US4944974A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Composite structures of ultra-high-molecular-weight polymers, such as ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene products, and method of producing such structures
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1988-10-26
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Granted: 1990-07-31
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Expires: 2008-10-26
Abstract
Abstract A single-phase composite structure of filamentary and non-filamentary semicrystalline morphology made from the same polymer, which is of a type capable of gelling in a suitable solvent and of being deformed into a high-modulus, high-strength product. Layers of the polymer in sheet form are interleaved with at least one layer, also of that polymer, made from filaments thereof. The method of making the product may involve heating a sheet of UHMWPE or other polymer gel (5% UHMWPE in 95% paraffin oil, by weight) to 125° C., applying a knitted UHMWPE high modulus, high-strength structure on one side thereof, extracting the non-volatile paraffin oil therefrom with hexane, and evaporating the hexane.
Inventors
- 👤 Anagnostis E. Zachariades
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-23 23:45
CPC Classifications
A; A61; A61L; A61L27/00; A61L27/14; A61L27/16; B; B32; B32B; B32B1/00; B32B1/08; A61L27/50; A61L27/507; B29; B29C; B29C43/00; B29C43/02; B29C43/20; B29C43/203; B29C55/00; B29C55/005; B29C67/00; B29C67/24; B29C70/00; B29C70/04; B29C70/28; B29C70/40; B29C70/42; B32B5/00; B32B5/02; B32B5/024; B32B5/026; B32B5/22; B32B5/24; B32B5/26; C; C08; C08J; C08J9/00; C08J9/28; A61F; A61F2/00; A61F2/0059; B29K; B29K2023/00; B29K2023/04; B29K2023/06; B29K2023/0658; B29K2023/0683; B29K2105/00; B29K2105/0058; B29K2105/0061; B29K2105/06; B29K2105/08; B29K2223/00; B29K2223/04; B29K2223/06; B29K2223/0658; B29K2223/0683; B32B2307/00; B32B2307/50; B32B2307/54; B32B2323/00; B32B2323/04; B32B2323/043; B32B2597/00; C08J2201/00; C08J2201/04; C08J2201/052; C08J2201/054; C08J2201/0542; C08J2201/0543; C08J2201/0545; C08J2201/0546; C08J2323/00; C08J2323/02; C08J2323/04; C08J2323/06; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S428/00; Y10S428/902; Y10S428/911; Y10T; Y10T428/00; Y10T428/13; Y10T428/1352; Y10T428/1362; Y10T428/1372; Y10T428/139; Y10T428/1393; Y10T428/31504; Y10T428/31855; Y10T428/31909; Y10T442/00; Y10T442/20; Y10T442/2033
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 18
Claim 1
Independent Claim
116 words
A single phase composite structure of a filamentary reinforcing component and a non-filamentary matrix component made from the same semicrystalline linear polymer with a weight average molecular weight of at least 500,000, which is capable of forming a pseudo-gel in a solvent compatible with forming such pseudo-gel and of being processed into a high modulus, and high strength fibrillar product with a tensile modulus of at least 10 GPa and a tensile strength of at least 0.5 GPa, said composite structure comprising: layers of the non-filamentary matrix component of said polymer in sheet form interleaved with at least one layer of the filamentary reinforcing component, also of said polymer, comprised of high modulus, high strength fibers.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
116 words
A single phase composite structure of a filamentary reinforcing component and a non-filamentary matrix component made from the same semicrystalline linear polymer with a weight average molecular weight of at least 500,000, which is capable of forming a pseudo-gel in a solvent compatible with forming such pseudo-gel and of being processed into a high modulus, and high strength fibrillar product with a tensile modulus of at least 10 GPa and a tensile strength of at least 0.5 GPa, said composite structure comprising: layers of the non-filamentary matrix component of said polymer in sheet form interleaved with at least one layer of the filamentary reinforcing component, also of said polymer, comprised of high modulus, high strength fibers.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
25 words
The structure of claim 1 wherein there is a single filamentary reinforcing layer of high-modulus, high strength fibers and two sheet layers of the matrix.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
27 words
The structure of claim 1 wherein there are a plurality of filamentary layers of high modulus, high strength fibers and a plurality of sheet layers of matrix.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
16 words
The structure of claim 1 wherein said structure is flat in the form of a sheet.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
15 words
The structure of claim 1 wherein said structure is in the form of a tube.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
16 words
The structure of claim 1 wherein said structure is in the form of a solid rod.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
11 words
The structure of claim 1 wherein said polymer is ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
27 words
The structure of claim 1 wherein said polymer is selected from the group consisting of ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene, isotactic polypropylene, poly(L-lactide), poly(vinyl alcohol), polyacrylonitrile, poly(ethylene terephthalate), and polyamides.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
64 words
The structure of claim 8 wherein said polymers are selected so as to form a pseudo-gel with a solvent selected from the group consisting of Decalin or paraffin oil for the polyethylene, Decalin or paraffin oil for polypropylene, chloroform for poly(L-lactide), ethylene glycol and water for poly(vinyl alcohol), methyl formamide or tetramethylene sulfone for polyacrylonitrile, nitrobenzene for poly(ethylene terephthalate), and benzyl alcohol for polyamides.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
25 words
The composite of claim 9 wherein the non-filamentary matrix component is interleaved in sheet form with at least one layer of the reinforcing fibrillar component.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
23 words
The composite of claim 9 wherein there is a plurality of reinforcing fibrillar layers and a plurality of sheet layers of non-filamentary matrix.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
18 words
The composite of claim 9 wherein the reinforcing fibrillar component is randomly dispersed in the non-filamentary matrix component.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
17 words
The structure of claim 9 wherein said structure is flat and in the form of a sheet.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
15 words
The structure of claim 9 wherein said structure is in the form of a tube.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
16 words
The structure of claim 9 wherein said structure is in the form of a solid rod.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
30 words
The structure of claim 9 wherein said polymer is ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene having a relative viscosity of 2.3 or greater, at a solution concentration of 0.05% at 135° C. in decahydronaphthalene.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
26 words
The structure of claim 9 wherein said polymer is selected from the group consisting of polyethylene, isotactic polypropylene, poly(L-lactide), poly(vinyl alcohol), polyacrylonitrile, poly(ethylene terephthalate), and polyamides.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
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US4403012A
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US4457985A
Cited
GB2133740A
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US4518647A
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1993-07-30 | 1994-01-29 | 1994-07-31 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1997-07-30 | 1998-01-29 | 1998-07-31 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2001-07-30 | 2002-01-29 | 2002-07-31 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |