Influence of Fibre Length and Preparation on Mechanical Properties of Carbon Fibre/Polyamide 6 Hybrid Yarns and Composites.

The aim of this paper was to investigate the effect of carbon fibre (CF) length and preparation prior to carding on the mechanical properties of hybrid yarns as well as composites consisting of CF and polyamide 6 (PA 6). The hybrid yarns are manufactured using an optimised process route of carding and drawing with a flyer machine from virgin staple CF (40/60/80/100 mm) and PA 6. In order to explore the effect of fibre preparation on the mechanical properties of hybrid yarns as well as composites, virgin staple CF and PA 6 fibres were prepared by varying the mixing type prior to the carding process. For this purpose, the fibres were mixed either by a fibre-opening device or supplied directly to the carding machine without prior mixing. The CF content of the card webs produced is kept at 50 volume %. Hybrid yarns were produced with a twist of 102 twist/m and then thermoplastic unidirectional (UD) composites were manufactured from them. The investigations revealed the influence of the input CF length and mixing type on the mechanical properties of hybrid yarns and thermoplastic UD composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]