FILAMENT WINDING MATS

Typically, the fibers are pulled from the rolls through guides and into a resin bath. It then goes through a stripping device to remove excess resin. Finally, it is guided onto a rotating mandrel in a precise pattern. Glass content is generally 60 percent or greater, providing very high tensile strength to the part.

The inside wall or surface of the secondary containment wall of a part is often formed with a combination of resin (typically 90 percent) and either ten (10) MIL or fifteen (15) MIL Surmat 100 SF veil to provide a resin-rich corrosion barrier.

When selecting a Surmat 100 SF product, the weight should be specified by the customer. Two binder systems are available. Type 176 binder is most often used with a mechanical feed system, when the mat is pre-wet or where higher wet or dry tensile strengths are required. Regular binder is most often used for manual feed systems or with “L” shaped parts.

Surmat 100 SF offers several advantages when used in filament winding. The veil provides an excellent foundation layer for the resin-rich outercoat of the primary or secondary wall. It allows for very good resin wet out and air bubbles are much easier to eliminate than with competing synthetic veils. Another advantage is Surmat 100 SF offers higher tensile processing strengths.

Surmat 100 SF provides corrosion resistance comparable to “C” composition glass at a competitive price. Bjorksten Research Laboratories Inc., located in Madison, Wisconsin, evaluated the corrosion resistant characteristics of both Surmat 100 SF and “C” Glass. Their conclusion at the end of the test is that both materials exhibited equivalent results. Their findings have been published in a Society of Plastics International (SPI) Conference technical paper.

And very importantly, we only use BoronFree ACR Glass in manufacturing our FRP mats. This is the top grade glass that resists corrosion and produces customer-winning quality parts.