Methods for making reinforced thermoplastic composites

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9169351-B2
Application number	US-201113335813-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 22, 2011
Priority date	Dec 22, 2011
Publication date	Oct 27, 2015
Grant date	Oct 27, 2015

Abstract

Methods of forming multi-component reinforced composites are described. The methods may include forming a particle-reinforced component and a polymer-containing component where the particle-reinforced component and the polymer-containing component are in contact with one another. The particle reinforced component may be formed by a process that includes providing reactive particles that have a reactive polymerization promoter chemically bonded or coated on the surface of the reactive particles and contacting the reactive particles with a resin solution that includes monomers of a polymer. The polymerization promoter chemically bonded or coated on the surface of the reactive particles may promote the polymerization of the monomers. The resin solution may subsequently be polymerized forming a polymer matrix around the reactive particles.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of forming a multi-component reinforced composite, the method comprising:
forming a first particle-reinforced component in a mold, wherein the first particle reinforced component is formed by a first process comprising:
providing in the mold reactive particles that have a reactive polymerization promoter chemically bonded or coated on a surface of the reactive particles;
contacting the reactive particles with a first resin solution comprising monomers of a polymer, wherein the polymerization promoter promotes the polymerization of the monomers; and

polymerizing the first resin solution to form a polymer matrix around the reactive particles and form the first particle reinforced component; and
forming a layer of a second polymer-containing component in contact with the first particle-reinforced component, wherein the layer of the second polymer-containing component in contact with the first particle-reinforced component is formed by a second process comprising:
contacting the first particle-reinforced component with a second resin solution comprising monomers of a polymer; and
polymerizing the second resin solution in the mold to form the second polymer-containing component, wherein:
the second process is a thermoset process selected from the group consisting of reactive injection molding, structural reactive injection molding, resin transfer molding, vacuum-assisted resin transfer molding, reactive long fiber injection molding, reactive sheet molding compound, and reactive bulk molding compound,
the second polymer-containing component comprises a thermoplastic polymer,
polymerizing the second resin solution occurs during contact with the first particle-reinforced component, and
the layer of the second polymer-containing component surrounds a core comprising the first particle-reinforced component.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the polymerization promoter comprises a polymerization initiator that initiates the polymerization of caprolactam monomers, and wherein the resin solution comprises caprolactam monomers.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the first resin solution further comprises a polymerization catalyst.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the polymerization promoter comprises a polymerization catalyst that catalyzes the polymerization of cyclic 1,4-butylene terephthalate (CBT) into polybutylene terephthalate (PBT).

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reactive particles comprise glass fibers or glass flakes sized with a sizing compositing comprising the polymerization promoter.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises activating the polymerization promoter on the surface of the reactive particles to make them the reactive polymerization promoter.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second polymer-containing component is a particle-reinforced composite comprising reinforcing fibers or flakes.

8. A method of making a glass reinforced composite, the method comprising:
forming a first glass-reinforced component, wherein the first glass reinforced component is formed by a first process comprising:
providing glass fibers that have a reactive polymerization promoter chemically bonded or coated on a surface of the glass fibers;
contacting the glass fibers with a first thermoplastic resin solution comprising monomers of a polymer, wherein the polymerization promoter promotes the polymerization of the monomers; and
polymerizing the resin solution to form a polymer matrix around the glass fibers and form the first glass-reinforced component; and

forming a second polymer-containing component in contact with the first glass-reinforced component, wherein the second polymer-containing component is formed by a second process comprising:
contacting the first glass-reinforced component with a second thermoplastic resin solution comprising monomers of a polymer;
polymerizing the second thermoplastic resin solution to form the second polymer-containing component, wherein:
the second process is a thermoset process selected from the group consisting of reactive injection molding, structural reactive injection molding, resin transfer molding, vacuum-assisted resin transfer molding, reactive long fiber injection molding, reactive sheet molding compound, and reactive bulk molding compound,
polymerizing the second thermoplastic resin solution occurs during contact with the first glass-reinforced component, and
the second polymer-containing component surrounds the first glass-reinforced component.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first particle reinforced component comprises a polyamide.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second polymer-containing component comprises polybutylene terephthalate.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein the second polymer-containing component comprises polybutylene terephthalate.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein forming the first particle-reinforced component further comprises injecting a foam into the mold.

13. The method of claim 8 , wherein forming the first glass-reinforced component further comprises injecting a foam into a mold.

14. The method of claim 7 , wherein the reinforcing fibers or flakes are not sized with a polymerization initiator.

Assignees

• Tadepalli Rajappa
• Gleich Klaus Friedrich
• Asrar Jawed
• Shooshtari Kiarash Alavi
• Johns Manville

Inventors

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

Classifications

• B29K2105/0002

  monomers or prepolymers · CPC title

• B29C67/246 Primary

  Moulding high reactive monomers or prepolymers, e.g. by reaction injection moulding [RIM], liquid injection moulding [LIM] (casting monomers B29C39/006, mixing construction B29B7/74) · CPC title

• C08G69/08 Primary

  derived from amino-carboxylic acids · CPC title

• B29K2067/006

  PBT, i.e. polybutylene terephthalate · CPC title

• B29K2105/12

  of short lengths, e.g. chopped filaments, staple fibres or bristles · CPC title