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TABLE OF CONTENTS
COLUMNS FEATURES
4 From the Editor 20 Analysis: Opportunities,
CW Editor-in-chief Jeff Sloan advocates challenges for composites
educating the next generation on all levels
of future career opportunities — especially in future aircraft
18
in composites. As the commercial aerospace sector prepares
for a new round of major program launches, the
6 Perspectives & Provocations question of where and how composites will be
How does the infrastructure industry applied weighs heavily on the supply chain.
— and composites in particular — combat CW's staff writers provide their analyses of
more frequent severe weather events and the aerospace market.
tidal flooding in coastal communities? By Jeff Sloan, Ginger Gardiner and
Columnist Dale Brosius documents the
Scott Francis
beginnings of that dialogue.
30 Tooling technologies
26 positioned for speed,
control
Tooling is one of the most rapidly evolving
» DEPARTMENTS segments of the composites industry, as new
technologies and processes like 3D printing,
10 Trends OOA infusion and thermoplastic composites
36 Applications reshape how molds are made.
37 Calendar By Michael LeGault
38 New Products
42 Marketplace
42 Ad Index
30
43 Showcase
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INNOVATIVE … IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT.
» My wife is a high school history teacher (U.S. history) who is susceptible to the kind of impulsive, rash, uninformed decision-
highly engaged with her students. One of the things she likes to making that begs for parental guidance. Still, when it comes to
do is organize out-of-school trips to explore local and regional sending our kids to college, we expect them to have a crystal clear
history, and it’s not unusual for me to tag along and provide chap- sense of the major they want to pursue and, by extension, the
erone and general spousal support services, particularly if the career they will have. This is not a reasonable expectation.
group of students is large. If you could talk to your high school self today, what would
Whenever possible, I like to talk to these students about their he or she tell you about his or her interests, abilities or under-
interests, likes, dislikes, extracurricular activities, etc. As you can standing of the working world? What did you think your path
imagine, and as you probably know, the younger the student would be? Did you know then what it meant to be an operator,
is, the less concrete and formed the answers to these questions engineer, quality control manager, operations manager, vice pres-
are. By the time these ident, owner, entrepreneur or designer? Did you even imagine
students hit senior year, that you would be working in an industry that makes composite
During this time of however, thoughts about parts and structures? What, ultimately, was the path that brought
year, I am particularly life beyond high school you to where you are?
evangelical about the become much more real and Possibly one of the best things we can do for students like my
composites industry. urgent. Campuses are visited, wife’s, before we launch them into the abyss that is the college
colleges are applied to, schol- experience, is to first help them see that there is not one post-
arships are pursued. All of this high school path, but myriad paths, many of which don’t pass
activity comes to a head in late April/early May as students make anywhere near a college campus. Second, we should, when
their final decisions about where they will go. It’s a tense time, possible, give them a chance to experience an actual profes-
with many students balancing the prospect of attending their sional work environment, to understand what it means to be
“dream” school against the reality of the cost of that dream. an operator, engineer, designer or vice president — or nurse
During this time of year, I am particularly evangelical about or attorney or journalist, for that matter. We want, ultimately,
the composites industry. If I learn that one of my wife’s students students to come to their avocations — to the composites industry
has an interest in science or engineering, I will make an effort to — as informed as possible about the environment they are
give him or her a speech about the great potential of composite entering. And we want them to come because they see for them-
materials and manufacturing and encourage pursuit of a career in selves the opportunities and challenges that this industry has to
this industry. To paraphrase: “I have just one word to say to you: offer — not just because Mr. Sloan said so.
Composites.” I then launch into my elevator pitch about compos-
ites use in aircraft, spacecraft, cars and trucks, wind turbines,
sporting goods, etc. “The future is bright!,” I say. I figure that
on a very good day, about 10% of what I say to these students is
absorbed, with an even smaller chance that my advice will lead
to action. On a typical day, I figure these students think I’m a little
crazy. “Sure, Mr. Sloan.”
This is an odd time in the life of an 18-year-old. Legally, these JEFF SLOAN — Editor-In- Chief
graduating seniors are adults, in the eyes of the world capable of
making their own decisions and leading their own lives without
parental supervision. The truth, however, is that they are still kids,
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PERSPECTIVES & PROVOCATIONS
» The Composites Index moved higher in April to a reading of 54.4, up from 52.6 in March ABOUT THE AUTHOR
2019, thanks to strong acceleration in new orders activity. The latest Index reading is 12.1% lower
Michael Guckes is the chief
compared to the same month one year ago, indicating slowing growth within the industry over economist for Gardner
the past year. Index readings above 50 indicate expanding business activity, while a value of 50 Intelligence, a division of
indicates no change and a reading below 50 indicates contracting business activity. Gardner Gardner Business Media
(Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.). He
Intelligence’s review of the underlying data indicates that the Index was propelled by new orders, has performed economic analysis, modeling
production, supplier deliveries and employment. The Index — calculated as an average — was and forecasting work for nearly 20 years in a
pulled lower by backlogs and exports; however, only exports contracted during the month. wide range of industries. Guckes received his
BA in political science and economics from
April marked the highest reading for new orders activity in a year, while simultaneously, Kenyon College and his MBA from Ohio State
exports posted its lowest reading since mid-2016. The combination of total new orders expansion University. mguckes@gardnerweb.com
and contracting exports implies that domestic demand for fabricated goods more than offset
shrinking global demand, according to the survey data. The surge in new orders during April is
assumed to have aided backlogs that expanded in April after posting a sharp contraction in the
prior month.
