07546 STRUCTURAL APPLICATIONS OF REINFORCED THERMOPLASTICS

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Product Number: 51300-07546-SG

ISBN: 07546 2007 CP

Author: Uday K Vaidya & Frank Britt

Publication Date: 2007

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During the last decade, the engineering community has increased the use of thermoplastic matrix composites due to their inherent advantages over traditional thermoset composites. Thermoplastic composites possess several advantages including: high toughness, low cost, short processing cycle times, recycling potential, excellent environmental and chemical resistance and high damage tolerance. Due to these advantages and to the increasing confidence and knowledge of designers and engineers on thermoplastic polymers a new range of applications are being developed for loading conditions and service environments where other materials just cannot perform in an efficient and cost effective manner. Thermoplastic matrix composites have a proven record of quality and success in several automotive applications such as in underbody panels (semi-structural), under the hood components for moderate to high temperature applications and corrosive environments. In this paper, a review of some of the most promising thermoplastic matrix composites for structural applications are presented including some innovative applications for mass transit developed at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) under a federal grant from the Department of Transportation (DOT).