A high-quality carbon composite tape made with Fortron® polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) engineering thermoplastic from Ticona Engineering Polymers is adding strength and taking the weight out of braided fabrics preforms manufactured by A&P Technology Inc. for advanced aircraft interior applications. Ticona is highlighting this novel thermoplastic composite preform next week at the SAMPE '09 exhibition (Booth #834) in Baltimore. A&P Technology, a world-leading producer of precision braided textiles based in Cincinnati, worked with Ticona and a manufacturer of thermoplastic composite tapes to develop this new high-quality Fortron PPS-based carbon reinforced preform. It was developed for an advanced aircraft interior application that required a preform, which could be fabricated into specific shapes and consolidated into unique final shapes. They opted to use an engineering thermoplastic instead of a thermoset plastic for two reasons.
Firstly, the company said Fortron linear PPS was selected because it can be easily manufactured into tape with carbon, glass and other reinforcements, while offering processing and eco-friendly benefits. Secondly, Fortron PPS was said to be perfectly suited thermoplastic for use with rapid manufacturing processing, where parts need to be molded in a few minutes instead of the lengthier times required with a thermoset. In addition, it is recyclable, needs much less energy to process and contains no volatile organic compounds, unlike thermosets. Fortron linear PPS is a semi-crystalline polymer with key features:
-- Exceptional high temperature performance to temperatures up to 240 degrees Celsius.
-- Outstanding resistance to aircraft and automotive fuels, oils, solvents and anti-icing agents.
-- Excellent hardness, stiffness and dimensional stability.
-- Inherently flame-resistant - meets flame, smoke and toxicity (FST) requirements for aircraft interiors.
20-May-09 
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