GBI: Composites Fabricating — New Orders and Exports Total new orders grow
65 (3-month moving average) despite contracting
exports
60
April’s exports reading was the lowest
55 since mid-2016; however, strong expansion
in domestic new orders helped the
50 industry sustain expanding production and
employment.
45
New Orders
40 Exports
1/13 7/13 1/14 7/14 1/15 7/15 1/16 7/16 1/17 7/17 1/18 7/18 1/19
PRESENTED BY
Produced by
AEROSPACE
Walking through the symposium’s exhibition floor, a of the start of the Apollo program as the nation looks to
sense of commercial space’s role in the national space return to the Moon within five years. In the meantime, the
program was palpable. Small satellite launchers like Rocket U.S. is competing with aggressive space programs from rival
Lab (Huntington Beach, Calif., U.S.) had a large presence nations — China reportedly launched one-third of the world’s
in the main exhibit hall. Crew members of Virgin Galactic total space missions during 2018. A whole new race for space
Spaceship Two’s second spaceflight were presented with dominance is clearly on. If competition breeds innovation, the
their Commercial Astronaut Wings by the Federal Aviation stage seems to be set for commercial space’s role to continue
Administration (FAA), and Virgin Galactic founder Richard to grow, offering plenty of opportunity for aerospace manu-
Branson was presented the Space Achievement award at facturers. Carbon fiber and advanced materials obviously have
the event’s closing dinner. a large role to play — it will be exciting to see how composites
Engines and various components enable this next giant leap for humanity.
(including many composite ones
such as payload fairings and pressure
vessels) that play roles in such launch
systems as the SLS and the Vulcan
Centaur rocket were on display. Various
mock-ups of the Orion spacecraft and READY TO SHIP:
the Gateway lunar base were featured composite routers
in booths of companies contributing
technology to the programs. Numerous
companies announced new intiatives
— many of them offering some insight
into the role composites play in today’s
space race.
United Launch Alliance (ULA,
Centennial, Colo., U.S.) reported contin-
ued progress on the manufacture of its
Vulcan Centaur launch vehicle, sched-
uled for launch in 2021. ULA plans to
begin flying Vulcan hardware on Atlas
V rockets during 2019 in order to gain
flight experience before the next-
generation launcher debuts. Out-of-
autoclave manufactured composite
payload fairings from RUAG (Bern,
Switzerland) will be among the first
Vulcan technology to fly on Atlas V.
RUAG also signed a contract with
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI, Tokyo,
Japan) during the Space Symposium.
RUAG will supply composite payload
fairings and supporting stuctures for THE RIGHT TOOL…RIGHT NOW!
Mitsubishi’s H3 launch vehicle for three
resupply missions to the International
Space Station.
An update on the James Webb
Space Telescope was presented by
project manager Bill Ochs, project
head Dr. Massimo Stiavelli and Scott
Willoughby, Northrop Grumman
Aerospace Systems vice president. Some of our most popular designs are now in stock,
The telescope employs carbon fiber ready to ship when you need them.
composites to support its Optical
Telescope Element (OTE), and also in
Visit www.AMAMCOTool.com/ready_to_ship.
its Space Craft Element (SCE) which Or call: 800.833.2239
includes an integrated heat shield and
spacecraft bus.
This year marks the 50th anniversary
CompositesWorld.com 11
TRENDS
AUTOMOTIVE
ANTEC attracted a global audience estimated at 1,226 — including packaging, building and construction, and
people to watch 438 regular presentations, keynotes, transportation — whose topics, SPE notes, were designed
plenary talks and panel discussions in 67 technical sessions to focus on big-picture issues and to answer questions
over four days. Additionally, SPE’s sixth-annual Plastics currently being asked within the plastics community.
for Life parts competition displayed novel plastic and The negative impact of news and social media on the
composite parts from a number of industries that already plastics industry over the problem of “mismanaged plas-
had won competitions held by SPE divisions/sections the tic waste,” which tends to end up in bodies of water, was
previous year. Those parts were then voted on by a commit- prominent in the program, including multiple sessions on
tee of judges, with winners announced in six categories: Bioplastics, Sustainability and Ocean Plastics, plus a plenary
Protecting Life, Improving Life, Sustaining Life, Quality talk on Tuesday morning by Steve (continued on p. 14)
of Life, as well as Grand Prize and
People’s Choice awards (the latter
selected by conference attendees). A
student poster competition attracted • Over 40 types of
W yoming
56 students from 43 schools in 24 fixtures in stock,
countries to showcase their latest ready to be shipped.
T est
research and get valuable networking • Expert consultation
experience with industry profession- with Drs. Dan and
als. In addition, a number of special Don Adams
F ixtures
events Sunday through Wednesday • Email or call today to
provided ample networking opportu- discuss your fixture and
nities for students and professionals INC. custom design needs.
alike.
