-mould formed continuous reinforced Ultramid PA sheet that is overmoulded with a short glass reinforced Ultramid grade to integrate additional reinforcement ribbing and edge structures. Both the forming and overmoulding stages take place in the injection mould in one production step. Lanxess is also focusing attention on continuous


fibre reinforced thermoplastics composites, acquiring Brilon, Germany-based Bond Laminates last summer. Bond develops and manufactures a range of fibre reinforced thermoplastics composite sheets marketed under the Tepex name and has been working with Lanxess on automotive developments since 2006. “Our aim in acquiring Bond-Laminates is to


strengthen our position as one of the leading suppliers of lightweight construction technologies for green mobility,” says Dr Martin Wanders, head of Global Applications Development in the Lanxess High Perfor- mance Materials (HPM) business unit. Lanxess also sees hybrid components playing a key


Right: Arburg moulded this LFT light housing at


Fakuma using a new LFT-D


direct process- ing technology, which it claims cuts cost and


maintains fibre length


22


role in automotive applications in the future. Recent development projects completed by the company together with Bond include a brake pedal manufactured using an insert moulding process using a 2mm thick 47% glass reinforced Tepex PA6 sheet overmoulded with a 30% glass reinforced Durethan PA6 compound. Developed with Tier One supplier ZF Friedrichshafen, the part is said to provide a 50% weight saving over steel.


Other development


projects include a thermo- plastic airbag cover developed with airbag systems maker Takata-Petri. The part, which comprises a PA6 thermoplastic composite sheet overmoulded with Durethan


INJECTION WORLD | January/February 2013


PA6 on a KraussMaffei machine and Siebenwurst mould, is said to meet performance requirements while reducing weight by 30%. At last year’s Innovative Composites Summit in


Boston in the US, Ticona’s engineering polymers technology launch manager Michael Ruby presented the results of a study (http://bit.ly/WLVDVY) the company has carried out with Germany’s Fraunhofer ICT, Swedish fibre reinforcement specialist Oxeon and US thermoplastics composite processing technologies developer Fiberforge, which looked at methods for incorporation of uni-directional continuous fibre reinforcement tapes and fabrics into LFT-D PP components. Fraunhofer ICT’s role in the project was to compound the LFT-D, develop the lay-up configurations and mould the study samples. Its laboratory at Pfinztal in Germany is equipped with a Fibreforge large scale Relay automated lay-up station, which was used for production of the custom multiple-ply thermoplastic preforms.


Ruby said the first stage of the project involved


mechanical testing of a number of samples of LFT-D, unidirectional tape and custom multi-ply laminates, as well as hybrid constructions of LFT-D and different reinforcement preforms. The results of these tests allowed the team to develop a lay-up pattern that was then trialled in an automotive engine noise shield mould provided by German Tier One supplier Minda Schenk Plastic Solutions. The test part was moulded by Fraun- hofer ICT staff in its Dieffen- bacher in-line LFT-D compounding and compres- sion moulding press. Ruby says that the project


demonstrated that a hybrid moulding process allows a


www.injectionworld.com


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