Composite materials play a significant role in the fields of construction and structures, and there is huge potential for development in the industrial equipment sector. Meanwhile, the downstream application areas of domestic glass fiber still need further development. According to the current focus of the composite materials industry chain, the glass fiber industry faces five development points.

Keywords: Production technology, application performance, certification

The first development point is to further improve the production technology of high-performance fibers, focus on enhancing their application performance, expand applications, and obtain certifications. Glass fiber should follow a personalized development path. Internationally, there has been a call for the industrial sector to serve the service sector, which reflects individuality, just like clothing preferences. Industry must gradually learn to follow this path. For example, in the past, glass fibers were categorized as E-glass and C-glass, with national standards set for these two types. Meeting these standards meant compliance with national standards, which represented uniformity. Now, various types of fibers have emerged, and a unified standard is no longer feasible. You may claim your length is high, but I do not need length; you may say your performance is good, but I need a different performance, which highlights the importance of individuality. Therefore, this is a trend in development. At the same time, the performance of glass fibers must also be certified. Currently, the domestic capability for glass fiber in wind turbine blades is less than half. Why is our production of glass fiber only at half domestic capacity? Only high-performance products can be used in high-end fields, and the certification process is very demanding. For instance, aerospace certification requirements are very high, and the investment in blades is substantial, with high certification requirements. Without certification, customers are reluctant to use them. Major enterprises must pay attention to this issue; the more advanced the product, the more attention must be paid to its application effects and certifications. Without certification, entry into high-tech fields is not possible.

Keywords: Prepreg, preforming

Another development point is to achieve the industrialization of prepregs and preforming in the enhancement material technology, providing convenient conditions for the molding of composite materials. In the past, a large amount of non-woven grid fabric was used for enhancers, while abroad, wall mold forming is mainly used, where composite mats are placed into a mold to create a pre-column. The industrialization of prepregs and preforming is developing rapidly abroad, but there has been no breakthrough domestically. This is a direction that needs to be extended in the development of composite materials. In these areas, domestic exploration is also ongoing. Comparatively, the carbon fiber industry is exploring better, and glass fiber must also follow this development direction. We must break through the original enhancement substrate development technology to achieve the industrialization of prepregs and preforming, providing convenience for the application of composite materials while promoting the further development of enhancement substrates.

Keywords: Coated products, coating process

The third development point is the expansion and improvement of new functional coated products. In glass fiber products, the choice of coating material is determined by the functionality of the finished product. For example, inorganic suspensions can withstand temperatures up to 900 to 1000 degrees, and after coating, they become fire-resistant products. Many enterprises now have coated products and need to develop a variety of coating materials and processes that meet functional requirements directly based on application needs, extending the application of industrial textiles.

Keywords: Thermoplastic, thermosetting

The fourth development point is to develop production lines for glass fiber reinforced thermoplastic profiles. The production speed of thermoplastics is currently faster than that of thermosetting. What is challenging about thermoplastics? It is the difficulty in mixing the plastic's viscosity with glass fiber. Practice has shown that the more uniform the mixture, the higher the content, and the longer the retention length, the better the modification effect, but the difficulty also increases. Thermosetting has developed various production processes over the years to produce a wide range of products. So how is thermoplastic manufactured? Most enterprises still use casting, but casting is easy for small parts and difficult for large parts. At the same time, the forming methods of thermosetting are also applied in the thermoplastic field. As a transitional product, I suggest first producing reinforced thermoplastic profiles, which can be made into rods, plates, pipes, and various channel shapes. These profiles are easier to connect than thermosetting ones. Additionally, thermoplastic waste can be immediately recycled, while thermosetting cannot, and we also need to solve the issues of crushing and incineration, as large amounts of incineration can cause pollution. This should also be an important direction for the glass fiber industry to promote the rapid development of FRTP.

Keywords: Scale, bidirectional cooperation

The fifth development point is that the glass fiber industry should actively cooperate with the large-scale production of FRTP products. All industrialized industries ultimately achieve scale, so without large-scale production, it is difficult to establish a foothold. For example, making an automotive part that looks one way today and another way tomorrow simply cannot be assembled. Moreover, the design is very precise, and the parts are closely fitted; even a slight increase in size is unacceptable. Therefore, for glass fiber reinforced products to develop, scale must be considered, as scale promotes industrial modernization. From a sales perspective, we also hope to have large-scale production lines to receive products, which in turn should provide high-quality specialized glass fiber for large-scale production lines. Thus, bidirectional cooperation is beneficial for achieving a win-win situation.

The industry chain's push downstream and the extension of industry work need to pay attention to the above five development points. The scope of enterprises can be determined based on their size; a company can specialize in producing one product; a company producing a category of products can focus on that category, and a company producing multiple products can select a few to excel in the application of the industry chain. These are the current key considerations for glass fiber enterprises in the composite materials industry chain.