Sessions in the INSPIRE portion
of this year’s ANTEC covered a
PICTURE FRAME SHEAR
variety of technical and business
topics including Applied Rheology,
Technical Entrpreneurship Bootcamp, ASTM D 8067
Product Design and Failure Analysis,
Decorating and Assembly, Color and
Test Fixture for
Appearance, Joining and Moldmaking Composite Laminates
Technology. There were sessions on
Composites, Polymer Modifiers and and Sandwich Panels
Additives, Scratch and Wear Behavior
of Polymers, and four Injection
IN STOCK
Molding tracks covering Product
Design and Development, Simulation,
Materials and Processing. There
were three sessions dealing with
the Structure-Property Relationship,
including one for Composites, one
for Polymers and a final for Blends,
plus a tutorial on Fundamentals of
Custom Fabric
Structure-Property Relationships.”
Two other tutorials — on Additive Test Fixture
Manufacturing/3D Printing and
Polymer Additives — rounded out other custom
the program. Topics involving mobil-
ity were well represented, including
options available
sessions on Automotive Materials
Development, Automotive Process
Developments, Automotive TPO
Materials Development, and a more Dr. Donald F. Adams 2960 E. Millcreek Canyon Road
general Transportation session.
President Salt Lake City, UT 84109
An additional INSIGHT segment
50 years of Phone (801) 484.5055
Composite Testing Experience Fax (801) 484.6008
featured keynotes and panel discus-
sions covering some of the plas-
email: wtf@wyomingtestfixtures.com
tics industry’s largest industries
www.wyomingtestfixtures.com
CompositesWorld.com 13
TRENDS
COMPOSITES
CALL FOR
LMT ONSRUD Visit www.onsrud.com
for more information
800-234-1560
CompositesWorld.com 15
TRENDS
MONTH IN REVIEW
Notes about newsworthy events recently covered on the CW website. For more
information about an item, key its link into your browser. Up-to-the-minute news |
www.compositesworld.com/news/list
Mars Helicopter completes flight tests Stratolaunch aircraft completes first flight
NASA plans to send the Mars Helicopter as a technology demonstrator along On April 13, the world’s largest composite aircraft flew for 149 minutes
with the Mars 2020 rover which is planned for launch in July 2020. in its initial flight test.
4/2/19 | short.compositesworld.com/Marsflight 4/14/19 | short.compositesworld.com/SL_flies
RUAG Space to supply composite payload fairings for H3 launch vehicle Markforged to build European headquarters in Dublin, Ireland
The contract includes manufacturing of composite payload fairings and payload The Dublin headquarters is expected to hire 100 new employees and serve as
supporting structures for the H3 launch vehicle by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. phase one for the 3D printer manufacturer’s global growth initiative.
4/10/19 | short.compositesworld.com/RUAG_H3 4/17/19 | short.compositesworld.com/3D_Dublin
UAMMI receives federal funds to grow advanced materials cluster
Emery launches 3D-printed eBike frame
The Utah Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Initiative will use the funding
The Emery ONE, the world’s first 3D-printed eBike, was developed in
to support small materials and manufacturing businesses in Utah.
collaboration with Arevo, Franco Bicycles and Bosch.
4/18/19 | short.compositesworld.com/UAMMIfunds
4/10/19 | short.compositesworld.com/3Dbike
Gurit acquires Valplastic PET recycling operation
Turkish Aerospace Industries to build new aircraft composite part plant
Gurit will acquire PET recycling production facilities from Valplastic S.r.l., with the
Turkish Aerospace Industries’ 95,000-square-meter smart factory for structural
goal of securing access to raw material supplies for its PET core products.
aircraft parts will reportedly become the world’s fourth-largest composite plant.
4/18/19 short.compositesworld.com/GuritPET
4/12/19| short.compositesworld.com/TAI_plant
PREPREG
FILAMENT WINDING
Event Highlights:
IACMI delivers innovative program content to drive the next big ideas in advanced composites manufacturing.
Speakers from industry, academia, national labs, and government will present latest achievements, opportunities
for collaboration, and share knowledge of leading-edge research.
Highlights include:
— Tours of the National Wind Technology Center at NREL — IACMI intern poster session and presentations
— Facility ribbon cutting and tours at Vartega — Networking reception at the Wings Over the Rockies
— Technical project results and outcomes Air and Space Museum
» A novel carbon fiber product designed and sized to improve the performance of
sheet molding compound (SMC) has been commercialized by Zoltek Corp., a Toray
Group company (Bridgeton, Mo., U.S.). The patented, pre-spread fiber, called
PX35 KS, is scored as the tow band is produced, converting a 50K tow product
into 3K sub-bundles, which, in turn, are spooled and supplied as a multi-end
tow. Once the pre-scored tow is fed into a chopper unit and the tow’s fiber
length is cut, it falls apart into the 3K sub-bundles as it is compounded into the
SMC dough. Reportedly this improves fiber handling, dispersion and wetout,
and provides a more uniform fiber bed that improves the flow of the composite
during compression molding.
“The benefit of improved dispersion is that it allows manufacturers to use a
lower-cost carbon fiber while achieving the higher properties typically seen by a
smaller tow,” notes Christopher Thomas, Zoltek automotive business director-Americas.
“You essentially pay for the cost of 50K [automotive-quality tow], but you get the perfor-
mance of 3K [aerospace-quality tow],” adds Tobias Potyra, Zoltek automotive business
director-Europe.
Zoltek, which is known for its large-tow, low-cost carbon fiber, developed the new
product in Japan to address the challenge of dispersing large fiber bundles, especially in
thixotropic polymer systems like SMC. “The concept was that separating the large tow into
smaller tow sizes would provide for better dispersion at the cutter,” continues Thomas.
