Vacuum Infusion for High Filler Loading FRP Panels
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vacuum infusion processes struggle to achieve high filler loadings of flame-retardant fillers in fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) laminates due to filler filtration and clogging issues with fiber reinforcements.
Innovation Solution
The method involves pre-treating dry fiber reinforcement with a polymer binder and spreading large-sized flame-retardant fillers over the binder, forming a dry stack. An unfilled polymer resin with low viscosity is then infused into the dry stack using a vacuum infusion process, allowing the resin to flow around the fillers without displacing them.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If conventional vacuum infusion process is used with filled resin, then resin can be infused into fiber reinforcement, but filler filtration and clogging occur preventing high filler loadings
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-mixing fillers with resin to create filled resin before the infusion process. This pre-mixing ensures uniform filler distribution within the resin matrix before it contacts the fiber reinforcement, preventing filler filtration and clogging during infusion. The filled resin is then infused into the dry fiber reinforcement using vacuum pressure, achieving high filler loadings (up to 500 phr) while maintaining uniform filler distribution throughout the laminate.
2Ease of manufacture
If excess resin is used in hand lay-up, then fiber reinforcement can be fully wetted, but fiber-to-resin ratio deteriorates and product strength decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the conventional approach by using vacuum pressure to draw resin into the fiber reinforcement rather than relying on gravity and manual manipulation. The vacuum infusion process applies negative pressure to pull the filled resin through the fiber mat, ensuring complete and uniform wetting of all fibers while precisely controlling the resin quantity. This inversion of the wetting mechanism eliminates excess resin accumulation and achieves optimal fiber-to-resin ratios, thereby maximizing composite strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs pneumatic principles by using vacuum pressure to drive the resin infusion process. A vacuum pump creates a pressure differential that draws the filled resin through the fiber reinforcement uniformly. This pneumatic control allows precise regulation of resin flow rate and penetration depth, ensuring complete fiber wetting without excess resin. The vacuum pressure also helps distribute fillers uniformly throughout the resin and prevents air entrapment, leading to high-quality laminates with optimized fiber-to-resin ratios and enhanced mechanical properties.
3Strength
If vacuum bagging is used to remove excess resin, then fiber-to-resin ratio improves, but process complexity increases and additional problems arise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the filler removal step from the resin infusion process. By pre-mixing fillers with resin before infusion, the fillers are already incorporated into the resin matrix and are transported together during infusion. This eliminates the need for separate filler addition steps after resin infusion and removes the need for vacuum bagging to remove excess fillers. The process achieves high filler loadings (up to 500 phr) directly during infusion, simplifying the overall manufacturing process while maintaining optimal fiber-to-resin ratios.
4Strength
If minimum resin is introduced in vacuum infusion, then weight decreases and strength increases, but achieving high filler loading becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges fillers and resin into a single filled resin mixture before the infusion process. By combining fillers uniformly distributed within the resin matrix prior to infusion, the process enables simultaneous introduction of both resin and fillers in controlled proportions. This merging allows the vacuum infusion process to achieve high filler loadings (up to 500 phr) while maintaining minimum resin content, as the fillers are already incorporated into the resin and are infused together in a single step. The result is lightweight, high-strength laminates with high filler loadings and uniform filler distribution.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach enables the fabrication of FRP panels with filler loadings up to 500 parts per hundred parts of infused resin (phr), achieving uniform filler distribution and higher density laminates with enhanced fire resistance.
Implementation Method 1
The vacuum infusion process uses vacuum pressure to drive a polymer resin into a dry fiberglass, which is placed into a mold
Implementation Method 2
Once the vacuum is achieved, the polymer resin can be allowed to bleed into or suck into the space of the dry fiberglass and can gradually infuse the dry fiberglass with the resin
Implementation Method 3
pre-treating fiber reinforcement with a polymer binder
Implementation Method 4
An unfilled polymer resin with low viscosity is then infused into the dry stack using a vacuum infusion process, allowing the resin to flow around the fillers without displacing them
Implementation Method 5
forming a fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) laminate including the fiber reinforcement and fillers embedded within a polymer matrix formed from the polymer resin
Data Source
AI summary
A method is provided for fabricating fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) panels filled with flame-retardant fillers. The method may include pre-treating fiber reinforcement with a polymer binder, spreading fillers of a selected size over the polymer binder, and forming a dry stack including the fiber reinforcement and the fillers. The method may also include infusing a polymer resin into the dry stack using a vacuum infusion process and forming a fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) laminate including the fiber reinforcement and substantially uniformly distributed fillers embedded within a polymer matrix formed from the polymer resin, the fillers having a filler loading of at least 70 parts per hundred parts of infused resin (phr).