Structural Composites Light Weighting Formulation Development for Carbon Fiber SMC and Prepreg

Opportunities in Automotive Components

Key SMC, BMC, and Prepreg ProjectsJim Bono- R&D US, Durham, High Temperature

SPE 2018 Thermoset Topical Conference - TOPCON

February 2018

• Market Outlook

• Applications and Processes for Advanced Composites

• Comparison of Processes

• CF Prepreg Materials

• CF Wet Press Molding

• HP-RTM CF

• CF/FG SMC Development

• Conclusions

Outline

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3

Growth of Light Weighting Materials in Automotive

4

• Today- MaterialBreakdown- wt fraction• 2015vs.2030Growthoflightweightingmaterials

Materials for Light Weighting

5

BMW Carbon Fiber Composite Applications

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Tensile Performance of Carbon Fiber Laminates

7Tensile Modulus (G Pa)

Tens

ile S

treng

th (M

Pa)

20050 6055 65 70

400

1,000

600

800

UDPrepreg

FabricPrepreg

HPRTM

WetPress

CFSMC12K

Part Weight Increases

Composite Fabrication Process SummaryHP-RTM Wet Process Prepreg SMC

Part Weight Lightest Heaviest

Part Cost Lowest

Lowest Costper Kg Saved Roof Rails Center Tunnel /

Rocker Panels B-Pillar Rear Package Shelf

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Automotive Applications Polylite® HS Prepreg Applications

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• Joint development with Reichhold under a collaboration agreement

• Creation of a novel Polylite® HS chemistry platform

• Step-change for composites chemistry landscape

&

Product Development Objectives

• Very short cycle times• Enable robotic handling of materials

for part manufacture• Eliminate the need for freezers

• Materials suited for structural parts

SolvaLiteTM 730:Next generation prepreg

Fast cureLow TackStorage StableGood Mechanicals

Lower Total Cost of Ownership

Product Overview and Value Proposition

Fast-curing: 180 seconds at 150°C60 seconds at 170°C

Key Properties Benefits

Ideal for high volume applications - 150K complex structural parts

Low tack Automation

Storage stable at room temperature for 6 months

Potential for improved durability

Tg of 130°C (DMA E’ onset) Components are hot demoldable

Lower enthalpy Manufacture of thick parts without risk of exotherm

Exceptional toughness

No freezer No defrosting timeNo temperature controlled transport

Enhanced mold release Processability/takt time

One Minute Cure Capability

Fast Cure confirmed by Dielectric Analysis (DEA)

DEA sensor embedded into the compression mold tool to make direct measurements during the cure.

Robust thermal and mechanical properties after fast processing

Characteristic

Polylite HS35500-00 50K Tow

Carbon FIber

Polylite HS35051-00 24K Tow

Carbon Fiber

Epoxy Control50K Tow

Carbon FiberFlex Strength- 0°(MPa) 1,827 1,531 1,695Flex Modulus- 0°(GPa) 122.0 114 131.4Flex Strength- 90°(MPa) 69 85Flex Modulus- 90°(GPa) 9,1 8.8Tensile Strength- 0°(MPa) 2,149 1,979 1,962Tensile Modulus- 0°(GPa) 129.0 133 156.0Tensile Strength- 90°(MPa) 40.8 51.9Tensile Modulus- 90°(GPa) 11.0 9.8Interlaminar Short Beam Strength(MPa) 107.1 90.5 94.9

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Prepreg Unidirectional Polylite HS Hot Melt Vinyl Hybrid

Vinyl Hybrid andEpoxy Have SimilarMechanical PerformanceOn Carbon Fiber

Chevy Spark Composite Electrical Battery Tray

Automotive Applications of Vinyl Hybrids

Automotive Applications CF Wet Press/ HP-RTM Applications

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Automotive Cycle Productivity

Assumptions:7 hr shift (1 hr breaks), 3 shifts per day, 5 day work week, 50 weeks per year85% Overall Equipment Efficiency

Can be obtained simultaneously

Target–SnapCureDefinition

Wet Press Mechanical Properties (Carbon Fiber)

