PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF A GLASS FIBRE-REINFORCED PLASTICS ARTICLE AND A GLASS FIBRE PASTE OR SLURRY FOR USE IN THE PROCESS

摘要

The process comprises mixing chopped glass fibres with plastics-forming ingredients and moulding or forming the mixture to obtain reinforced plastics articles. The invention lies in the use of chopped glass fibres in filamentary form. Conveniently the glass fibres are first made into a slurry or paste, which forms the aspect of the invention, with a liquid compatible with the plastics-forming ingredients or with all or a part of one or more of the ingredients. The invention includes a novel form of chopped glass fibres formed from glass strand bound with a size containing as the main ingredient one component of a plastics-forming mixture or a derivative thereof. It also includes apparatus for mixing the glass fibre paste or slurry with plastics-forming ingredients by impingement mixing. The invention is of special use for reinforcing with glass fibres plastics articles, especially polyurethane plastics articles, formed by a Reaction Injection Moulding (RIM) process.