Pultrusion of Large Thermoplastic Composite Profiles Up to Ø 40 Mm from Glass-Fibre/pet Commingled Yarns

Pultrusion is a rapid and cost-effective manufacturing technology for continuous fibre reinforced thermoplastic composite profiles. As the cross-sections of pultruded profiles grow to meet increasing performance requirements, manufacturing challenges concerning heat transfer are encountered. In this study, a two-dimensional finite element model was used to simulate the heat transfer and fluid flow physics of the pultrusion process for increasing diameters from 0 5-0 40 mm. To facilitate the experimental validation, a novel batch-wise pultrusion concept is introduced in which the impregnation process is observed in-situ using a transparent die. The pultrusion studies, conducted on glass-fibre/amorphous polyethylene terephthalate (GF/PET) commingled yarns, show that - with proper design - pultrusion is able to deliver consistent, high quality (void content < 2%) profiles up to at least 0 40 mm.