He adds that sampling to select customers in Europe and North America has ramped up
over the last year-and-a-half to two years, where it’s being evaluated for both structural
and appearance parts. “The customers who’ve trialed the product have seen its benefits
firsthand,” he adds. Not surprisingly, the primary market for which the split-tow product
was developed is automotive, although reportedly any SMC compounder or molder could
benefit from the approach taken with PX35 KS.
In terms of SMC resin materials, the new split-tow
Pre-splitting for product has been tested in three single-resin systems:
SMC reinforcement vinyl ester, epoxy and urethane matrices. Unsaturated
Zoltek is taking its popular PX35 polyester matrices were not investigated, since the
50K tow carbon fiber product presence of carbon fiber reinforcement already indi-
and pre-splitting it into 3K tow
cated the formulations would be used in higher temper-
sub-bundles as the tow band is
made. The product is then spooled ature environments and/or in applications whose load
and supplied as a multi-end tow to cases required higher mechanical performance. The
reinforce SMC (top photo). There’s vinyl ester formulations were described as solvated (as
a dramatic difference in the size opposed to hot-melt) systems, although they ranged
of fiber bundles after chopping
from conventionally styrenated, to reduced styrene/
PX35 50K tow product (middle) vs.
the new split-tow PX35 KS grade volatile-organic compound (VOC), to no styrene/VOC
(bottom), which falls apart into systems. Reportedly, the same dispersion improve-
finer, less clumpy 3K bundles. ments were seen in each of the resin systems.
Source (all photos) | Zoltek Corp. The product has not yet been evaluated in any other
Tensile strength (MPa) for regular vs. split-tow carbon fiber in epoxy SMC Tensile strength (MPa) for regular vs. split-tow carbon fiber in vinyl ester SMC
(FVF normalized to 45%) (FVF normalized to 45%)
300 283 290
282
250 280
224
270
200
260
150 250
238
100 240
230
50 220
0 210
PX35 50K regular-tow PX35 50K split-tow PX35 50K regular-tow PX35 KS split-tow
PX35O5015T-13 PX35O5015T-13 PX35Q5015T-17 PX3505015T-72
Epoxy Epoxy Vinyl ester Vinyl ester
Tensile modulus (GPa) for regular vs. split-tow carbon fiber in epoxy SMC
(FVF normalized to 45%) Tensile modulus (GPa) for regular vs. split-tow carbon fiber in vinyl ester SMC
33 33 (FVF normalized to 45%)
35
30 38 37.8
25 37.5
20 37
15 36.5 36.2
10 36
5 35.5
0 35
PX35 50K regular-tow PX35KS split-tow PX35 50K regular-tow PX35 50K regular-tow
PX35Q5015T-13 PX35Q5015K-13 PX3505015T-72 PX35O5015K-72
Epoxy Epoxy Vinyl ester Vinyl ester
Comparing properties of regular and split-tow Comparing properties of regular and split-tow
carbon fiber with epoxy SMC matrix carbon fiber with vinyl ester SMC matrix
The new split-tow product (PX35KS) was tested against the baseline (PX35 The same procedure used to test the epoxy matrix was followed with a vinyl
50K) product from which it is made in an epoxy SMC matrix (FVF normalized to ester matrix (FVF normalized to 45%). In this case, tensile strength for the split-
45%). Then test plaques were molded, specimens were cut, and tensile strength tow product increased from 238 to 282, a 44 MPa increase. In the case of tensile
and modulus values were measured and compared for both materials. The split- modulus, the split-tow product saw an increase from 36.2 to 37.8 GPa.
tow product saw an increase in tensile strength of almost 59 MPa (from 224 to
283 MPa) — likely owing to better wetout — although tensile modulus did not
change (staying at 33 GPa), since FVF did not change.
thermoset or thermoplastic chemistries, nor has it been tried in PX35 KS is based on Zoltek’s popular PX35 50K fiber. “PX35 KS is
other forming systems beyond compression molding. “Although addressing and matching industrial needs in terms of availability
the fiber was developed for SMC and is available with a sizing for and pricing but we, of course, also offer our standard 50K product
SMC resins, we see a potential for applying the technology to other for some applications at a slightly lower price,” notes Potyra. “In the
processing technologies and resin types — possibly even thermo- end, we will let the market decide.”
plastics,” explains Potyra. Zoltek officials did not say whether there would be other variants
“However, we have not on the product with either finer or coarser tow sizes, although
yet tested it in those they did add that further evaluations would continue. Unofficially,
Read this article online |
short.compositesworld.com/splittowCF systems because we first the “KS” in the product’s name is reportedly an abbreviation for
wanted to implement “kassen,” the Japanese word for “split.”
this fiber type in SMC
successfully before we expanded its use to other technologies.”
No significant changes to the chopper are said to be needed
with the new product, although some other process modifications
Contributing writer Peggy Malnati covers the automotive and
might optimize the dispersion. “The design of SMC lines can vary, infrastructure beats for CW and provides communications
so technical assistance is available from Zoltek to help with fiber services for plastics- and composites-industry clients.
handling, dispersion, sizings and the like,” adds Thomas. peggy@compositesworld.com
CompositesWorld.com 19
Analysis:
Opportunities,
challenges for
composites
in future aircraft
As the commercial aerospace sector
prepares for a new round of major
program launches, the question of where
and how composites will be applied
weighs heavily on the supply chain.
