Provided is a method for manufacturing a fiber-reinforced resin molding material having excellent productivity at low cost for manufacturing a fiber-reinforced resin molded article having excellent strength properties. Provided is a method for manufacturing a sheet-shaped fiber-reinforced resin molding material containing a plurality of cut fiber bundles and a resin impregnated between filaments of the cut fiber bundles, the method comprising an integrated material manufacturing step for obtaining an integrated material by collecting a sheet-shaped fiber bundle aggregate obtained by arranging and spreading a plurality of consecutive fiber bundles in a width direction.

What is provided is a method for stably producing a fiber-reinforced resin molding material by splitting a fiber bundle such that a split portion becomes long while anon-split portion is shortened. A method for producing a fiber-reinforced resin molding material in which a cut fiber bundle is impregnated with a resin, the method comprising a splitting step of splitting the fiber bundle with a splitting machine at intervals in a longitudinal direction and a cutting step of cutting the fiber bundle at intervals in the longitudinal direction after the splitting step, in which the splitting machine comprises a rotary blade having a releasing section and a spacer member adjacent to the rotary blade.

Provided is a method for manufacturing a fiber-reinforced resin molding material having excellent productivity at low cost for manufacturing a fiber-reinforced resin molded article having excellent strength properties. Provided is a method for manufacturing a sheet-shaped fiber-reinforced resin molding material containing a plurality of cut fiber bundles and a resin impregnated between filaments of the cut fiber bundles, the method comprising an integrated material manufacturing step for obtaining an integrated material by collecting a sheet-shaped fiber bundle aggregate obtained by arranging and spreading a plurality of consecutive fiber bundles in a width direction.

A method for forming a multi-layered structure includes forming a resin-infused fibrous material (70) by applying a liquid resin component (60) onto the fibrous material (32) being pulled through an injection box (110) such that the fibrous material is partially impregnated and surrounded by the liquid resin component to form a resin-infused fibrous material. The resin-infused fibrous material is then introduced to a first die (130) and partially cured to form a partially-cured fiber-reinforced core material (80). The core material exits the first die to an intermediate region, where a polymer layer (40) is then applied onto at least a portion of the outer profile surface of the core material. The material then enters a second die (140), where the liquid resin component is fully cured to form a fiber-reinforced thermoset core material (30) having the polymer layer adhered thereon within the second die, thus forming the multi-layered structure (20).

A structure material includes a resin, reinforced fibers, and voids, a volume content of the resin being within a range of 2.5% by volume or more and 85% by volume or less, a volume content of the reinforced fibers being within a range of 0.5% by volume or more and 55% by volume or less, the voids being contained in the structure material in a rate within a range of 10% by volume or more and 97% by volume or less, a thickness St of the structure material satisfying a conditional expression: StLf.sup.2.Math.(1cos(f)) where a length of the reinforced fibers is Lf and an oriented angle of the reinforced fibers in a sectional direction of the structure material is f, and a compression strength in an in-plane direction at 50% compression of the structure material measured in accordance with JIS K7220 being 3 MPa or more.

A structure material includes a resin, reinforced fibers, and voids. The structure material includes a volume content of the resin being within a range of 2.5% by volume or more and 85% by volume or less, a volume content of the reinforced fibers being within a range of 0.5% by volume or more and 55% by volume or less, the voids being contained in the structure material in a rate within a range of 10% by volume or more and 97% by volume or less, a thickness St of the structure material satisfying a conditional expression: StLf.sup.2.Math.(1cos(f)), and a specific bending modulus of the structure material represented as Ec.sup.1/3.Math..sup.1 being within a range of 3 or more and 20 or less, and a bending modulus Ec of the structure material being 3 GPa or more.

A system for debundling fiber tow into chopped fibers is provided that has one or more reels of fiber tow, a cutting element configured to receive the fiber tow to form chopped fiber, and a tube with introduced gas flow configured to receive the chopped fiber. A moving belt is positioned under the tube to collect the chopped fiber. A dispenser is positioned along the moving belt for applying a binder or additive. A treatment chamber receives the treated chopped fiber. A process for debundling fiber tow into chopped fibers is provided that supplies one or more reels of fiber tow to a cutting system, drops the chopped fiber into a tube with introduced gas flow to debundle the chopped fiber with a vortex, collects the chopped fiber exiting the tube onto a moving belt, chemically treats the chopped fiber, and provides the chemically treated chopped to a treatment chamber.

A fiber-reinforced material includes a discontinuous reinforcing fiber aggregate of a discontinuous reinforcing fiber having a number average fiber length of 3 to 100 mm and a matrix resin, the discontinuous reinforcing fiber aggregate including a plurality of discontinuous reinforcing fiber bundles having a predetermined number of unidirectionally-bundled single yarns of the discontinuous reinforcing fiber, wherein the discontinuous reinforcing fiber bundle has a cut surface inclined at a predetermined angle with respect to an orientation direction of the single yarn of the discontinuous reinforcing fiber bundle and has different fiber bundle lengths defined as a distance between both ends along the orientation direction of the single yarn of the discontinuous reinforcing fiber bundle, the shorter the fiber bundle length of the discontinuous reinforcing fiber bundle, the smaller a tip angle defined as an acute angle at an end of a two-dimensional plane projection of the discontinuous reinforcing fiber bundle.

A system for debundling fiber tow into chopped fibers is provided that has one or more reels of fiber tow, a cutting element configured to receive the fiber tow to form chopped fiber, and a tube with introduced gas flow configured to receive the chopped fiber. A moving belt is positioned under the tube to collect the chopped fiber. A dispenser is positioned along the moving belt for applying a binder or additive. A treatment chamber receives the treated chopped fiber. A process for debundling fiber tow into chopped fibers is provided that supplies one or more reels of fiber tow to a cutting system, drops the chopped fiber into a tube with introduced gas flow to debundle the chopped fiber with a vortex, collects the chopped fiber exiting the tube onto a moving belt, chemically treats the chopped fiber, and provides the chemically treated chopped to a treatment chamber.

A thermoplastic prepreg includes a fabric, mat, web, or mesh of fibers and a thermoplastic material that fully impregnates the fibers such that the thermoplastic prepreg has a void content of less than 5 percent. The thermoplastic material includes or consists of polymers that are formed by polymerization of monomers or oligomers in which greater than 90 percent of the monomers or oligomers polymerize to form the thermoplastic material and in which less than 100 percent of the monomers or oligomers polymerize to form the thermoplastic material. The thermoplastic prepreg includes residual monomers or oligomers since less than 100 percent of the monomers or oligomers polymerize and the thermoplastic prepreg includes between 15 and 85 weight percent of the thermoplastic material.