Commingled CF/PEEK Hybrid Yarns for Use in Textile Reinforced High Performance Rotors

Owing to a higher melt viscosity compared to the thermoset plastics the impregnation of the textile reinforcement structure with a thermoplastic matrix is significantly difficult. Commingled hybrid yarns produced on the basis of air-jet texturing technique have the potential for a homogeneous distribution of reinforcement and matrix filaments over the yarn cross section. The so achieved very short flow paths during manufacturing of the composite part make a fast and complete impregnation of the reinforcement filaments possible. In this study, first investigations are performed to optimize the process and to develop the hybrid yarn further. Mechanical properties of yarns and unidirectional composites made of these are examined to evaluate selected hybrid yarns produced under different process conditions. Composites produced from the commingled hybrid yarns show a more even impregnated state as those from a compared material (Side-by-Side structure). The mechanical property reaches the level of composites from other hybrid yarns with regard to fiber-matrix-adhesion. This lecture introduces the first results obtained using the air-jet texturing process and provides an outlook for further work-steps.