Ultra‐lightweight 3D woven spacer integrated composites with stabilization of dielectric and robust mechanical properties at room and elevated temperatures

Abstract

AbstractPolymer matrix composites with lightweight, low dielectric constant (ε) and dielectric loss tangent (tan δ), high‐temperature resistance, and excellent mechanical properties are urgently needed in the fields of aviation, aerospace, transportation, and wireless communication services. In this work, 3D woven spacer Kevlar/polyimide composites (3DKPC) with excellent dielectric properties and robust mechanical properties were designed and obtained by combining 3D weaving technology and thermal imidization process. Results show that the volume density of the prepared composites is as low as 0.24 g·cm−3, but its compressive strength can be up to 6.24 MPa. The dielectric constant and loss tangent of 3DKPC at room temperature are extremely low, with the value of ~1.32 and 6.9 × 10−3, respectively. Moreover, the compressive strength retention rate is more than 96% and the dielectric constant can be consistently lower than 1.36 when the temperature increases from 25 to 300°C, demonstrating the outstanding mechanical and dielectric stability of 3DKPC. In addition, as an application example of resulting composites, a microstrip antenna with 3DKPC as the substrate material was designed, followed by the simulation of its electromagnetic properties via High Frequency Structural Simulator. The results display that the gain of the microstrip antenna is 6.2 dB, which is superior to those of many other reported microstrip antennas, indicating that the 3DKPC proposed here has great application potential in aerospace, wireless communication, and other fields.