Large, high-volume
infused composite
structures
CW Editor-in-chief Jeff Sloan writes
about the future of using infusion for
large aircraft structures in commercial
aircraft. Shown here, the wing of the
single-aisle Airbus A220, infused
and consolidated by Bombardier
Aerostructures and Engineering
Services in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Source | Teijin
composite wings for the 777X using the latest fiber and tape place- New processes, hybrid materials
ment technology from Electroimpact (Mukilteo, Wash., U.S.), as Ginger Gardiner, senior editor
well as the world’s largest autoclaves (from ASC Process Systems, The majority of composites production in the aerospace industry
Valencia, Calif., U.S.). That much capital equipment investment today involves carbon fiber-reinforced thermoset epoxy prepreg
almost demands application to more than one aircraft program. made with hand layup for smaller, secondary structures (shown in
Further, Boeing has in Charleston, S.C., U.S., substantial composite CW’s July 2018 Aerospace Tours supplement) or automated fiber
fuselage manufacturing capability (automated fiber/tape place- and tape placement (AFP, ATL) for larger, primary structures. The
ment), which could be expanded to the NMA. latter was highlighted in my tour of STELIA Aerospace (Méaulte,
Our biggest clue, however, might be the timeline: With a poten- France) and its production of Airbus A350 fuselage panels (see p.
tial launch in 2020 and a planned entry into service in 2025, and 14 of the supplement). For the next generation of aircraft, at least
assuming substantial composites use, Boeing does not have time in Europe, this preponderance of prepreg is already changing. The
to qualify new materials or processes. The fully qualified and advance is on multiple fronts, including resin transfer molding
in-service prepregs used on the 787 and the 777X from Toray (RTM), thermoplastic composites, hybrid metal-composite struc-
Composite Materials America (Tacoma, Wash., U.S.) will serve tures and 3D-printed parts in metal, plastic and composites.
the NMA just fine. And it might serve a 737 replacement just fine RTM is already flying via the main fitting for Airbus A330/A340
as well, particularly if Boeing does, in fact, leverage manufac- spoilers. FACC (Ried im Innkreis, Austria) developed the process
turing and supply chain advantages from NMA production for a and then refined it for the A350 spoilers (see Learn More). The A350
cleansheet 737. On the other hand, a 737 replacement in develop- passenger doors and surrounding door frames (in the fuselage) are
ment in the early to mid 2020s could benefit substantially from
innovation in composite material and fabrication technology,
thereby opening the door for thermoplastic composites and out-
of-autoclave (OOA) manufacturing processes.
Airbus, meanwhile, is moving aggressively to evolve several
composites technologies, including resin infusion and ther-
moplastic composites fabrication. This effort is being directed
by Airbus through its Composites Technology Center (CTC) in
Stade, Germany, with some of the infusion work being done at the
National Composites Centre in Bristol, U.K.
Regardless of the material or technology that wins the day on
replacements of the 737 or A320, one major hurdle to be cleared
will be rate. The production volumes being quoted by Boeing and
Airbus for these planes is 60-100 per month. That’s two planes
per day, at minimum. Can composites manufacturing processes
be matured quickly enough to meet this rate affordably and effi-
ciently? Consensus seems to be that, if given three or so years,
HP-RTM for serial production of CFRP aerostructures
infusion has a fighting chance, enabled mainly by the component
CW Senior Editor Ginger Gardiner writes about how manufacturers of aerospace
integration it enables. In any case, the next decade is shaping up parts are using automotive best practices to produce higher-volume, cost-effec-
to be among the most active and interesting for the aerocompos- tive parts. Shown here, this HP-RTM tooling for an aerospace demonstrator door
ites industry. frame was designed and built by Alpex Technologies. Source | Alpex Technologies
CompositesWorld.com 21
FEATURE / Next-Gen Aerospace
also made using RTM by Airbus Helicopters in Donauworth, Germany. This technology
has now been advanced via a high-pressure RTM (HP-RTM) A350 door frame, demon-
strated by Airbus Helicopter and Alpex Technologies (Mils, Austria), achieving a 30%
cost reduction and using a two-part resin as well as in-mold cure sensors (see p. 48 of
the supplement). Airbus’ Composites Technology Center (CTC) has also demonstrated
HP-RTM parts sized 1-2 meters with 60% fiber volume, less than 2% voids and a cycle
time of 20 minutes. CTC has worked with Airbus suppliers to identify a number of parts
— many including numerous carbon fiber composite components per shipset — that
are being transitioned to HP-RTM this year to meet higher A320 production rates. A lot
of these parts are produced manually, so the more automated HP-RTM process offers
significant efficiency improvements.
STELIA Aerospace also has developed resin infusion and RTM, pursuing industrial-
ized production of large, closed-box structures such as wing components, horizontal
tail planes and vertical tail planes. Though its current production of A350 fuselage
shells involves autoclave-cured prepreg, the process is highly automated. STELIA’s
Factory of the Future initiative, started five years ago to meet ramps in A320 and A350
production, focused on eliminating waste in labor, movement, materials and process.
