High Volume Production Technology for Corrosive Resistant Long-Fiber-Reinforced Plastic Extinguishers

Abstract

Portable fire extinguishers need to be reliable and fully functional at all given environmental conditions. Especially in off-shore and power plant applications a specific range of properties is necessary, e.g. corrosive resistance and electromagnetic compatibility. Hence, the application of fiber reinforced composites and fiber composite design offers an alternative to the traditional application of metallic materials.Within the scope of the development of an innovative fire extinguisher, a process-chain for manufacturing of composite fire extinguishers suitable for aggressively corrosive environmental conditions was developed. The aim of the project has been the development of a fire extinguisher with the technology of thermoplastic composite materials. Besides the intended weight reduction, a concept for the realization of a high-volume production suitable process-chain had to be developed. Using a thermoplastic matrix material allows a corrosive-free, non-magnetic and functional integrated design. Within the scope of the research project, the extinguisher container with integrated base and connection for the valve has been dimensioned and designed. The containers geometry with optimized ratio of filling volume, overall part size and material utilization was derived by applying FE analysis. Furthermore, a process-chain for high-volume production was conceived and had been verified by producing functional demonstrators for further testing.The container is made of two glass-fiber reinforced injection molding parts being thermally joined. The leakproofness and sufficient material strength after the joining process were identified as key challenges of the joining process and were overcome with an adapted design of the molded parts. Within the process development, reproducible and high quality weld joints were achieved based on a robust and cost-efficient joining technology. For reliable processing, the specific processing parameters were analyzed and regulations for each processing step deduced.