Applicants: Koen DE ROEVE & Johny HERMANS (BE) & Jan VERHAEGHE (BE)
Inventors: Jan VERHAEGHE & Uwe BUELTJER
Patent application number: WO2022/009185 A1
Challenge
Composite elements are used to replace traditional materials such as glass, steel, aluminium, and wood. The combination of fibres with a plastic material, can provide a lightweight yet very strong and stiff material.
Lamination and welding are joining techniques consuming quite a lot of energy. They are preferably used to join two of the same materials. The heating of materials is not appropriate for temperature-sensitive materials. There is a risk of carbonizing materials. When gluing, a material is used which is sticking or adhering to the materials to join (not heated). However, panels made of a foamed core between two fibre-reinforced plastic layers, have delamination problems at mechanical load. In aircraft construction, glued panels are not accepted. Therefore, there is a need for alternatives and improvements. The invention aims to offer an energy-efficient process.
Solution
The patented method is an economically relevant process that can be deployed on a large scale to make a composite element with improved resistance to delamination without losing strength or lightweight.
The principle is to apply a flexible thermoplastic layer between two or more layers of thermoplastic materials. The way of joining and building up the structure leads to an improved resistance to delamination of the multi-layered structure.
The chemical compounds ensure that the different layers are connected to each other.
The method is advantageous in composite elements in the form of a panel, especially in multi-layered structures comprising several panels.
Composite panels constructed in this way are especially useful in applications where they are subject to both static and dynamic loads, such as in transport applications.