A method of fabricating a formed structure with expandable polymeric shell microspheres. A first plurality of polymeric shell microspheres are heated from an unexpanded state to an expanded state to form a plurality of expanded microspheres. The plurality of expanded microspheres are mixed with an epoxy resin and a second plurality of unexpanded polymeric shell microspheres. The mixture is formed in a shape to create a preform. The preform is wrapped with fiber tape to create a wrapped preform. The wrapped preform is placed in a mold. The mold is heated and the second plurality of unexpanded microspheres expand from an unexpanded state to an expanded state. The mold is cooled and the formed structure is removed from the mold.

A floor panel with a substrate, including thermoplastic material, a decor provided thereon, and, on at least one pair of opposite edges, coupling parts realized at least partially from the substrate. The coupling parts allow a mechanical locking between two of such floor panels, where the substrate includes a rigid, non-foamed substrate layer of thermoplastic material.

A floor panel with a substrate, including thermoplastic material, a decor provided thereon, and, on at least one pair of opposite edges, coupling parts realized at least partially from the substrate. The coupling parts allow a mechanical locking between two of such floor panels, where the substrate includes a rigid, non-foamed substrate layer of thermoplastic material.

An assembly (113) for composite manufacture is provided. The assembly comprises a cured resin impregnated reinforcement material (112) comprising a fibre component and a resin matrix component, in which the resin matrix component comprises polyurethane, the assembly having a length to width ratio of at least 5:1, and the assembly defining a longitudinal direction (L) along its length; and a peel ply (116) in contact with the cured resin impregnated reinforcement material (112), the peel ply (116) comprising a woven layer having a plurality of longitudinal fibres (118) extending in the longitudinal direction (L); and a plurality of transverse fibres (120) extending in a transverse direction (T) normal to the longitudinal direction (L); in which the areal density of the plurality of transverse fibres (120) is higher than the areal density of the plurality of longitudinal fibres (118).

A device to thermoform a composite component and injection over-moulding a shape on one face of the composite component in a mould. The mould includes a paired shaping die and punch between them defining a closed cavity. The shaping die is mounted on a transfer device. The transfer device includes a loading/unloading station to load/unload a blank onto/from the shaping die, and an injection and mould-closure station to close the mould and to inject between the punch and the shaping die. The shaping die includes a network of inductors to heat its moulding surface and a cooling network to cool the moulding surface by a circulation of a fluid. The loading/unloading station includes a placement device to place a radiating element facing the moulding surface of the shaping die.

A method for reinforcing a panel according to its thickness, including: a step a) of providing a reinforcing element which is elongated, flexible, with two longitudinal ends having a length strictly greater than twice the thickness of the panel; a step b) of positioning and holding the reinforcing element on one side of the panel, called the insertion side; a step c) of gripping the reinforcing element, in its middle, on the insertion side, an insertion step d) wherein the reinforcing element gripped by its middle is pulled through a bore passing through the panel, by folding the reinforcing element back on itself, and to a final position, wherein the two longitudinal ends project or not from the bore on the insertion side, a loop of the reinforcing element projecting or not from the bore on the side of the panel opposite to the insertion side.

Provided is a method for producing a decorated cycloolefin resin molded article, the method comprising curing a gel coat composition and polymerizing a cycloolefin polymerizable composition containing a radical generator while the gel coat composition is in contact with the cycloolefin polymerizable composition, thereby containing a decorated cycloolefin resin molded article including a gel coat and a cycloolefin resin layer adhering to each other.

The present disclosure relates to multi-compound fiber reinforced composites and methods of making the same using frontal polymerization and targeted photosensitizer additives. In various aspects, the method may include disposing one or more layers in a mold cavity, where each of the one or more layers includes a fiber material and a first compound. The method may further includes disposing a second compound in the mold cavity, where the second compound includes a photosensitizer material. Further still, the method may include initiating photopolymerization of the photosensitizer using an ultraviolet light source, removing ultraviolet light source, and/or completing polymerization of the one or more layers so as to form the fiber-reinforced composite.

An automated manufacturing method and system and in-mold coated plastic article produced thereby are provided. The system includes a compression mold and a plurality of program-controlled manipulators. An automatic sprayer supported on a first manipulator sprays at least a portion of a mold surface with an in-mold coating composition. An end effector supported on a second manipulator picks up a heated blank of moldable plastic sheet material from an oven and places the heated blank between upper and lower mold halves of the mold. An inner portion of the heated blank is forced into an article-defining cavity of the mold and into contact with at least a portion of the in-mold coating composition. The in-mold coating composition and the inner portion of the heated blank cure and bond to one another so as to form the coated plastic article.

A cosmetic part is formed via compression molding in a single molding operation with no post processing by forming an assemblage of feed constituents, wherein the assemblage includes plural fiber-bundle-based preforms and one or more resin-only constituents, the latter configured and positioned as appropriate to create resin-rich cosmetic layers where desired on the part.