General Introduction
Pultrusion Process
Pultrusion is a manufacturing process for producing continuous lengths of reinforced polymer structural shapes with constant cross-sections. Raw materials are a liquid resin mixture (containing resin, fillers and specialized additives) and flexible textile reinforcing fibers. The process involves pulling these raw materials (rather than pushing, as is the case in extrusion) through a heated steel forming die using a continuous pulling device.
The reinforcement materials are in continuous forms such as rolls of fiberglass mat and doffs of fiberglass roving. As the reinforcements are saturated with the resin mixture (“wet-out”) in the resin bath and pulled through the die, the gelation, or hardening, of the resin is initiated by the heat from the die and a rigid, cured profile is formed that corresponds to the shape of the die.
While pultrusion machine design varies with part geometry, the basic pultrusion process concept is described in the schematic shown below.
Molding Process
Fiberglass molding is a process in which fiberglass reinforced resin plastics are formed into useful shapes. The process usually involves first making a mold and then using the mold to make the fiberglass component.
Lamination Process
Lamination is the technique/process of manufacturing a material in multiple layers, so that the composite material achieves improved strength, stability, sound insulation, appearance, or other properties from the use of the differing materials, such as plastic. A laminate is a permanently assembled object created using heat, pressure, welding, or adhesives.[1] Various coating machines, machine presses and calendering equipment are used.
Raw Material Inspection
Fiber Fatigue Test Monitoring System
In the various application fields of glass fiber composite materials, there are countless safety accidents caused by brittle fracture. For example, the F11 aircraft in the United States only flew for 100 hours (far below its safe life), because the small expansion of the initial defect caused brittle fracture, which caused the wing to undergo a physical accident. Therefore, fatigue testing of glass fiber composite materials is an indispensable step before these materials are put into service.
Although glass fiber composite materials have the advantage of high strength, their toughness is relatively low. The fatigue test is an experiment in which a special glass plate is pulled by a machine to test its characteristics. LEADFRP has independently developed a visual monitoring system for fatigue testing of glass fiber composite materials.
Resin Performance Inspection
- Test items of resin physical properties: apparent density, light transmittance, haze, yellow index, whiteness, expansion ratio, water content, acidity and hardness
- Resin combustion performance test items: vertical combustion, ignition temperature, oxygen index, horizontal combustion, hot rod
- Resin thermal performance test items: heat distortion temperature, thermal decomposition temperature, Vicat softening point, high and low temperature impact, glass transition temperature, melting temperature
- Resin suitability test items: conductivity, corrosion resistance, low temperature resistance, hydraulic resistance, insulation performance, moisture permeability
Lab Management System
Production Machines
Resin Mixer with automation and control systems
Mixed Resin Distribution Systems (between Resin Tank and production line)
Pultrusion Machine
Molding Machine
Drilling and Cutting with automation and control systems
Automatic Coating Spray Booth
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