Manufacture of carbon fibre preform

摘要

In a method of making a carbon fibre preform such as for use in the manufacture of a friction disc a compressible body 12 of carbon fibre or carbon fibre precursor material is acted upon by compressing means 10 to compress the body to a required thickness and then operated upon by means of barbed needles 19 which penetrates substantially the whole thickness of the body in each of a plurality of needle-punching operations whereby the compressed preform may be removed from action by the compressing means in a free-standing and compressed state. If the method uses carbon fibre precursor material, that is then subject to carbonisation. The body may be needled from both sides simultaneously or sequentially. It may comprise a stack of sheets 14.