JP5814964B2 - Prepreg manufacturing apparatus and prepreg manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a prepreg manufacturing apparatus and a prepreg manufacturing method for manufacturing a prepreg by attaching resin powder to a sheet-like fiber substrate or a linear fiber substrate such as a carbon fiber woven fabric or a UD tape.

Conventionally, prepregs have been made by heat and pressure molding after impregnating a sheet-like fiber base material with resin, but in the manufacturing process, a large amount of resin is impregnated from the sheet-like fiber base material and the uniformity of the resin. The use of these solvents has caused air pollution and global warming.
Therefore, a method for producing a prepreg by using a resin powder and making it adhere to a sheet-like fiber base so as not to use a large amount of solvent is disclosed (for example, see Patent Document 1 and Non-Patent Document 1). .

  An example of a method for producing a prepreg by attaching resin powder to a fiber base material is a dry powder coating method. In this method, dry powder (resin powder) is attached to a fiber base material, and then heated in the next step to melt and impregnate the powder. For example, while applying static electricity to dry powder (resin powder) After spraying and adhering to the fiber base, heat melt impregnation in an oven, or dry powder (resin powder) dispersed in a fluidized bed is attached to the fiber base and heat melt impregnation in the oven It has been known.

US Pat. No. 5,618,367

“2007 Survey Report on Application of Thermoplastic Resin Composite Materials to the Machine Industry Field” Page 17 and 18 Published: March 2008, Publisher: Japan Machinery Federation and Foundation Next Generation Metal and Composite Materials Research and Development Association, [online], [Search on February 25, 2013], Internet (URL: http://sokeizai.or.jp/japanese/rimcof/images/nikkiren_19.pdf)

However, in the dry powder coating method described above, it is difficult to uniformly attach the resin powder to the fiber base material, so that the amount of adhesion is uneven and a stable quality prepreg cannot be manufactured.
Moreover, since the conveyance speed of a fiber base material is also slow, it is difficult to manufacture efficiently.
In particular, if the resin powder dispersed by the fluidized bed method is attached to the fiber base material, it can be attached only to one side of the fiber base material.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to produce a prepreg excellent in quality performance by uniformly and efficiently attaching resin powder to a fiber base material.

In order to achieve the above object, the prepreg production apparatus of the present invention is a prepreg production apparatus for producing a prepreg by attaching a resin powder (18) to a fiber base material (17),
A feeder (1) that mixes the resin powder (18) with air and continuously feeds it in a constant amount, and a chamber (in the shape of a cylinder extending vertically) in which the fiber substrate (17) is disposed along the central axis. 5) and a feeder pipe (1) connected to the rear end side, the front end side extending substantially horizontally and connected to a position shifted radially outward from the central axis on the lower surface of the chamber (5) 25), a charger (21) provided on the supply pipe (25) for charging the resin powder (18) together with air, and an upper surface of the chamber (5) shifted radially outward from the central axis. A discharge pipe (20) connected to a position, and a solid-gas two-phase flow comprising the resin powder (18) and air supplied by the feeder (1) from the supply pipe (25) to the chamber (5) Let the chamber enter In (5), the swirling upward flow (24) and the air supply device (13, 19, 23) to be output from the discharge pipe (20) and the central axis of the chamber (5) are aligned with the central axis. A cylindrical electrode (6) installed in the chamber (5) in the state and a high voltage of the same polarity as the resin powder (18) charged by the charger (21) on the electrode (6) side A high voltage power source (22) that generates a high electric field between the electrode (6) and the fiber base (17) connected to the ground.
The resin powder (18) is attached to the fiber substrate (17) in the chamber (5).

  Moreover, the present invention is characterized in that the fiber base material (17) is a linear member extending vertically along the central axis of the chamber (5).

  Further, according to the present invention, the air supply device (13, 19, 23) is provided on the discharge pipe (20) side, and the resin powder (18) and air are negatively supplied to the supply pipe (25) side. It draws in to the said discharge pipe (20) side through the said chamber (5).

