Method of Manufacturing Structural, Optically Transparent Glass Fiber-Reinforced Polymers (tGFRP) Using Infusion...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Polymer Science
• Composite Materials

Background:

• Producing optically transparent fiber-reinforced composites is challenging due to requirements for smooth molds, controlled resin flow, and matched refractive indices.
• Standard resin transfer molding (RTM) often struggles to meet these stringent demands, leading to voids and optical imperfections.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate a new mold design for producing optically transparent glass fiber-reinforced polymers (tGFRP) using RTM.
• To assess the mechanical, microstructural, thermal, and optical properties of the manufactured tGFRP samples.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a novel Optical-RTM setup with a new mold design for in situ polymerization of an epoxy resin system with E-glass fiber textiles.
• Evaluated properties including flexural modulus, fiber volume fraction, surface roughness, thermal stability (DSC, TGA), and optical transmission spectra.

Main Results:

• The new Optical-RTM setup produced tGFRP with improved surface quality and no detectable voids compared to standard RTM.
• Achieved a maximum optical transmission of approximately 74% and a flexural modulus of 23.49 ± 0.64 GPa for samples with ≈42% fiber volume fraction.

Conclusions:

• The developed Optical-RTM process is effective for manufacturing high-quality, optically transparent fiber-reinforced composites with reproducible properties.
• This method offers a viable solution for applications requiring structural integrity combined with optical transparency.