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- Hartwell, SC
New Thermoplastic fiber matches fiberglass
(Thursday, December 14th, 2006)
New thermoplastic fiber matches fiberglass strength at one third density
Innegrity (Greer, S.C.) has announced the development of INNEGRA, a high-modulus polypropylene (HMPP) fiber, which has a specific tensile strength and modulus similar to fiberglass, but at a much lower density, while offering dramatic toughness and dielectric advantages.
Polypropylene has long been pursued as a structural fiber for composites due to its low density and excellent chemical and dielectric properties. However, there have always been significant processing issues that either reduced properties or made cost unreasonable. Innegrity is a small start-up company, founded by Dr. Brian Morin, who developed the fiber along with several partners after leaving the research division of Milliken & Co.
After three years, the result is the patented (US 7,074,483) INNEGRA fiber, which has a specific modulus and tensile strength close to fiberglass, and a density of 0.9 g/cm3, as well as toughness twice that of Kevlar and a dielectric constant one third that of fiberglass. The cost is higher than fiberglass, but much lower than Kevlar and carbon. Innegrity is producing fiber on its first production line, with a capacity of 1 million lb per year. It expects to add up to two additional lines within the next two years. Because of the density difference, the ultimate properties are achieved in hybrid composites using INNEGRA in conjunction with glass, Kevlar, or carbon. In a glass composite with 50% INNEGRA by volume, a 30% composite weight reduction can be achieved over the composite using glass alone, with similar physical properties.
There are currently two INNEGRA fiber types being developed: INNEGRA S, optimized for strength, and INNEGRA E, optimized for low-dielectric properties valuable in high-frequency circuit board substrates. Innegrity has been awarded two Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I projects: “Tri-Band Radome Design for Airborne Antennas” funded by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and “High-Strength Low-Cost Polymer Fibers for Protective Clothing and Equipment, Shelters and Airdrop Equipment,” funded by the U.S. Army Natick lab (Natick, Mass.). Thus, the military has already seen the potential benefits of INNEGRA fibers in composite ballistic armor and radome applications.
As Dr. Morin explains, “We see INNEGRA offering two potential benefits: reducing the cost of carbon fiber or Kevlar reinforcement at the same stiffness, or reducing the composite density by almost 50 percent by using in combination with fiberglass.”
(Thursday, December 14th, 2006)
New thermoplastic fiber matches fiberglass strength at one third density
Innegrity (Greer, S.C.) has announced the development of INNEGRA, a high-modulus polypropylene (HMPP) fiber, which has a specific tensile strength and modulus similar to fiberglass, but at a much lower density, while offering dramatic toughness and dielectric advantages.
Polypropylene has long been pursued as a structural fiber for composites due to its low density and excellent chemical and dielectric properties. However, there have always been significant processing issues that either reduced properties or made cost unreasonable. Innegrity is a small start-up company, founded by Dr. Brian Morin, who developed the fiber along with several partners after leaving the research division of Milliken & Co.
After three years, the result is the patented (US 7,074,483) INNEGRA fiber, which has a specific modulus and tensile strength close to fiberglass, and a density of 0.9 g/cm3, as well as toughness twice that of Kevlar and a dielectric constant one third that of fiberglass. The cost is higher than fiberglass, but much lower than Kevlar and carbon. Innegrity is producing fiber on its first production line, with a capacity of 1 million lb per year. It expects to add up to two additional lines within the next two years. Because of the density difference, the ultimate properties are achieved in hybrid composites using INNEGRA in conjunction with glass, Kevlar, or carbon. In a glass composite with 50% INNEGRA by volume, a 30% composite weight reduction can be achieved over the composite using glass alone, with similar physical properties.
There are currently two INNEGRA fiber types being developed: INNEGRA S, optimized for strength, and INNEGRA E, optimized for low-dielectric properties valuable in high-frequency circuit board substrates. Innegrity has been awarded two Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I projects: “Tri-Band Radome Design for Airborne Antennas” funded by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory and “High-Strength Low-Cost Polymer Fibers for Protective Clothing and Equipment, Shelters and Airdrop Equipment,” funded by the U.S. Army Natick lab (Natick, Mass.). Thus, the military has already seen the potential benefits of INNEGRA fibers in composite ballistic armor and radome applications.
As Dr. Morin explains, “We see INNEGRA offering two potential benefits: reducing the cost of carbon fiber or Kevlar reinforcement at the same stiffness, or reducing the composite density by almost 50 percent by using in combination with fiberglass.”
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