  Further, the present invention is characterized in that a base material conveying device (2, 4, 8) is provided which continuously sends the fiber base material (17) at a constant speed from the lower surface to the upper surface of the chamber (5). And

The prepreg production method of the present invention is a prepreg production method for producing a prepreg by attaching a resin powder (18) to a fiber substrate (17),
Air is mixed with the resin powder (18) continuously supplied in a fixed quantity and taken in from the rear side of the supply pipe (25), and the resin powder (18) is charged together with air in the supply pipe (25). Then, a solid-gas two-phase flow composed of the resin powder (18) and air is formed in a chamber (5) in which the fiber base material (17) is arranged along the central axis in a cylindrical shape extending vertically. The bottom surface of the supply pipe (25) connected to a position shifted radially outward from the central axis on the lower surface is inputted into the chamber (5), and the swirling upward flow (24 ) And the output from the discharge pipe (20) connected to the position shifted radially outward from the central axis on the upper surface of the chamber (5), and the central axis of the chamber (5) coincides with the central axis In the chamber (5) Between the electrode substrate (6) and the fiber substrate (17) grounded by applying a high voltage of the same polarity as the charged resin powder (18) to the cylindrical electrode (6) side placed A high electric field is generated between the resin powder (18) and the fiber base material (17) in the chamber (5).

  Note that symbols in parentheses indicate corresponding elements or corresponding matters described in the drawings and modes for carrying out the invention described later.

  According to the present invention, the supply pipe for feeding the resin powder and the discharge pipe for discharging the resin powder on the lower surface and the upper surface of the cylindrical chamber are connected to each other while being shifted from the central axis of the chamber, and the air supply device is provided. Since the swirling upward flow is generated in the chamber, the resin powder is uniformly dispersed in the chamber. In addition, since the swirling upward flow is generated in the chamber, the time for the resin powder to stay in the chamber becomes longer, so the amount of the resin powder in the chamber is larger than in the case of a simple upward flow. Thus, the amount of adhesion to the fiber substrate also increases.

Further, since a high voltage of the same polarity as that of the resin powder is applied to the cylindrical electrode installed in the chamber, a repulsive force acts between the particles of the pre-charged resin powder, Evenly dispersed.
Since a high electric field is generated between the electrode and the grounded fiber base, the resin powder is directed toward the fiber base disposed along the central axis of the chamber by electrostatic force. Move and stick to the fiber substrate. In the case where a high voltage is not applied between the electrode thus provided and the fiber base material, only a weak attractive force due to mirror image force acts between the resin powder and the fiber base material, so that the resin powder is a fiber. Although the adhesion speed to the substrate is slow and the adhesion force is not strong, in the present invention, a strong attractive force is applied to the resin powder by applying a high voltage between the electrode and the fiber substrate. The adhesion speed of the film increases and becomes firmly fixed.

  Here, the fiber base material may be in the form of a sheet or a line, but since the fiber base material is arranged so as to extend vertically along the central axis of the chamber, the sheet-like fiber base material has resin on both sides. The powder adheres securely, especially in the case of a linear fiber substrate, since the distance from the cylindrical electrode is equal to the entire circumference, the resin powder adheres more uniformly and more firmly, resulting in quality performance An excellent prepreg is provided.

  The air supply device can be provided on either the supply side (supply pipe side) or the discharge side (discharge pipe side) of the resin powder with respect to the chamber. A solid-gas two-phase flow composed of air and air can be easily turned into a swirling upward flow in the chamber.

  In addition, according to the present invention, since the base material transport device for continuously feeding the fiber base material at a constant speed from the lower surface to the upper surface of the chamber is provided, the resin powder is continuously and automatically applied to the fiber base material. Can be attached.

  As in the prepreg manufacturing apparatus and prepreg manufacturing method of the present invention, a solid-gas two-phase flow composed of charged air and resin powder is turned into a swirling upward flow in the chamber, and a cylinder installed in the chamber Patent Document 1 and Non-Patent Document 1 described above completely describe that the resin powder is adhered to the fiber substrate in the chamber by applying a high voltage of the same polarity as that of the resin powder to the electrode side. It has not been.

