Composite Materials

• Reinforced Polymer is a material formed when two or more distinctly different materials are combined together to make a new material with improved properties, for example, Carbon fibre and glass reinforced fibre plastics.
• Glass Fibre Reinforced Plastics (GRP) are plastics reinforced with glass (fibre glass), joined by polyester resin or epoxy resin, and have a good strength to weight ratio.
• Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastics (CRP) are formed from a cloth woven from individual strands, have a very high strength to weight ratio, good tensile strength but not good compressive strength, and are very expensive.
• The manufacture of Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastics (CRP) is labour intensive and is a skilled process, and it is used in sports cars, top-end sports equipment, and is being developed for prosthetic uses.
• Glass Fibre Reinforced Plastics (GRP) are used in boat hulls, canoes, car body panels and other applications where strength and lightweight are required.