- Continuous fiber-reinforced polycarbonate composites
- Alternative to aluminum, magnesium & injection-molding materials
- Extremely stiff, ease of processing
- To be presented at #NPE2015 & #JECEurope2015
Bond Laminates GmbH, a subsidiary of Lanxess, has expanded its Tepex range of continuous-fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites to include halogen-free flame-retardant versions with a polycarbonate matrix.
Major feature: high flame retardance
The new Tepex FR grades demonstrate high flame retardance in tests to fire safety standard UL 94 of the U.S. testing organization Underwriter Laboratories. They achieved the top V0 classification on UL’s Yellow Card at specimen thicknesses between 0.4 and 2 millimeters.
Very high stiffness and strength
Tepex FR is supplied primarily in thicknesses of between 0.5 and 1.2 millimeters. Variations are available with glass, carbon or glass/carbon fiber reinforcement. The fiber volume content lies between 45 and 55 percent. The composite sheets exhibit very good mechanical properties. For example, the flexural modulus of the carbon-reinforced grades lies between 40 and 54 GPa depending on the fiber content, and the modules of the glass-fiber-reinforced grades between 20 and 24 GPa (DIN EN ISO 178).
Alternative to aluminum, magnesium & injection-molding materials
Their mechanical properties, low weight and ease of processing make these new composites especially suitable for the production of large, thin-walled and extremely stiff housing parts such as those used for notebooks, tablets and TV sets. They are simpler to produce and require less process engineering than aluminum and magnesium. And compared to injection-molded component designs, Tepex can be used to produce thinner walls so that housings need less installation space.
