Fibre developments | thermoplastic composites
Whether for weight saving or metal substitution purposes, there’s a growing demand for higher performance fi bre reinforced compounds. Peter Mapleston explores some of the latest fi bre developments
Fibre suppliers reinforce their positions
There is a great deal of excitement at the moment over the expected growth of thermoplastic composites in engineering applications, especially in automotive and aerospace where weight is at a premium. Many of these emerging new composites are based on continuous fi bres and fabrics—often carbon-based—which are not the concern of this publication. However, most also use traditional glass reinforced polymer compounds and there are numerous developments taking place in reinforcing fi bres, mainly glass, of particular interest to plastic compound producers and users. This article takes a look at some of the most recent technical and commercial progress. AGY has been busy in recent months building up its
portfolio of high performance glass fi bre products. Last July, it took an exclusive license from Owens Corning for the latter’s S-Glass technology. AGY said at the time that S-Glass products would serve as a natural complement to its existing S-2 Glass business (S-2 Glass is a brand that was originally created by Owens Corning but was spun off in 1998 into a joint venture that later became AGY) and would enable it to leverage Owens Corning’s global market development expertise to grow demand, particularly in the area of S-Glass engineered thermoplastics. E glass, the most common type of glass used for plastics reinforcement, is alumino-borosilicate glass
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with less than 1% alkali oxides. S-Glass and S-2 Glass are alumino-silicate glass with no boron, virtually no calcium oxide, more silica and aluminium oxide, and around 10% magnesium oxide; the net result is said to be higher tensile and compressive strength and modulus, higher temperature resistance, and improved impact resistance. The improved performance also comes with a higher price – between eight and ten times higher in the case of S-2 Glass, which is superior to S-Glass in tensile strength, modulus and elongation. Last March, AGY bought the S-Glass product range outright and said it would expand capacity to produce S-2 Glass yarns and rovings over two stages ending this July. “The expansion in our capacity comes on the back of AGY’s successful launch of several new products in the S-2 Glass fi bre range,” said Patrick Burns, Presi- dent & CEO. “The success of these new products, along with growth AGY is seeing in its traditional products and applications, has led to the addition of capacity with the goal of staying ahead of market demand.”
Chopped S-2 glass One of the new products Burns cites is chopped strand in different diameters for high performance applica- tions; these were introduced in late 2014. AGY also says that, in conjunction with its sizing technology, it can develop specifi c solutions for compounders of thermo-
January/February 2016 | INJECTION WORLD 35
Main image: The latest ThermoFlow chopped glass grades from Johns Manville offer improved mechanicals and ageing
performance
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