Ensinger, which produces composite materials, has added three new materials to its industrial continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic sheet. According to the company, this board is suitable for applications where mechanical requirements for unreinforced or short-fiber-reinforced plastic blanks are too high, while continuous fiber reinforcement can provide mechanical properties similar to metal materials at a lighter weight. Ensinger reported that due to the use of thermoplastic matrix materials, these plates also have high impact strength, constant characteristics over a wide temperature range, chemical resistance and high elongation at break.
The new material is TECATEC carbon fiber reinforced polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) CW50 black, which has improved temperature resistance and chemical resistance and dimensional stability in a wide range of temperature and humidity; TECATEC natural glass fiber reinforced polyetherimide ( PEI) GW50, with continuous use temperature of 170°C, good electrical insulation and spallation, smoke and toxicity delay (FST); TECATEC carbon fiber reinforced polycarbonate (PC) CW50 black has a transparent matrix and high impact toughness.
The density of the new composite board is between 1.5 and 1.8 g/cm3, and the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) is around 5×10-6 K-1. They can also be produced according to custom requirements, with a maximum size of 525 x 625 mm and a thickness between 0.5 and 95 mm.
Ensinger said that the board is suitable for the aerospace industry, mechanical engineering, automotive industry and sports equipment, as well as prototype and small batch manufacturing.