The present invention discloses a silencer for automobile. The silencer is formed by press molding. The silencer has a first molded surface and a second molded surface which are opposite to each other in a thickness direction. The silencer at least includes a first fiber layer on which the first molded surface is formed and a second fiber layer integrated with an opposite surface to the first molded surface, the opposite surface being on the first fiber layer. Fibers of the second fiber layer exist partly on the opposite surface on the first fiber layer.

A process for forming a mat containing a fiber filler including providing one or more sources of extended length fiber; feeding the one or more sources of extended length fiber simultaneously to an automated cutting machine to produce chopped tow fibers; separating the chopped fiber tow into individual chopped fibers that form a fiber filler; coating the fiber filler with a binder; depositing the fiber filler on a first sheet of thermoplastic; covering the fiber filler with a second sheet of thermoplastic to form a stack; and moving the stack to a treatment chamber to form a fiber mat.

A process and system are provided for introducing chopped and dispersed carbon fibers on an automated production line amenable for inclusion in molding compositions, including the debundling of many carbon fibers collectively forming a tow into dispersed chopped carbon fibers that form a filler that undergoes plasma treatment prior to introducing coating silanes to uniformly increase bonding sites for coupling to a thermoset matrix. By exposing carbon tow to a plasma discharge, the carbon tow debundles and is used to form sheets of molding compositions with chopped dispersed fibers added to the composition, as the sheets move along a conveyor belt on the automated production line and at least one plasma generator mounted above the conveyor belt ionizes the carbon fibers. With resort to deionized air to mix plasma-treated chopped fibers, still further dispersion results.

Provided is a fiber-reinforced composite material molded article including a thick portion having a thickness equal to or greater than 10 mm, in which the thick portion has an inner layer which is formed of a cured material of a composite material (A) containing reinforcing fiber and an epoxy resin and a surface layer which is formed of a cured material of a composite material (B) containing reinforcing fiber and a vinyl ester resin.

A process and system are provided for introducing chopped and dispersed carbon fibers on an automated production line amenable for inclusion in molding compositions, including the debundling of many carbon fibers collectively forming a tow into dispersed chopped carbon fibers that form a filler that undergoes plasma treatment prior to introducing coating silanes to uniformly increase bonding sites for coupling to a thermoset matrix. By exposing carbon tow to a plasma discharge, the carbon tow debundles and is used to form sheets of molding compositions with chopped dispersed fibers added to the composition, as the sheets move along a conveyor belt on the automated production line and at least one plasma generator mounted above the conveyor belt ionizes the carbon fibers. With resort to deionized air to mix plasma-treated chopped fibers, still further dispersion results.

A carbon-fiber-reinforced resin composite material includes: carbon fibers including carbon fiber bundles and a thermoplastic resin, in which (1) a coefficient of variation (CV1) of a total areal weight of the carbon-fiber-reinforced resin composite material is 10% or lower, (2) a coefficient of variation (CV2) of a carbon fiber volume fraction (Vf) in the carbon-fiber-reinforced resin composite material which is defined by Expression (a) is 15% or lower, and (3) a weight average fiber length of the carbon fibers is 1 to 100 mm.
Carbon Fiber Volume Fraction (Vf)=100Volume of Carbon Fibers/(Volume of Carbon Fibers+Volume of Thermoplastic Resin)Expression (a).

A method of forming a composite sheet material, the method comprises energising a pair of electrodes to apply an electrostatic charge to a bed of fibres located therebetween thereby orienting at least some of the fibres to be substantially orthogonal to the electrodes and sandwiching at least some of the oriented fibres between a first sheet and a second sheet. The first sheet may be subsequently removed. A third sheet may be used to sandwich the fibres between the second sheet and the third sheet. Apparatus (100) is disclosed for carrying out the method.

A random mat includes a chopped fiber bundle [A] obtained by obliquely cutting a partially separated fiber bundle [B] prepared by alternately forming separation-processed sections, each of which is separated into a plurality of bundles, and not-separation-processed sections, along the lengthwise direction of a fiber bundle, wherein the total cross-sectional area of reinforcing fibers exhibits a specific change amount between both tips of the chopped fiber bundle [A]; a production method produces the random mat; and a fiber-reinforced resin molding material uses the random mat.

A method of fabrication processing a pre-preg material includes applying electromagnetic heating to a composition including a fiber and a resin. The electromagnetic heating is conducted with at least one fringing field capacitor utilizing radio frequency (RF) alternating current (AC) and controlling cross-linking of the resin in the composition via the electromagnetic heating.

A discontinuous fiber-reinforced composite material including 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, and the longer the fiber bundle length of the discontinuous reinforcing fiber bundle is, 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 is.