Patent Application
20080145647
The present invention relates generally to composite materials. More particularly, the present invention relates to composite materials impregnated with metallic particulates.
There is a growing interest in composite materials for a wide variety of applications due to their light weight, high strength properties relative to metals. Composites can be engineered through appropriate selection of composite components, such as the reinforcing component and the resin component, to produce engineered materials with desired properties. In general, the reinforcing materials of composites are not good thermal or electrical conductors. Likewise, the resin components are also not good electrical or thermal conductors.
Composites now find increasing application as “skin panels,” for example, in aircraft and in automobiles, where light weight and strength are desirable factors. In aircraft, in particular, the substitution of light weight, high strength composites that meet aircraft specifications for metals generally results in reduced aircraft weight. As a consequence of the weight reduction, aircraft payload may be increased and/or fuel consumption may be reduced. Fuel consumption and payload are perhaps the two most fundamental factors in the economics of air transport.
Composites do, however, have some limitations imposed by their very nature. For example, laminated composites that comprise layers of composite [referred to as “prepregs” when impregnated with a resin] consolidated together, may become delaminated. This may become more apparent when considering
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide composite materials with improved through-composite thermal and though-composite electrical conductivity. In addition, it is desirable that these composite materials have improved resistance to delamination. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.
Exemplary embodiments provide metal-impregnated composite materials. The materials include a reinforcing material of reinforcing fibers, in which the fibers are tightly packed and have discontinuous inter-fiber spaces. In addition, the composite includes metal particulates distributed in at least some of the discontinuous inter-fiber spaces. A polymer encases the reinforcing material and the metal particulates.
Other exemplary embodiments provide methods of making a metal-impregnated composite material. The methods may include selecting plies comprised of a reinforcing material that has tightly packed reinforcing fibers with discontinuous inter-fiber spaces. Polymer and metal particulates are applied to the plies. The polymer and metal particulate-containing plies are concurrently subjected to (1) a magnetic field oriented to facilitate urging the metal particulates into the plies and (2) to vibration forces. Thereafter, the polymer and metal particulate-containing plies are consolidated under heat and pressure.
Various embodiments will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the following drawing figures, wherein like numerals denote like elements throughout the figures.
The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the described embodiments or the application and uses of the described embodiments. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any expressed or implied theory presented in the preceding technical field, background, brief summary or the following detailed description.
While the following will, for the sake of brevity, discuss mainly composite panels made up of several layers, the technology disclosed and described apply as well to other composite material structures.
As explained above, composite materials generally have poor thermal conductivity in a direction “through the composite” as illustrated by arrows 35 in
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment, fine metal particulates are introduced into composite materials during the manufacturing process to produce a composite that has an improved through-composite thermal conductivity coefficient. In general, the through-composite thermal conductivity coefficient improves significantly, by an order of magnitude or more. Improvement in thermal conductivity coefficient depends upon a variety of factors, including the fiber volume fraction and the type of fiber. Accordingly, the range of improvement may vary widely from one composite to another type of composite. Nonetheless, assuming that a composite with a fiber volume fraction of 45-55%, and a typical non graphitic pitch-based carbon fiber, then without metallic particle inclusion the composite may have a thermal conductivity coefficient of about 0.1-0.2 W/mK. With metallic particle inclusion, the thermal conductivity coefficient would be expected to be in the range from about 0.5 to about 1.0 W/mK.
In composite plies the reinforcing fibers may be selected from a variety of materials commercially available reinforcing fibers, such as carbon fiber, fiber glass, and the like, without limitation. In general, these reinforcing fibers are tightly packed together so that adjacent fibers are in contact with each other along major portions of their respective fiber lengths. While a ply might have a volume percent of fiber of 60%, reflecting 40% void space, the inter-fiber spaces between reinforcing fibers are nonetheless small and discontinuous through the thickness of the ply.
Typically, during composite consolidation, the polymer component penetrates between fibers in the ply by flowing under the heat and pressure that is applied to consolidate multiple plies into a laminated composite structure. Insertion of fine solids into the interstitial spaces between fibers is much more difficult than insertion of a fluid like molten polymer because fine particulates do not flow like a molten polymer under polymer flow to carry particulates into the interstitial spaces have not proven useful. More often than not, the particulates remain as a residue on or near the consolidated composite's surface.
Organic polymers may be selected from a wide variety that provide the composite with desired properties and that are compatible with the reinforcing material. Commonly used organic polymers include the phenolic polymers, epoxy polymers, and the like without limitation.