It is a side view which shows the structure outline | summary of the prepreg manufacturing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a partial cross section top view which shows the connection position of the supply pipe and discharge pipe with respect to the chamber shown in FIG. It is a partial cross section side view which shows the connection position of the supply pipe | tube and discharge pipe | tube with respect to the chamber shown in FIG. It is an expanded sectional view which shows the internal structure of the wind increasing device shown in FIG. It is an expanded sectional view which shows the internal structure of the chamber shown in FIG. It is an expanded sectional view which shows the internal structure of the chamber from which the form differs from what was shown in FIG. It is.

A prepreg manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a prepreg manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 2 to 5 show main parts of the apparatus configuration shown in FIG.

The prepreg manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention is an apparatus that manufactures a prepreg by attaching resin powder 18 to a linear carbon fiber base material 17. As shown in FIG. Feeder 1 that is mixed with air and continuously supplied in quantity, chamber 5 that extends vertically and has carbon fiber substrate 17 disposed therein, feeder 1 is connected to the rear end side, and the front end side is a chamber From the supply pipe 25 connected to the lower surface of the battery 5, the charger 21 provided in the supply pipe 25, the discharge pipe 20 connected to the upper surface of the chamber 5, the resin powder 18 supplied by the feeder 1 and the air An air supply device including a wind increase device 13, an air tube 19, and a compressor 23 that inputs a solid-gas two-phase flow to the chamber 5 from the supply tube 25 and outputs the same from the discharge tube 20. A cylindrical electrode 6, and a high voltage power supply 22 for applying a high voltage between the electrodes 6 and the carbon fiber base material 17.
The resin powder 18 is generally a thermosetting resin, but may be a thermoplastic resin or a natural resin. Moreover, the fiber base material 17 may consist of metal fibers other than carbon fiber type, mineral fibers, glass fibers, or synthetic fibers.

  The feeder 1 for supplying the resin powder 18 is provided on the gantry 16 so that its discharge port is located above the funnel 9 connected to the rear end portion of the supply pipe 25 curved in an approximately L shape. .

  The chamber 5 is provided with a linear carbon fiber base material 17 that is vertically long and extends vertically along a central axis that extends vertically. The carbon fiber base material 17 is continuously fed from the feed reel 2 through the first guide roller 3 to the constant speed feed mechanism 4, and sent from the constant speed feed mechanism 4 to the chamber 5 from the lower surface of the chamber 5 at a constant speed. At the same time, it is discharged from the upper surface of the chamber 5 to the outside of the chamber 5 and taken up by the take-up reel 8 through the second guide roller 7. The feed reel 2, the constant speed feed mechanism 4 and the take-up reel 8 constitute a base material transport device.

The front end side of the supply pipe 25 extends substantially horizontally at a position lower than the rear end side, and a charger 21 that charges the resin powder 18 together with air is provided in the approximate middle of the horizontally extending portion. . The charger 21 charges the resin powder 18 negatively (or may be positive) together with air. For example, “Boxer Charger (BCS-70)” manufactured by Masuda Laboratory Co., Ltd. is used. A high charge amount is given to the resin powder 18.
The front end side of the discharge pipe 20 is connected to the chamber 5, and the rear end side is connected to the drum can 15 via the wind increase device 13.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the inlet portion 10 located on the distal end side of the supply pipe 25 is connected to a lower surface of the chamber 5 at a position shifted radially outward from a central axis extending vertically in the chamber 5. At the same time, the outlet portion 11 located on the distal end side of the discharge pipe 20 is also connected to the upper surface of the chamber 5 at a position shifted radially outward from the central axis extending vertically in the chamber 5. Here, both the supply pipe 25 and the discharge pipe 20 are connected to positions shifted in the same direction radially outward from the central axis of the chamber 5, but are connected in different directions, that is, the connection between the supply pipe 25 and the discharge pipe 20. The positions may be connected so as to be point-symmetric about the central axis in the cross-sectional shape of the chamber 5.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the air increasing device 13 is connected to the compressed air supply port, to which an air tube 19 that conveys compressed air output from the compressor 23 via the regulator 14 is connected. A large amount of solid-gas two-phase flow consisting of resin powder 18 and air discharged from the chamber 5 using compressed air as a power source is sucked (forced intake), and the solid-gas two-phase flow increased with the compressed air is drummed. It discharges toward the 15 side. An air supply device is configured by the wind increase device 13, the air tube 19, and the compressor 23, and the supply pipe 25 and the discharge pipe 20 are connected to offset positions shifted from the central axis above and below the chamber 5. Can generate a strong swirl upflow.

