PVB-based sacrificial tackifier for CMC
A tackified ceramic fabric sheet includes a pre-preg layer having a fabric of woven ceramic tows and a tackifier compound surrounding the tows and comprising 15% to 60% polyvinyl butyral with ethanol. The sheet further includes a removable first backing film layer on a first side of the pre-preg layer.
1. A tackified ceramic fabric sheet comprising:
a pre-preg layer consisting of:
a fabric of woven ceramic tows, the fabric being at least one of a 16 ends-per-inch or 16 picks-per inch fabric; and
a tackifier compound surrounding the tows and comprising 15 wt % to 60 wt % polyvinyl butyral with a remainder of the compound being ethanol; and
a removable first backing film layer on a first side of the pre-preg layer.
2. The sheet of claim 1 and further comprising: a removable second backing film layer on a second side of the pre-preg layer opposite the first side.
3. The sheet of claim 1 , wherein the woven ceramic tows comprise silicon carbide.
4. The sheet of claim 1 , wherein the fabric of woven ceramic tows has a harness woven architecture.
5. The sheet of claim 1 , wherein the tackifier compound comprises 30 wt % to 40 wt % polyvinyl butyral.
6. The sheet of claim 1 , wherein the pre-preg layer has a thickness ranging from 0.004 in to 0.015 in.