Polylite HS EpoxyFiber Volume Fraction

47 47

Tensile Modulus, GPa

64.1 55.0

Tensile Strength, MPa

642.7 690.0

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Automotive Applications of Vinyl HybridsChevrolet Corvette Composite FloorboardSandwich Construction:• Glass Mat/Plastic Foam Core• Polylite HS – Liquid Vinyl Hybrid Resin• Process: Wet Process with heated steel tool

Polylite HS HP-RTM Mechanical Properties (Carbon Fiber)

PolyliteHS Dion9100 Dion31638:31100 Epoxy

ResinChemistry VinylHybrid VinylesterHybrid

Vinylester:Urethane

Epoxy

FiberVolumeFraction 50 50 50 50

Interlaminar ShearStrength,MPa

26.4EpoxySizedCF

55.2VE SizedCF

40.5EpoxySizedCF

50.30VE SizedCF

63.60EpoxySizedCF

60.08VE SizedCF

47.90EpoxySizedCF

47.70VE SizedCF

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Target 90 seconds for cure time meet at multiple initiator loadings and mold temperatures

Polylite HS 35501-00 Vinyl Hybrid Resin –Dielectric Cure Analysis- Initiator Type vs. Mold Temperature

Automotive Applications Carbon Fiber SMC

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CF SMC Based on Polylite® HS Resin Mechanical Properties (12K Tow)

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Property Test Method Units Polylite HSStyrenated

VEFiber %wt ASTM D3171 % 50 50Specific Gravity ASTM D792 g/cm3 1.48 1.42Tensile Strength ASTM D638 MPa 193 220Tensile Modulus ASTM D638 GPa 57 65Flex Strength ASTM D638 MPa 448 586Flex Modulus ASTM D638 GPa 31 52

MoldedTensileandFlexBars

CF SMC Based on Polylite® HS and Dion VER Resin Mechanical Properties (3K Tow)

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Property Test Method Units X4885-70Developmental

ResinStyrenated

Dion VE

Fiber %wt ASTM D3171 % 50 50 50Specific Gravity ASTM D792 g/cm3 1.47 1.42 1.47Tensile Strength ASTM D638 MPa 253.6 317.3 327.5Tensile Modulus ASTM D638 GPa 41.2 42.1 37.2Flex Strength ASTM D638 MPa 420.1 538.8 551.6Flex Modulus ASTM D638 GPa 33.0 36.8 33.8

CutTensileandFlexBars

Thermomechanical Property Retention

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Temperature (°C)

Prop

erty

Ret

entio

n (%

)

Co- molding CF Prepreg: CF SMC

CORE SHELL IMPACT MODIFIER

CSR

• Dissipates Energy –Reduces damaged area

• Crack Terminator – Interlaminar bond & peel strength improvement

• Relieves Inherent Stress during Curing –Dimensional stability & micro crack resistant

Toughening Additives- CSRVE

Toughening Additives- CSRVE

Multi Drop Ball Impact on 3 Plies of E-Glass Mat from 2, 3, 4 and 9 Feet

PolyesterURHybrid CSRVE

VE CTBNVE

100EastCottageAvenue|Carpentersville,IL60110|www.pccrusa.com 31

Typical Tensile Properties of the Various Base Resins

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

9000

10000

11000

12000

13000

0.00 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.10 0.12 0.14

Stress (psi)

Strain (in/in)

Epoxy2CSRVE2

DCPD

StandardVE

Epoxy1CSRVE1

Conclusions• Light weighting is a market need for several segments- including

automotive. CF Advanced composites will play a critical part in material selection decisions by various platforms.

• Polylite HS Vinyl Hybrid styrene free resins meet the cycle time requirements of high volume serial automotive production with cure times as fast as one minute.

• Polylite HS Vinyl Hybrid resins can be used in Prepreg, Wet Compression, HP-RTM and CF SMC applications.

• Polylite HS Vinyl Hybrid resins have similar thermomechanical performance as compared to epoxy resin.

• CSR-VE offers opportunities to improve fracture toughness and increase elongation with minimal effect on overall strength.

• Commercial formulated composite companies have developed and continued to develop commercial products based on the novel Polylite HS resin chemistry.

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Questions?Jim Bono- Polynt US Composites Incjames.bono@polynt.com

Acknowledgements:Solvay CompositesGerald Perrin, Serial Automotive Program DirectorGerald.perrin@solvay.com

IDI Composites InternationalKevin Cahill, kcahill@idicomposites.com

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