Semi-consolidated thermoplastic tapes were produced by spreading flax and polypropylene matrix fibres using a newly developed technology. This lightweight tape was structurally stable and contained 38% flax fibres by volume. The tapes were processed in unidirectional and woven fabric format for composite fabrication. We found that the flax/PP tape-based composites had 60-110% higher flexural modulus and 35-65% higher tensile modulus compared to flax/PP yarn based thermoplastics. Thermoanalytical results showed that the heating conditions used in the tape-making process did not degrade the flax fibres and PP matrix. We conclude that such semi-consolidated flax/PP tapes enable the achievement of properties not seen before for yarn-based composites, and therefore are an important step forward in optimising the reinforcing effect of natural fibres in composite applications.

通过使用新开发的技术散布亚麻纤维和聚丙烯基体纤维来生产半固结热塑性胶带。该轻质带在结构上是稳定的，并且包含按体积计38％的亚麻纤维。将带以单向和机织织物形式进行加工以进行复合加工。我们发现，与基于亚麻/ PP纱线的热塑性塑料相比，基于亚麻/ PP胶带的复合材料的弯曲模量高60-110％，拉伸模量高35-65％。热分析结果表明，在制带过程中使用的加热条件不会使亚麻纤维和PP基体降解。我们得出结论，这种半固结的亚麻/ PP胶带可以实现基于纱线的复合材料前所未有的性能，