Innovation | thermoplastic composites
Composite solutions are set to deliver
Injection moulding machine makers and technology partners are hard at work developing systems and technologies to enable production of very high perfor- mance thermoplastic components incorporating long and continuous glass and/or carbon fi bre reinforce- ments. As is so often the case with leading-edge technologies the main target market is automotive, where the thirst for high performance matched with low weight and cost effectiveness appears unquenchable. But for the longer term, the market is much broader. This article takes a look at some of the latest material and processing developments. Under development for some time, KraussMaffei’s
FiberForm system is now ready for large series produc- tion. At Fakuma last October, the company partnered with materials handling specialist Motan-Colortronic to debut an integrated solution for the precise metering of highly concentrated long fi bre reinforcement. It says the technology makes it possible to cut component weight by more than half compared to reference components made of short-fi bre reinforced polyamide. The more precise metering of the long glass fi bre
reinforcement is mainly the result of the initial use of special gravimetric metering modules, which had previously only been used in the fi eld of extrusion, KraussMaffei says. A highly-concentrated PP-long fi bre granulate with a 60% fi bre content is metered with equal part of pure PP (from Borealis in this particular
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Thermoplastic composites promise new levels of performance with
considerable savings in weight. Peter Mapleston looks at the latest
developments in processing and materials technology
case) in the system using two dosing units. “Metering high concentrates requires a special
development concept due to the complex fl ow proper- ties,” the company says. The FiberForm system employs Motan-Colortronic’s C-Flex M Walkwand feeder to ensure uniform mass fl ow for this granulate type—a fi rst, according to KraussMaffei. “Fluctuations when setting the fi bre content can be signifi cantly reduced compared to conventional mixing concepts,” says Jochen Mitzler, head of strategic product management. The fl uctuations here are said to be of the same order of magnitude as the batch fl uctuations of the material manufacturer. At the show, KraussMaffei demonstrated a CX 300–1400 injection moulding machine producing an airbag housing by Takata with cycle times under 40s. The production cell incorporated two LRX linear robots
Main image: Thermoplastic composite
developments could fi nally
bring compos- ite technology into the
mainstream
January/February 2016 | INJECTION WORLD 23
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