Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) also known as FRP is a versatile construction material with many benefits. It is durable, long-lasting and has excellent corrosion resistance.
GRP is produced by placing a glass fibre mat or chopped strand mat with what is called a surface veil into a mould before being vacuum-baked and cured. It can be made into a wide range of shapes and is easy to handle. Check out more items at grp enclosures.
Manual lay-up
Often the simplest way to make GRP is manually laying the fibres in a mould. This can be done using chopped strand mat (CSM), woven or knit fabrics. A resin is then used to bind the fibres together and it’s the combination of the resin, glass fibres and chopped strand mat that makes up GRP.
Usually polyester is the type of resin used, however epoxy and vinyl ester resins are also available. The resin is applied to the mould using a brush and then chopped glass fibre strands are spread over it. Entrapped air is then removed with squeegees or rollers.
Another option is to use natural fibre mats, notably hemp and flax. These are more expensive to source, have a higher energy cost as a result of cultivation and harvesting, but offer environmental benefits. An ecological evaluation or ecobalance of these mats shows that their production uses only 17% of the energy required to produce a similar quantity of Basfiber.
Spray-up
The spray-up method of fabricating GRP products involves applying chopped glass fiber and resin simultaneously to a mold. This process is typically used for large, structural parts that require a high level of strength. This technique requires good wetting of the chopped strands and rapid curing of the resin. Using the right equipment and techniques is essential to ensuring the quality of the finished product.
FRP products are a popular choice for construction projects because they offer increased strength and durability over traditional materials such as wood or steel. In addition, they are also much lighter in weight and have superior flexibility and elasticity.
GRP or Fibreglass, is made from strands of glass woven into a flexible fabric and then embedded in a layer of resin that is cured. This material is very strong and is often used in water tanks, boat hulls, architectural features and vehicle body panels. The two most common production methods for GRP are hand lay-up and spray-up.
Robotic lay-up
In composite fabrication, a glass fiber reinforced polymer (GRP) contains a plastic or thermoset resin matrix which is filled with glass fibres. These fibres are typically chopped strand mat, woven fabric or long glass fibers and can be orientated in various directions to give the desired stiffness or strength.
GRP vessels and tanks are commonly used to store corrosive materials. Traditionally, these are made by hand using spray lay-up. This process requires manual manipulation of layers of carbon-fiber prepreg and can be ergonomically challenging, labour intensive and limits throughput. This also exposes workers to significant levels of styrene vapour which can cause short-term health effects including irritation, headaches, dizziness and fatigue.
Fives’ specialized solution automates the composite lay-up process to improve manufacturing efficiency and reduce costs. The solution combines robotics with the company’s AI-equipped work cell, which generates trajectories that match the complex sequence of robot motions needed to accurately lay down each layer of the laminate ahead of manufacturing.
Fabrication
Glass reinforcements are supplied in different physical forms, ranging from fine long strands to chopped or woven mats. They are impregnated with a thermoset resin to produce GRP, or fibreglass as it is commonly called. The resin can be made using a variety of methods, from a simple hand lay-up to an industrial automated spray process. The GRP can then be combined with a variety of plastics or other materials to produce the final product.
The most common use of glass-reinforced plastic is in the manufacture of automobile gas and clutch pedals. This material offers significant benefits over metal, such as weight savings which lower production costs and fuel consumption, and thermal insulation.
The abrasion resistance of FRP is significantly affected by the mass fraction and elastic modulus of the reinforcing material. This is especially true for chopped strand mats, which have much lower elasticity than unidirectional woven fabrics. The abrasion properties of these materials are also strongly dependent on the directionality of the stiffness and strength.