The cylindrical electrode 6 is installed in the chamber 5 with its central axis coinciding with the central axis of the chamber 5.
The high-voltage power source 22 has a high voltage of the same polarity as the resin powder 18 charged by the charger 21 on the electrode 6 side (when the resin powder 18 is negatively charged, the electrode 6 is also negatively charged, When the body 18 is positively charged, the electrode 6 is also positively charged), and a high electric field is generated between the electrode 6 and the fiber substrate 17 connected to the ground.

Next, a method for manufacturing a prepreg using the prepreg manufacturing apparatus configured as described above will be described.
As shown in FIG. 1, when the resin powder 18 is continuously supplied from the feeder 1 to the funnel 9 attached to the supply pipe 25 from above, the resin powder 18 is mixed with air, and the supply pipe For example, the negative electrode is charged by 25 chargers 21.
Then, the solid-gas two-phase flow comprising the charged resin powder 18 and air is sent to the chamber 5 from the inlet 10 at the tip of the supply pipe 25 connected to the lower surface of the chamber 5 in an offset state from the central axis. At this time, the outlet 11 at the tip of the discharge pipe 20 is connected to the upper surface of the chamber 5 in an offset state from the central axis. Since the wind-increasing device 13 that winds up and outputs the input airflow is connected, the solid-gas two-phase flow fed into the chamber 5 due to the negative pressure by the wind-inducing device 13 is discharged from the chamber 5 to the discharge pipe 20 side. It is drawn in strongly toward the direction of the strong swirl upward flow. Thereby, the resin powder 18 is uniformly dispersed. In addition, the solid-gas two-phase flow discharged from the wind increase device 13 is sent to the drum 15 and the resin powder 18 is reused.

  At this time, in the chamber 5, the linear carbon fiber base material 17 is continuously pulled up from the lower side to the upper side along the central axis, and the carbon fiber base material 17 and the cylindrical shape provided so as to surround the carbon fiber base material 17. Since a high voltage is applied between the electrode 6 and the electrode 6 so that the electrode 6 side is a negative electrode similar to the charging of the resin powder 18, the resin powder 18 repels each other by repulsive force and becomes more uniform. After being dispersed, the resin powder 18 moves to the carbon fiber substrate 17 side at a high speed by a strong attractive force and adheres with a strong adhesive force.

  Thereby, a prepreg is manufactured. The prepreg referred to in the present invention includes a so-called semi-preg in which the amount of the resin powder 18 attached to the carbon fiber substrate 17 is suppressed.

  According to the prepreg manufacturing apparatus and the prepreg manufacturing method according to the embodiment of the present invention, the supply pipe 25 for feeding the resin powder 18 and the discharge pipe 20 for discharging the resin powder 18 on the lower and upper surfaces of the cylindrical chamber 5 are respectively provided. Since the connection between the center axis of the chamber 5 and the air supply device including the wind increase device 13, the air tube 19, and the compressor 23 is provided, a swirling upward flow is generated in the chamber 5. The resin powder 18 is uniformly dispersed therein. In addition, since the swirling upward flow is generated in the chamber 5, the time for the resin powder 18 to stay in the chamber 5 becomes longer. Therefore, the resin powder in the chamber 5 is compared with the case of a simple upward flow. The amount of the body 18 increases and the amount of adhesion to the carbon fiber substrate 17 also increases.

Further, since the cylindrical electrode 6 installed in the chamber 5 is applied with a high voltage having the same polarity as the resin powder 18, a repulsive force acts between the particles of the resin powder 18 charged in advance. The powder 18 is more uniformly dispersed.
Since a high electric field is generated between the electrode 6 and the carbon fiber base material 17 connected to the ground, the resin powder 18 is formed of carbon disposed along the central axis of the chamber 5 by electrostatic force. It moves toward the fiber base material 17 and adheres firmly to the carbon fiber base material 17.

