Fibers treated with polymerization compounds and fiber reinforced composites made therefrom

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10202501-B2
Application number	US-201615231580-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 8, 2016
Priority date	Jan 8, 2008
Publication date	Feb 12, 2019
Grant date	Feb 12, 2019

Abstract

Methods of making fiber reinforced composite articles are described. The methods may include treating fibers with a sizing composition that includes a polymerization compound, and introducing the treated fibers to a pre-polymerized composition. The combination of the treated fibers and pre-polymerized composition may then undergo a temperature adjustment to a polymerization temperature at which the pre-polymerized composition polymerizes into a plastic around the fibers to form the fiber-reinforced composite article. Techniques for introducing the treated fibers to the pre-polymerized composition may include pultrusion, filament winding, reactive injection molding (RIM), structural reactive injection molding (SRIM), resin transfer molding (RTM), vacuum-assisted resin transfer molding (VARTM), long fiber injection (LFI), sheet molding compound (SMC) molding, bulk molding compound (BMC) molding, a spray-up application, and/or a hand lay-up application, among other techniques.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A fiber-reinforced composite article comprising:
a polymer matrix; and
treated fibers reinforcing the polymer matrix, wherein the treated fibers include a first initiator precursor comprising ethyl benzoate in contact with a surface on the treated fibers and a second initiator precursor present in a pre-polymerized composition that formed the polymer matrix,
wherein the first initiator precursor reacts with the second initiator precursor to form an initiator capable of initiating a polymerization of the pre-polymerized composition to form the polymer matrix.

2. The fiber-reinforced composite article of claim 1 , wherein all of the first initiator precursor contacts the fiber surface.

3. The fiber-reinforced composite article of claim 1 , wherein all of the first initiator precursor on the fiber surface is exposed to the pre-polymerized composition.

4. The fiber-reinforced composite article of claim 1 , wherein the pre-polymerized composition comprises caprolactam.

5. The fiber-reinforced composite article of claim 1 , wherein the second initiator precursor comprises sodium caprolactam.

6. The fiber-reinforced composite article of claim 1 , wherein the treated fibers also included a coupling-initiator compound covalently bonded to the surface on the treated fibers.

7. The fiber-reinforced composite article of claim 1 , wherein the treated fibers also included a polymerization compound in contact with the surface on the treated fibers, wherein the polymerization compound has the formula:
R—X—(I) n

wherein n is an integer with a value of 1 to 5;
R comprises a terminal moiety selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen and a hydrocarbyl group,
X comprises a linking moiety that links the R moiety with one or more I moieties; and
(I) n comprises one or more polymerization initiator moieties, wherein each of the initiator moieties is the same or different.

8. The fiber-reinforced composite article of claim 7 , wherein the polymerization compound non-covalently contacts the surface on the treated fibers.

9. The fiber-reinforced composite article of claim 1 , wherein the treated fibers also included a catalyst in contact with the surface on the treated fibers.

10. The fiber-reinforced composite article of claim 9 , wherein the catalyst comprises an alkali metal hydroxide or an alkali earth metal hydroxide.

Assignees

• Johns Manville

Inventors

• Tadepalli Rajappa
• Asrar Jawed
• Gleich Klaus Friedrich
• Alavi Kiarash

Classifications

• C08K7/14 Primary

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