Sized glass fibers for fiber-containing composite articles and methods of making them

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10730271-B2
Application number	US-201816059243-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 9, 2018
Priority date	Jun 11, 2013
Publication date	Aug 4, 2020
Grant date	Aug 4, 2020

Abstract

Methods of making prepregs are described. The methods include the steps of forming a fiber-containing substrate, and contacting the fiber-containing substrate with a resin mixture. The resin mixture may include polymer particles mixed in a liquid medium, and the polymer particles may be coated on the fiber-containing substrate to form a coated substrate. The liquid medium may be removed from the coated substrate to form the prepreg. The prepregs may be used to make fiber-reinforced articles.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of making a prepreg, the method comprising:
providing a plurality of fibers consisting of glass fibers;
contacting the glass fibers with a blocked isocyanate coupling compound to make treated glass fibers; and
assembling the treated glass fibers into a treated glass fiber substrate;
contacting the treated glass fiber substrate with a thermoplastic polymer to form a glass-fiber-polymer combination;
heating the glass-fiber-polymer combination to a deblocking temperature for the blocked isocyanate coupling compound, wherein the heating transforms the blocked isocyanate coupling compound into an unblocked isocyanate compound; and
covalently bonding the thermoplastic polymer to the treated glass fibers, wherein the covalent bonding consists of a reaction between the unblocked isocyanate compound and the thermoplastic polymer.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the thermoplastic polymer comprises a solid thermoplastic polymer comprising at least one of (i) a thermoplastic polymer film or (ii) thermoplastic polymer particles.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the solid thermoplastic polymer comprises the thermoplastic polymer particles, and wherein the treated glass fiber substrate is contacted with a mixture of the thermoplastic polymer particles in a liquid medium.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the liquid medium comprises water.

5. The method of claim 3 , wherein the liquid medium is removed from the glass-fiber-polymer combination.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the thermoplastic polymer comprises a polyamide polymer.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the polyamide polymer comprises nylon-6.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the thermoplastic polymer lacks any unreacted monomers.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the blocked isocyanate compound comprises tris(3-trimethoxysilylpropyl) isocyanurate.

10. A prepreg comprising:
a treated glass-fiber substrate covalently bound to a thermoplastic polymer,
wherein the treated glass-fiber substrate is formed from:
a plurality of fibers, and
a blocked isocyanate coupling compound coupled to the plurality of fibers,
wherein the plurality of fibers consists of glass fibers; and
wherein the thermoplastic polymer is formed from at least one of (i) a solid polymer film, or (ii) solid polymer particles, and
wherein the thermoplastic polymer is covalently bonded to the treated glass-fiber substrate through covalent bonding consisting of a reaction between an unblocked isocyanate compound generated from the blocked isocyanate coupling compound and the thermoplastic polymer.

11. The prepreg of claim 10 , wherein the treated glass-fiber substrate comprises a woven fabric.

12. The prepreg of claim 10 , wherein the thermoplastic polymer comprises a polyamide polymer.

13. The prepreg of claim 12 , wherein the polyamide polymer comprises nylon-6.

14. The prepreg of claim 10 , wherein the unblocked isocyanate compound comprises tris(3-trimethoxysilylpropyl) isocyanurate.

15. A fiber-containing composite formed from one or more prepregs, wherein the prepregs are formed by:
providing a plurality of fibers consisting of glass fibers;
contacting the glass fibers with a blocked isocyanate coupling compound to make treated glass fibers; and
assembling the treated glass fibers into a treated glass fiber substrate;
contacting the treated glass fiber substrate with a thermoplastic polymer to form a glass-fiber-polymer combination;
heating the glass-fiber-polymer combination to a deblocking temperature for the blocked isocyanate coupling compound, wherein the heating transforms the blocked isocyanate coupling compound into an unblocked isocyanate compound; and
covalently bonding the thermoplastic polymer to the treated glass fibers, wherein the covalent bonding consists of a reaction between the unblocked isocyanate compound and the thermoplastic polymer.

16. The fiber-containing composite of claim 15 , wherein the thermoplastic polymer comprises a solid thermoplastic polymer comprising at least one of (i) a thermoplastic polymer film or (ii) thermoplastic polymer particles.

17. The fiber-containing composite of claim 15 , wherein the thermoplastic polymer comprises a polyamide polymer.

18. The fiber-containing composite of claim 17 , wherein the polyamide polymer comprises nylon-6.

19. The fiber-containing composite of claim 15 , wherein the thermoplastic polymer lacks any unreacted monomers.

20. The fiber-containing composite of claim 15 , wherein the blocked isocyanate compound comprises tris(3-trimethoxysilylpropyl) isocyanurate.

Assignees

• Johns Manville

Inventors

• Zhang Mingfu
• Asrar Jawed
• Gleich Klaus Friedrich
• Yohannes Asheber

Classifications

• C08J5/248 Primary

  using pre-treated fibres · CPC title

• C08K5/5477

  containing nitrogen in a heterocyclic ring · CPC title

• C08J2377/02

  Polyamides derived from omega-amino carboxylic acids or from lactams thereof (C08J2377/10 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B32B2605/18

  Aircraft · CPC title

• F01D5/282

  Selecting composite materials, e.g. blades with reinforcing filaments · CPC title