STELIA also achieved a 10-20% increase in production on its A320 line and devotes a
large portion of its STELIALAB R&T efforts to more efficient assembly methods using
robotics, additive manufacturing and thermoplastics.
Note the conjunction of more efficient assembly — in other words, reduced assembly
Big additive machines tackle
— with liquid molding and additive manufacturing (for single-piece, integrated struc-
large molds
tures) as well as thermoplastics (for highly automated, welded structures). STELIA
This 3D-printed tool created via Ingersoll Machine Tools’
large-format additive manufacturing (AM) system
demonstrated the latter via the all-thermoplastic composite helicopter fuselage/
represents the rising role of AM to make fast, affordable tailboom developed in the ARCHES TP program. Lightning strike protection (LSP) was
aerocomposite molds. Source | Ingersoll Machine Tools integrated during layup using AFP carbon fiber/polyetherketoneketone (PEKK) tape
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and laser heating. Frames and stringers were stamp-formed, with the and development to improve materials and processes. Aerospace
latter attached using automated, dynamic induction welding. suppliers and OEMs say it usually takes about 25 years for technology
A final summary-view is provided by the Clean Sky 2 program’s to work its way into full adoption. That said, a tipping point seems
next-generation Multifunctional Fuselage Demonstrator (MFFD). imminent for thermoplastic composites (TPCs) in commercial aero-
Clean Sky 2 is a joint effort of the European Commission and the space (see p. 40 in the supplement). Currently, the industry is seeing
European aeronautics industry to develop technologies for the increased adoption of TPCs for larger parts and structural compo-
next generation of aircraft, from 2025 onward. Drastic reductions in nents. In January, Teijin (Tokyo, Japan) announced that Boeing
assembly time and components, elimination of fasteners and “dust- (Chicago, Ill., U.S.) added its TENAX carbon fiber and carbon fiber/
less” joining — no drilling of holes — are the mantra for the MFFD thermoplastic unidirectional pre-impregnated tape (TENAX TPUD)
project, which aims to produce an 8-meter-long thermoplastic to its qualified products list. The case for TPCs seems to have been
composite fuselage barrel by 2022. Led by Airbus with partners made, and the current focus is on ramping up production rates.
GKN Fokker (Hoogeveen, Netherlands),
DLR (Stuttgart, Germany), TU Delft (Delft,
Netherlands), NLR (Amsterdam, Nether-
lands), Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft (Munich,
Germany) and others, this project’s goals
include enabling production of 60 aircraft/
month while reducing recurring costs and
fuselage weight by 1 ton.
As explained in the latest MFFD updates
(Learn More), although thermoplastics
are more expensive, they enable automa-
tion and greater integration of structure,
systems and interior elements to reduce the
amount of successive assembly steps. Using
thermoplastic joining technologies — such
as overmolding and welding — molded
elements can be combined into larger
components/system modules, reducing
overall aircraft manufacturing costs and
recurring costs. “Airframers outside Europe
are also looking at similar opportunities,
but if we are successful this will be a big
step forward for European aeronautics,”
says Ralf Herrmann, project manager for
airframe research & technology typical
fuselage at Airbus Operations GmbH.
There are dozens of Clean Sky 2 projects
demonstrating novel composites technolo-
gies for next-gen aircraft. The preponder-
ance now is for liquid resin infusion/RTM
and thermoplastics. The race for the future
is on, and whichever technologies win, the
ultimate goal is a sustainable future for the
aircraft industry and our planet.
CompositesWorld.com 23
FEATURE / Next-Gen Aerospace
20
A N NIVE
RS
Mill Fixtures
AR
Y
HPC
Charter
Advertiser Pressure Intensifiers / Cauls
Backup Structure Materials
• Panels, Tubes, Angles
COMPOSITE
to layup operations using manual inspection. Ohio, U.S.) for its carbon fiber wing tips, as well as a large, single-
Meanwhile, joining and welding of TPCs offer the potential to piece tool created by Thermwood Corp. (Dale, Ind., U.S.) using its
cut costs and improve the reliability of parts by reducing the need Large Scale Additive Manufacturing (LSAM) machine and Vertical
for rivets and fasteners, contributing to weight reduction and Layer Print (VLP) 3D printing technology.
cutting down on production time and material costs. Companies Of course, with the growing need for more planes — and the
like GKN Fokker have been leading the charge in developing TPC increased use of composites on them — comes an increased
welding. At JEC World 2019, GKN Fokker unveiled an area-ruled demand for small and interior components, airline seating solutions
thermoplastic composite panel it developed with Gulfstream and composite repair technology. Plenty of challenges remain to
Aerospace (Savannah, Ga., U.S.), featuring fully welded frames and meet the need for higher-volume production, but there is also plenty
a butt-jointed grid system of opportunity for the composites world to rise to the challenge.
to provide stiffness.
