HexMC® User Guide

Publication No. HTI 303 ®Hexcel Registered Trademark ©Hexcel Corporation

HexMC® USER GUIDE This document is intended as a guide to introduce HexMC® material and to assist the potential users in showing its benefits and how it is processed, its properties and the potential applications. Although great care has been taken to include as much detail as possible, every application is unique and should be thoroughly reviewed with your local Hexcel Sales and Technical Support Engineer. Material Description UD prepreg precursor Random distribution • UD prepreg tape • HexPly® M77 resin system • High strength carbon fibre • 62% fibre weight content • Prepreg is slit and chopped...

HexMC® M77 is a high performance carbon epoxy material designed for compression moulding: • Complex 3D net shaped parts - Thickness variation - Sharp angles, Stiffeners, Co-moulded inserts - Reinforced with continuous fibre material • HexMC® technology bridges low performance/low cost SMC and high performance/high cost of autoclave/ prepreg • Cure from 2 minutes - 150° C (depending of part design). • Co-curing possible with UD tape or continuous fibre in prepreg form — including HexPly® M77 fast curing system - to locally reinforce highly loaded parts • Zero % waste achievable • Attractive cosmetic...

HexMC® USER GUIDE Mechanical Properties Test methods Tensile Short Beam Shear Poisson's ratio HexMC® Properties Density and Specific Tensile Modulus

• Compression moulding • Rough lay-up/preforming • Press process • Metallic moulds • Constant temperature level Mould design and technology are the same as for Sheet Moulding Compound processing. Due to the high pressure level needed to use HexMC®, only metallic moulds can be used to support the compression moulding process: A Steel mould is useful for high volume production rates. It is recommended to apply a surface treatment in order to increase the surface hardness. The surface can be also nickel or chrome plated for optimum surface finish. An Aluminum mould can also be used for prototyping...

Depending on the required part shape, 2 main kinds of mould charges can be used: • 3D charges are mainly used for very complex 3D parts from small to medium size. • 2D charges are used for flat parts that require better mechanical performance. Larger parts can be achieved. Examples: Thin part with 2D charge (black) Complex 3D part with 3D charge (green) Once the charge type has been determined, it is easy to work out the quantity to be inserted into the mould. From your CAD file, the right volume of the part can be calculated and then, it needs to be multiplied by the final HexMC® density (1.55)....

The charge is now placed inside the compression mould. Under temperature and pressure, the material flows and fills the mould, and then it will cure. Thanks to the high Tg of HexMC® M77 the part can be demoulded immediately after curing from the hot mould. As the mould stays permanently at the same temperature this saves a lot of time during production. The cure cycles listed below are not exhaustive and can be easily adapted depending on the part shape. As Hexcel provides a range of HexPly® prepregs with the same M77 resin as the HexMC® product, HexMC® can be combined and co-cured with carbon...

HexMC® USER GUIDE Quick Processing Guide 1/ Cut the material 2/ Weigh the material to the required mass 3/ Make the charge as defined 4/ Introduce the charge into the hot mold 5/ Close the mould by applying pressure 6/ Cure the material for the appropriate time 7/ Open the mould and remove the part (no need to cool) 8/ Finish the part with slight grinding of the edges to remove the flash of resin

All information is believed to be accurate but is given without acceptance of liability. Users should make their own assessment of the suitability of any product for the purposes required. All sales are made subject to our standard terms of sale which include limitations on liability and other important terms. Hexcel is a leading worldwide supplier of composite Our comprehensive product range includes: ■ Carbon, glass, aramid and hybrid prepregs materials to aerospace and other demanding industries. ■ HexTOOL® composite tooling material ■ Structural Film Adhesives For US quotes, orders and product...

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