IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO THREE DIMENSIONAL MOULDINGS

Abstract

The invention relates to a blank for compression moulding a part in a compression mould comprising one or more moulding recesses, said blank comprising a body formed from a first moulding compound comprising a fibrous reinforcement material and a thermo-curable resin material, and a region located on the surface of the body formed from a second moulding compound; said second moulding compound comprising a fibrous reinforcement material and a thermo-curable resin material, and exhibiting increased flow at one or more temperatures between 20 C. and the cured Tg of the first moulding compound compared to the flow of the first moulding compound at the same temperature.

Claims

1. A blank for compression moulding a part in a compression mould comprising one or more moulding recesses, said blank comprising a body formed from a first moulding compound comprising a fibrous reinforcement material and a thermo-curable resin material, and a region located on the surface of the body formed from a second moulding compound; said second moulding compound comprising a fibrous reinforcement material and a thermo-curable resin material, and exhibiting increased flow at one or more temperatures between 20 C. and the cured Tg of the first moulding compound compared to the flow of the first moulding compound at the same temperature.

2. The blank according to claim 1, wherein the second moulding compound exhibits increased flow at one or more temperatures between 100 C. and 250 C. compared to the flow of the first moulding compound at the same temperature.

3. The blank according to claim 2, wherein the second moulding compound exhibits increased flow at all temperatures between 100 C. and 250 C. compared to the flow of the first moulding compound at the same temperature.

4. The blank according to claim 2, wherein the resin material of the second moulding compound has a lower viscosity than the viscosity of the resin material of the first moulding compound at the one or more temperatures at which the second moulding compound exhibits increased flow compared to the flow of the first moulding compound at the same temperature.

5. The blank according to claim 2, wherein the fibrous reinforcement material of the second moulding compound is of shorter length than the length of the fibrous reinforcement material of the first moulding compound.

6. The blank according to claim 2, wherein the fibrous reinforcement material of the first moulding compound has a length of at least 50 mm.

7. The blank according to claim 7, wherein the fibrous reinforcement material of the second moulding compound has a length of from 5 mm to 50 mm.

8. The blank according to claim 2, wherein the fibrous reinforcement material of the first moulding compound and/or the fibrous reinforcement material of the second moulding compound comprises glass fibres, carbon fibres, graphite fibres, boron fibres, ceramic fibres or aramid fibres.

9. The blank according to claim 2, wherein the fibrous reinforcement material of the second moulding compound are formed from the same material.

10. The blank according to claim 2, wherein the fibrous reinforcement material of the first moulding compound and the fibrous reinforcement material of the second moulding compound are formed from different materials.

11. (canceled)

12. (canceled)

13. (canceled)

14. The blank according to claim 2, wherein the region formed from the second moulding compound covers from 5% to 100% of the surface of the body.

15. The blank according to claim 2, wherein there are two or more regions formed from the second moulding compound located on the surface of the body.

16. A process for producing a moulding comprising a moulding body having one or more protuberances projecting therefore, said process comprising providing a compression mould comprising a mould cavity and one or more recesses in the surface of the mould cavity corresponding to the one or more protuberances, placing a blank according to any of the preceding claims into the mould cavity, and compression moulding the blank under conditions such that the second moulding compound preferentially flows into the one or more recesses in the surface of the mould cavity, and so that the resins of the first and second moulding compounds are cured.

17. The process according to claim 16, wherein at least one region formed from the second moulding compound on the surface of the body of the blank is positioned adjacent to at least one recess in the surface of the mould cavity when the blank is placed in the mould cavity.

18. The process according to claim 16, wherein multiple blanks are placed in the mould cavity prior to compression moulding.

19. (canceled)

20. (canceled)

21. (canceled)

22. (canceled)

23. The process according to claim 16, wherein the compression moulding comprises a staged process comprising moulding at isothermal conditions.

24. The process according to claim 23, comprising staging for 5 to 30 minutes at 150 C. to 190 C., followed by final curing at 100 C. to 250 C. for 2 to 50 minutes.

25. (canceled)

26. (canceled)

27. (canceled)

Description

[0081] The present invention is illustrated by reference to the accompanying drawings in which

[0082] FIG. 1 shows a mould for use in this invention to provide a moulding body having protuberances from a stack of blanks.

[0083] FIG. 2 is a close up of a section of the mould showing cavities for the production of ribs on the moulding.

[0084] FIG. 3 shows a blank for producing comprising protuberances on the surface thereof, the blank comprising a body formed from a first moulding compound and four regions on the surface of the body formed from a second moulding compound according to this invention.

[0085] FIG. 4 shows a moulding obtained by compression moulding the blank of FIG. 3 in the mould of FIG. 1.

[0086] FIG. 1 shows half of a compression mould useful in the present invention: showing the moulding surface (1) and locator pins (2) for location with the other half of the mould (not shown). The mould is provided with recesses (3), (4) and (5) where ribs are to be produced during compression moulding. FIG. 2 is a close up of the surface of the mould shown in FIG. 1.

[0087] FIG. 3 shows a blank according to this invention formed from a first moulding compound in which regions (6), (7) and (8) are formed in the surface of the blank from a second moulding compound exhibiting increased flow at least at 140 C. compared to the flow of the first moulding compound at the same temperature. The regions (6), (7) and (8) are located to correspond with the recesses (3), (4) and (5) formed in the surface of the mould.

[0088] FIG. 4 shows the moulded blank (9) provided with the ribs (10), (11) and (12) formed at the positions corresponding to the recesses (3), (4) and (5) and corresponding generally to the locations of the regions of second moulding compound on the surface of the uncured blank (6), (7) and (8).