The 5G era witnessed the composite material C debut

At this year's World Internet Conference, 5G has once again become a high-frequency hot word, repeatedly mentioned. 5G telemedicine, 5G human-computer interaction, 5G rescue, 5G VR video and other applications are displayed one by one. The three major operators all use the 5G communication network experience as the focus of the show. In recent years, communication has developed rapidly. In just a few years, we have witnessed the leap-forward development of 2G, 3G and 4G. Broadband China, fiber to the home, witnessed copper to fiber. From wired to wireless, Internet of Everything, big data, virtual reality, smart cities, and the need for updated technology to provide support.

5G has the characteristics of fast speed and large capacity. Communication technology is divided into two ways: wired and wireless. Wired from copper to fiber, the speed and capacity increase is huge. And 5G is focused on solving the airborne part of the wireless. From the middle school textbook we learned that the signal travels through the air through electromagnetic waves. With the development of 1G, 2G, 3G, 4G, the frequency of use is getting higher and higher, why? Because the higher the frequency, the faster the speed and the wider the frequency band. The frequency band is equivalent to the width of the road. The wider the car, the more smooth the road and the faster it runs. Common composite materials have a wide range of applications in 5G communication infrastructure.

Traditional base stations are cumbersome and tall towers, and 5G base stations are relatively small in size, which can be aesthetically pleasing and diversified. These small base stations can be fabricated from composite materials compared to conventional tall tower base stations. The outer casing of this small base station, similar to an electrical cabinet, is placed outdoors and needs to withstand wind, rain, and low temperatures, and the composite material can meet these weathering requirements.

MIMO (Multiple-Input Multiple-Output), that is, multiple input and multiple output, means that multiple antennas can be installed in one base station, and these antennas are small in size and require a radome. The radome has good electromagnetic wave penetration characteristics and is mechanically resistant to external harsh environments. Outdoor antennas are usually placed in the open air and directly affected by storms, ice, snow, dust and solar radiation in nature, resulting in reduced antenna accuracy, shortened life and poor operational reliability. The composite antenna cover can provide insulation, anti-corrosion, anti-jamming, durability and durability, and the wave transmission effect is very good.

Application of GFRP and KFRP in optical cable

5G is divided into wired and wireless, and the wired part cannot be separated from the optical fiber cable. GFRP is a glass fiber composite material, KFRP is an aramid composite material, and both materials are made into a continuous cylindrical composite material by a typical composite material process-pultrusion work, and the base resin is mostly made of a thermosetting resin such as an unsaturated resin. Epoxy resins, etc., have been reported to have thermoplastic materials as matrix resins but not many applications. GFRP/KFRP is often used as a reinforcing core in fiber optic cables. The reinforcing core has experienced three stages of steel wire reinforcement core, GFRP and KFRP.

The GFRP/KFRP reinforcement core has the following advantages:

1. Non-metallic materials are not sensitive to electric shock, and are suitable for areas with multiple lightning and rainy weather conditions;

2. The fiber optic cable using the FRP reinforcing core can be installed next to the power line and the power supply device, and is not interfered by the induced current generated by the power line or the power supply device;

3. Compared with the metal core, GFRP/KFRP does not affect the fiber transmission index due to the gas generated by the chemical reaction between the metal and the grease;

4. Compared with the metal core, FRP has the advantages of high tensile strength and light weight, bulletproof, anti-biting and anti-ant.

communication

High-rise communication towers are mostly steel structures, but corrosion is a big problem, and composite materials can solve this problem. The composite material is relatively light, and the fastener-free connection technology is used. The individual components of the tower structure can be assembled quickly, no metal bolts are needed during the assembly process, the installation is convenient, and the weight of the entire tower body is reduced.