Read more about FACC | Earlier this year, ABOUT THE AUTHORS
short.compositesworld.com/FACC_AG Aeronova (Álava, Spain),
Learn more about Clean Sky 2 | Grupo Antolin-Inge-
cleansky.eu nieria (Burgos, Spain)
and Airbus, working as
partners in the European
Union-funded Graphene Flagship (Gothenburg, Sweden) consor-
tium, produced a leading edge for an Airbus A350 horizontal tail
plane using graphene-enhanced composites. The material report- Jeff Sloan is CW senior editor CW senior editor Scott
edly increases the mechanical properties of the leading edge, editor-in-chief of Ginger Gardiner has an Francis has worked in
allowing for a thinner construction, decreasing its weight while CompositesWorld, and engineering/materi- media since 2001. He’s
has been engaged als background and edited for numerous
maintaining its functions. in plastics- and more than 20 years publications including
Additive manufacturing is playing an increasing role in aero- composites-industry of experience in the Writer’s Digest and
space composites as well (see p. 62 in the supplement). Boeing’s journalism for 24 years. composites industry. Popular Woodworking.
jeff@ ginger@ sfrancis@
777X uses a 3D-printed layup tool from Cincinnati Inc. (Harrison, compositesworld.com compositesworld.com compositesworld.com
CompositesWorld.com 25
Composites design and process
engineering form next-generation
truck body panels
Manufacturing process
While all the components comprising the Cold
Chain truck body and trailer MSC laminate play a
critical role in overall properties and performance,
the Prisma preforms are key to the superior struc-
tural properties required for the application. The
first Prisma preforms, introduced in 1995, were
custom-built stringers and bulkheads for recre-
ational watercraft. Today, Structural Composites’
Prisma line encompasses beams, lumber, fillets,
planks and hull stiffeners, as well as the original
stringers and bulkheads.
At Wabash, the Prisma technology is used to
build a series of foam-cored glass fiber panels 4-36
inches wide and 0.75-4.0 inches thick. Length of
the panels can be adjusted to application speci-
fication. The exterior height of a standard 53-foot
trailer is 114 inches; the exterior height of a 26-foot Prepping for assembly
trailer is 108 inches. Several of these panels are The MSC panels are prepped prior to assembly.
CompositesWorld.com 27
FEATURE / All-composite truck panels
subsequently co-molded in a compression process to build the manufactured by Wabash is a standard 2-lb./ft.3 flotation-grade PU
foam. However, in other applications the foam used to make the
final MSC structures, which form the walls and floors of a Cold
Chain truck. beams can range from 2- to 40-lb./ft.3
The MSC panels are fabricated in Wabash’s Minnesota facility. Kyle Kraus, vice president sales and marketing at Saertex (Hunt-
ersvilles, N.C., U.S.), a manufacturer of the glass fiber fabric used by
In an automated processing line, a two-part polyurethane foam is
Wabash, says the company supplies Wabash with non-crimp fabrics
injected into a woven glass fiber preform held in the shape of the
ranging from unidirectional to biaxial, in a variety of aerial weights.
panel. The foam fills the fabric-enclosed space and adheres to the
“We have worked with the Wabash engineering staff to align the
inner glass fibers, creating the foam-filled glass fiber fabric panel.
This is the key building block for walls and floors. fabric design to their resin flow and performance level of the Cold
After injection, the foam beams are cured at room tempera- Chain trailer application,” he explains, noting in general the stitching
ture (72°F) for 60 to 90 minutes. The foam used in the panels parameters support fast processing of the panels. “The company likes
the way our fabrics handle, as they elimi-
nate unsightly gaps they’ve experienced with
competitive materials,” Kraus adds.
Lane says the width of the panels varies
up to 6 inches for floor panels, and up
to 36 inches for wall panels. Some of the
panels will include metal plates to support
refrigeration units or trailer landing gear.
Biaxial orientation of the panel’s fabrics
can comprise either 0/90-degree layup or
a ±45 degree layup, depending on panel
application. The panels are designed with
four critical dimensions that can be tailored
according to the application: height, base
width, top width and the width of the tabs
plus the base. Typical panel thickness
ranges from 1.5 to 4 inches.
While the specific details of the resin and
the coating used to make the MSC panels
are proprietary, the technology origi-
nally developed by Structural Composites
CARBON/EPOXY PARTS PARTS WITH CORE PRODUCTION TOOLING Inc. incorporates the company’s CoCure
strain-tunable resins, in which a certain
Engineering Services Complex Shapes 5 Axis NC Milling
percentage of a toughened urethane resin
Large Facilities High-Precision Equipment
is added to a generic commodity resin in
specific areas of the composite structure to
www.janicki.com improve performance and properties. Lane
360.856.5143 says the resins Wabash uses are custom-
made and designed to meet mechanical
load requirements of the MSC system. Lane says the gel coat, also is no reason to think the product will not be successful. “Anyone
developed by Structural Composites, is distinctive in that, unlike can launch a technology that will provide the improvements we’re
other gel coats, it is flexible, highly resistant to cracking and imparts talking about,” Lane says. “The key to our approach is to provide
a superior level of water resistance to the panels that preserves the these improvements and make it affordable.”
thermal performance and also lengthens the life of the trailer — a
benefit that is one of the chief selling points of the Cold Chain line.
After cure, the panels are placed adjacent to one another in an
aluminum or composite tool lined top and bottom with CoCure
Michael R. LeGault is a freelance writer located in Seattle, Wash.,
inmold coating. Lane describes the panel molding method as a U.S., and the former editor of Canadian Plastics magazine
“modified open-closed mold process.” Once the panels are posi- (Toronto, ON, Canada). mlegault@compositesworld.com
tioned in the mold, the mold is closed and compressed with a combi-
nation of liquid resin and chopped glass
fiber using a vacuum-compression process.