In the present embodiment, a linear carbon fiber substrate 17 is arranged along the central axis of the chamber 5, but as shown in FIG. 6, a sheet-like carbon fiber substrate 17 (17T ) May be arranged along the central axis of the chamber 5.
According to this, since the resin powder 18 reliably adheres to both surfaces of the sheet-like carbon fiber base material 17T, a prepreg excellent in quality performance is provided.

  In the present embodiment, an air supply device including the wind increase device 13, the air tube 19, and the compressor 23 is provided on the discharge pipe 20 side of the resin powder 18 with respect to the chamber 5, and the resin powder 18 and the air are strongly attracted. A solid-gas two-phase flow consisting of the above is drawn into the chamber 5 from the supply pipe 25 side to generate a swirling upward flow. A solid-gas two-phase flow composed of the powder 18 and air may be pushed into the chamber 5 from the supply pipe 25 side to generate a swirling upward flow.

1 Feeder 2 Feeding reel (base material transport device)
3 First guide roller 4 Constant speed feed mechanism (base material transport device)
5 Chamber 6 Electrode 7 Second guide roller 8 Take-up reel (base material transport device)
9 Funnel 10 Inlet 11 Outlet 12 Heater 13 Wind Booster (Air Supply Unit)
14 Regulator 15 Drum 16 Mounting base 17 Carbon fiber base material 17T Carbon fiber base material (sheet shape)
18 Resin powder 19 Air tube (Air supply device)
20 Discharge pipe 21 Charger 22 High voltage power supply 23 Compressor (air supply device)
24 Swirl upflow (solid-gas two-phase flow of resin powder and air)
25 Supply pipe

Claims (5)

A prepreg manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a prepreg by attaching resin powder to a fiber substrate,
A feeder for continuously metering the resin powder mixed with air;
A vertically extending cylindrical chamber in which the fiber base material is disposed along the central axis thereof, the feeder is connected to the rear end side, the front end side extends substantially horizontally, and the lower surface of the chamber extends radially from the central axis. A supply pipe connected to a position shifted outward;
A charger provided in the supply pipe for charging the resin powder together with air;
A discharge pipe connected to a position shifted radially outward from the central axis on the upper surface of the chamber;
A solid-gas two-phase flow composed of the resin powder and air supplied by the feeder is input to the chamber from the supply pipe, is a swirling upward flow in the chamber, and is output from the discharge pipe;
A cylindrical electrode installed in the chamber with the central axis of the chamber aligned with the central axis;
A high-voltage power source that generates a high electric field between the electrode and the fiber base connected to the ground by applying a high-voltage of the same polarity as the resin powder charged by the charger on the electrode side,
A prepreg manufacturing apparatus characterized in that the resin powder is adhered to the fiber substrate in the chamber.   The prepreg manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the fiber base material is a linear member extending up and down along a central axis of the chamber.   The said air supply apparatus is provided in the said discharge pipe side, and draws in the said resin powder and air to the said discharge pipe side through the said chamber from the said supply pipe side by negative pressure. The prepreg manufacturing apparatus described in 1.   The prepreg manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a base material transport device that continuously feeds the fiber base material from a lower surface to an upper surface of the chamber at a constant speed. . A prepreg manufacturing method for manufacturing a prepreg by attaching a resin powder to a fiber substrate,
Air is mixed into the resin powder that is continuously supplied in a constant amount and taken in from the back side of the supply pipe, and the resin powder is charged together with air in the supply pipe.
A position where the solid-gas two-phase flow composed of the resin powder and air is shifted from the center axis to the outside in the radial direction on the lower surface of the chamber in which the fiber base material is disposed along the center axis in a cylindrical shape extending vertically A discharge pipe connected to a position shifted radially outward from the central axis on the upper surface of the chamber by causing the input into the chamber from the tip end of the supply pipe connected to Output from
A high voltage of the same polarity as the charged resin powder is applied to the side of the cylindrical electrode installed in the chamber in a state where the central axis of the chamber is aligned with the central axis, and the electrode is grounded. A method for producing a prepreg characterized in that a high electric field is generated between the fiber base material and the resin powder is adhered to the fiber base material in the chamber.