Here's a 'New' Old Name in Long-Fiber Compounds.

No longer content to be the "best-kept secret" in long-fiber reinforced thermoplastics, the MTI Thermoplastic Composites div. of Montsinger Technologies Inc., Matthews, N.C., is seeking recognition as the world's third largest producer of such materials. MIT has sold ThermoStran long-fiber products to a small group of customers for 11 years.

MTI's ThermoStran materials are produced in a continuous melt pultrusion process. It uses a patented counterflow die design in which melt is pumped in a direction opposite to that of fiber movement, thereby inducing shear to lower the resin viscosity and enhance fiber wet-out. (The process is available for licensing.) MTI produces pellets from 0.3 to 2 in. long with rovings of glass, carbon, aramid, or stainless steel and matrix resins of PP, nylon, polycarbonate, TPU, PPA, PET, PPS, PEI, PES, or PEEK. A recent development allows the company to produce compounds with a lower-cost textile grade of carbon fiber (48K tow) instead of aerospace grade (12K tow). Carbon fibers are, used in both structural compounds and conductive long-fiber concentrates for EMI/RFI shielding and ESD protection.

Montsinger Technologies also produces continuous reels of thermoplastic prepreg tape and makes custom profile shapes.