Zylon® (PBO)
Also known as: PBO fibre, Poly-p-phenylene-benzobisoxazole
PBO high-performance fibre from Toyobo, about 1.6 times stronger than Kevlar®, used in Formula 1, aerospace and technical composites.
Description
Zylon® is the Japanese manufacturer Toyobo's trade name for fibres of poly(p-phenylene-2,6-benzobisoxazole) (PBO). Developed at SRI International in the 1980s, PBO is among the stiffest and strongest organic fibres known.
Typical values are tensile strength around 5.8 GPa and modulus around 270 GPa — higher than that of steel. Zylon® is used for Formula 1 cockpit panels, wheel tether cables, parachute risers (SpaceX Crew Dragon), reinforcement in concrete construction and in speaker cones. Downside: the fibre is very UV- and moisture-sensitive; after incidents with US police vests (2003) Zylon® was decertified for ballistic body armour.
- PBO, aromatic heterocyclic polymer
- Made by Toyobo (Japan)
- Tensile strength approx. 5.8 GPa, modulus approx. 270 GPa
- Motorsport, aerospace, reinforcement
Rarely used in apparel proper, but important for technical textiles.
Properties
| Fibre class | PBO (polyoxazole) |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Toyobo (Japan) |
| Tensile strength | approx. 5800 MPa |
| Modulus | approx. 270 GPa |
Related product categories
Sources & references
1- Wikipedia: Zylon Wikipedia — Freie Enzyklopädie https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zylon
