Processing and characterization of phosphate glass fiber/polylactic acid commingled yarn composites for commercial production.

This study investigated the production of phosphate glass fiber/polylactic acid (PGF/PLA) commingled yarns, textiles and composites for biomedical applications. The PGF volume contents of the composites investigated were 25% and 40%. Plain weave textiles with yarn counts of 10 warp/cm and 6 weft/cm were produced using a commercial weaving machine. An orthogonal array design (OAD) was employed as a statistical method to investigate the effects of compression molding parameters (processing temperature, preheating time, compression time, and pressure) on flexural strength and porosity of PGF/PLA textile composites. Processing temperature showed the most significant effect in achieving maximum laminate flexural strength and molecular weight of PLA. Processing models were developed using regression techniques to predict the laminate flexural strength and the molecular weight of PLA. Composites with fiber contents of 25 and 40 vol% produced using optimized processing conditions identified by the processing models, provided flexural strengths of 236 MPa and 293 MPa, respectively.