Materials make a difference

3M Adhesive Div. introduced a 350F-curing prepreg, Scotchply(TM) SP510, that enhances the company's PR 500 RTM (resin transfer molding) material by improving unidirectional compression properties. It comes in carbon and glass reinforcement for use in primary and secondary structural applications (M) ...A&P Technology announced two products: broad goods-unidirectional triaxial braided reinforcement, and CONNEX(TM) net-shaped braids for threaded connections (M) ...Advanced Composites Group debuted a new range of resin systems for RTM, VARTM, and related processes with transfer and cure temperatures as low as 95 and 150F, respectively, and new uncured silicone elastomers in calendared sheet form, LTE16-70T and LTE16-40B, for composite tooling and processing applications (M) ..Airtech Advanced Materials Group unveiled its Stretchion 800 vacuum bagging film that "never becomes brittle, even under low humidity conditions" (M) ...Akzo Nobel Fortafil Fibers displayed the "next generation" of heavy-tow carbon fiber said to be the new performance standard for commercial structural applications (M) ...Aldila Materials Technology showed its new Type A430-46K line of carbon fiber, chopped carbon fiber, and carbon-fiber prepreg high-strength PAN-based materials supplied as a sized 46K filament tow treated to improve bond strength (M) ...Ciba Specialty Chemicals introduced two cyanate ester resins for high-performance aerospace and electronics applications, XU 71787.02 and XU 7187.07, that exhibit "excellent moisture resistance, dimensional stability, and strong thermal performance;" the Aradite(reg) PZ 3781 water-based epoxy thermoset resin system for fiberglass sizing; and a soon-to-be-commercialized hardener/accelerator with a greater latency period (M) ...Courtaulds Aerospace highlighted its Desothane(reg) HS second-generation polyurethane and anti-chafe topcoats that feature low viscosity, long wet edge, and low sensitivity to humidity, and its Sempen(TM) applicators for the convenient storage, mixing, and application of pre-measured, multi-component coating materials (M) ...Culver City Composites announced PETI-5, a high-temperature resin now available in limited quantities for NASA's High Speed Civil Transport Program (M) ...Diamonex Performance Products featured its Diamonshield line of diamond-like carbon and super-hard coatings for soft substrates (M) ...Exceed Composite Technology introduced its Hi-temp cyanate epoxies and resins for up to 800F service temperatures (M) ...General Plastics Mfg. spotlighted its economical FR-7 Series foams for low-temperature, less-critical applications, and FR-3000 Series foams for high-temperature applications (M) ...Hexcel Composites featured its Hexceramic(TM) high-temperature, industrial ceramic prepreg with alumina-filled ceramic precursor resin/aluminosilicate fibers that cure into a crosslinked thermoset system (M) ...JPS Glass and Industrial Fabrics announced the development of a direct-size yarn that will make filament winding available in the same finishes as woven fabric (M) ...National Nonwovens unveiled its Composite Structural Core and processing technology that aligns the fibers to produce a rigid, uniform core with thermal and acoustical insulation (M) ..Quantum Composites introduced its QC-2130 phenolic sheet molding compound (SMC) with low flammability properties for aircraft and public transportation applications (M) ...Richmond Aircraft Products debuted VACPAK(reg) A6200, a fluoropolymer release film for use with epoxies, phenolics, polyesters, BMIs, and other resin systems, and Rohacell(reg) XT high-temperature (450F/232C) structural PMI foam for sandwich cores (M) ...RogersCorp. introduced an extended range of high-performance PORON(reg) silicone and urethane materials for special gasket, seal, and vibration-damping applications (M) ...SIA Adhesives announced a new line of water based nitrile phenolic primers that will hit the marketplace this month (M) ...Trans Western Chemical displayed its Tufpoxy(TM) rubber-modified epoxy that features a rapid-curing anhydride with long pot life, and Tufpoximide(TM) rubber-modified epoxy-polyimide with a glass transition temperature as high as 600F (M) ...And Zeon Chemicals an-nounced it will debut sometime this fall a line of elastomers "functionalized" with carboxylic acid groups for unidirectional prepreg systems. Both liquid and particulate epoxy functionalized modifier are incorporated into a base epoxy system, requiring no pre-reaction, and impregnated into unidirectional carbom fibers. Results show the modifiers significantly reduce formulating time and materials (M).