The recycling of thermoset-based composites is challenging. The replacement of thermosetting resins with thermoplastics is an initial step to address this issue, together with the use of green reinforcements. Owing to the recent development of low-viscosity thermoplastic resins, it is possible to produce thermoplastic matrix composites using the resin transfer molding (RTM) technique, which was originally conceived for the production of thermosetting matrix composites. These resins are based on cyclic esters, methyl methacrylate, and cyclic (butylene terephthalate) oligomers. This review presents the state-of-the-art works reported on the production of thermoplastic matrix composites via a thermoplastic RTM (TP-RTM) process, from the in situ polymerization of the resins through the optimization of the TP-RTM parameters for the evaluation of the composite properties.

Poly(L-Lactide) (PLLA) is a semi-crystalline biopolymer of great interest due to its biosourced, biocompatible and compostable nature. However, its brittleness prevents its use in a wide range of applications. In order to reinforce PLLA, it is often used in polymer blends or in composites. In this contribution, an unprecedented family of PLLA-based / glass fabrics composites with poly(L-lactide-co--caprolactone) statistical copolymers as the matrix is reported. These biocomposites were produced in one step synthesis by in situ copolymerization of L-lactide and -caprolactone in Thermoplastic Resin Transfer Molding (TP-RTM) process. These materials display high matrix/fabrics wettability along with strong rubbery character.