According to an exemplary embodiment, external forces are applied during composite manufacture to urge or draw down metal particulates into the spaces between plies. These forces include a combination of magnetic forces and physical vibration forces applied concurrently to the substrate to which the metal particulates have been added. In this embodiment, the metal particulates may be selected from any metal that has both a susceptibility to magnetism as well as a coefficient of thermal conductivity suitable for achieving the desired through-composite thermal conductivity in the composite at the metal particle dose amount. Since many magnetism-susceptible metals tend to be electrically conductive, at least much more so than composite materials, the addition of metal particulates also significantly improves the through-composite electrical conductivity of the composite.
The metal particulates may be selected from the magnetism susceptible metals such as nickel, nickel alloys, iron and alloys of iron (steels), cobalt, cobalt alloys, and the like without limitation. The particles may also be more thermally conductive composite materials, comprised for example, of particles that have a metallic layer over an inorganic particle, and the like without limitation. In addition the metal particulates are desirably fine to facilitate infiltration into inter-fiber spaces in plies. In one embodiment, where the plies are carbon fiber the metal particulates may be nickel, sized in the range from about 1 nm to about 100 microns. Particles of particular utility have high aspect ratio, such as nickel nanorods. Typical nickel nanorods have a diameter of 25-250 nm and length of 10-100 microns. High aspect ratio enables a large increase in thermal conduction for a small volume fraction of the particles. For example, 20 volume % of 3 micron diameter nickel particles in the polymer phase result in the same increase in thermal conductivity as 2 volume % of nickel nanorods. Of course, depending upon the specific distribution of inter-fiber space size, other sizes of metal particulates that fit within the inter-fiber spaces are also useful. For ease of infiltration into inter-fiber spaces and distribution of metal particulates throughout the consolidated composite, the metal particulates may be in the nano-scale size range, but larger sizes may be also be useful. These sizes range from about 1 nm to about 1 micron. A commercial example of such a nano-sized metallic powder is HTA-1™ nickel nanoplatelets manufactured by Inconel Inc., which is nano-sized nickel.
The strength of the magnetic field applied to draw the metal particulates into inter-fiber spaces will vary depending upon the susceptibility of the metal to magnetism. For example, for nano-sized nickel particulates, the field strength may be in the range about 20 Gauss to about 100,000 Gauss, more typically about 200 Gauss to about 300,000 Gauss. The field strength may be adjusted as necessary to account for the particular metal, ply density, inter-fiber space size, and the viscosity of the molten polymer during consolidation processing, and other factors that influence particle mobility into the pre-consolidated lay-up.
It is theorized without being bound that while the magnetic field provides an urging force on metal particulates pulling them into the inter-fiber spaces, the concurrently applied vibration forces cause particle mobility that facilitate entry into inter-fiber spaces. The vibration is typically applied using a ultrasonic bath or ultrasonic horns. The amplitude of this vibration may be specified by the volume specific power input of the ultrasonicator. Typically the applied power is in the range from about 5 W/liter to about 750 W/liter.
Referring to
After application of polymer and particulates, a magnetic field and vibration forces are applied in step 130. When magnetic and vibration forces have been applied for a time sufficient to distribute metal particulates substantially throughout the lay-up, the lay-up is consolidated under heat and pressure in step 140. Generally, the magnetic field and vibration forces of step 130 are applied for about 5 minutes to about 4 hours to achieve good distribution of metal particulates. The consolidation step 140 is not significantly different from consolidation of a composite without metal particulate impregnation. The fastest infiltration of particulates is achieved by periodically turning the magnetic field off, and keeping the sonication continuously on. The magnetic field may cause aggregation of the magnetic particles in addition to forcing the particles into the plies. To the extent the magnetic field causes aggregation of particles, these aggregates are not readily infiltrated into the plies due to size. Turning the magnetic field off while maintaining sonication, allows aggregated particles to disperse, and the dispersed particles to infiltrate in the following cycle when the magnetic field is turned back on. Typically the magnetic field is kept on for 5 minutes and turned off for 5 minutes.
After consolidation, the process ends in step 150 with the consolidated composite being subjected to the usual post-consolidation processes such as, removal of flash, inspection for surface defects, and others known in the art.
The metal-particulate impregnated composites may be machined much like other composites lacking metal particulates. The metal particulates generally will not result in significantly increased tool wear.
While at least one exemplary embodiment has been presented in the foregoing detailed description, it should be appreciated that a large number of variations exist. It should also be appreciated that the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments are only examples, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the described embodiments in any way. Rather, the foregoing detailed description will provide those skilled in the art with a convenient road map for implementing the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that various changes can be made in the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the scope as set forth in the appended claims and the legal equivalents thereof.
This application claims priority from provisional application U.S. Ser. No. 60/869,884, filed on Dec. 13, 2006.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60869884 | Dec 2006 | US |