The glass-on-glass contact between Prisma
panels forms an internal shear that obviates
the need for the metal frames found in
a typical trailer structure. The molding
process, combined with the CoCure coating,
produces panels ready, out of the tool, for
assembly into the final trailer structures.
Assembly of the panels into a box-
Your Composite Curing Oven Specialists
shaped trailer is accomplished via a set of
fixtures that facilitate systematic fabrica-
tion and attachment of the trailer compo-
nents to one another. In the first step of this
process, the side walls are loaded into an
CompositesWorld.com 29
Reaping the benefits: Composites
Tooling technologies
use grows in
positioned agricultural
for equipment
speed, control
New technologies and »Tooling is one of the most rapidly evolving Continuous compression
molding
processes like 3D print- segments of composites manufacturing across
industries, as materials suppliers, service ATC Manufacturing purchases UD
ing, OOA infusion and providers, toolbuilders and manufacturers carbon and glass fiber prepreg
thermoplastic composites develop, adopt and adapt new technologies tapes from several suppliers and
manufactures its laminates in-house
reshape how molds are and processes to cut costs and speed deliveries. using a continuous compression
New technologies reshaping composites tooling molding process. The laminates are
made. design include 3D printing, out-of-autoclave heated above 700°F and formed in a
(OOA) infusion and thermoplastic composites rapid-closing press comprising steel
or aluminum tooling, which both
for automotive and aerospace applications.
By Michael LeGault / Contributing Writer forms and cools the parts. Proprietary
thermal modeling software is
3D printing composite tooling employed in the design of the tooling
Thermwood Corp. (Dale, Ind., U.S.), a manu- to account for the differences in
facturer of CNC machinery and large-scale the rates of thermal expansion of
thermoplastic materials.
additive manufacturing (LSAM) technology,
Source | ATC Manufacturing
recently introduced a higher-capacity LSAM
print head with an output of up to 570 lb./hr. of
composite material. The principle component
of the higher capacity unit is a 60-millimeter melt core, which is interchangeable
with the standard 40-millimeter print head melt core with a maximum output of 210
lb./hr. The higher capacity print head can print up to 100 feet of bead per minute,
compared to about 50 ft./min. with the standard head.
Thermwood employed the larger melt core to print half of a test tool for a Bell
Helicopter Textron (Fort Worth, Texas, U.S.) helicopter blade. For this application,
the high print rate facilitates orienting the print bead along the length of the tool, a
CompositesWorld.com 31
FEATURE / TOOLING
fundamental problem for all composites molding, and perhaps that competing suppliers also offer thermal mold control
plastics processing in general: Differential heating and cooling of processing, Halford claims PtFS is distinguished by the scale of
the part during melt and consolidation. This inherent thermody- “tens to hundreds of thermally-controlled zones versus the control
namic instability of composites molding processing not only can of two or three.” (See Learn More.)
create deformations in part dimensions and properties, but can For the TOSCAA structural reinforcing panel project, Surface
also wreak havoc on production costs, as one of the workarounds Generation partnered with a consortium of suppliers (See Learn
is to over-engineer the part by adding extra material. The problem More). The existing part being assessed for replacement is a
is especially acute, says Ben Halford, Surface Generation CEO, for 3-millimeter thick, rear C-pillar structural reinforcement panel,
parts designed with various thicknesses, multiple materials or with approximately 1 meter long and between 0.5 and 0.25 meter in
complex geometry. That said, Halford notes, even a component as width, weighing 1.081 kilograms, formed from aluminum alloy
simple as a flat, two-dimensional part, such as a laptop cover, has sheet. The replacement composite part, technically a demon-
corners, a middle and edges that heat and cool at different rates. strator article (DA), comprises four, 4.5-millimeter-thick rein-
PtFS, which Halford describes as “rapid heat/cool with highly forcing inserts made from Sigrafil C T50 prepreg tape in a PA6
localized thermal control,” uses what he calls “pixels” of energy matrix, supplied by SGL Group (Wiesbaden, Germany), over-
formed by jets of heated or cooled air arranged behind the mold molded with short (0.3 millimeter), carbon fiber-filled PA6. The
surface. This pixelated architecture is then manipulated by thickness of the part varies from 2 millimeters in the unreinforced
software that incorporates Boolean logic to give precise heating sections to 6 millimeters. The part was molded on an Engel Duo
and cooling rates — for example, a command might be: “To elimi- 1,700-ton injection molding machine at the National Compos-
nate residual stress, I need all the part’s various areas and thick- ites Centre (NCC; Bristol, U.K.). Unlike many metal-to-composite
nesses (“zones”) to be within X degrees Fahrenheit for Y seconds, demonstration projects, the principal objective was not weight
then I will compress the part and eject.” Ideally, the technology is reduction — the final carbon fiber-reinforced part weight approxi-
integrated during the tool build, but it can also be retrofitted on mately the same as the aluminum part. Instead, the project objec-
existing hardware to improve quality. “Once this pixelated archi- tive was to prove improved structural performance. Weight may be
tecture is in place, you can drop your project-specific mold face reduced at a later stage with higher-performing materials.
forms on it for either single-sided vacuum processes or match- A 192-channel (96-zone) thermal-control PtFS system was inte-
tooling compression molding,” says Halford. While acknowledging grated into the steel overmolding tool used to make the parts. Each
CompositesWorld.com 33
FEATURE / TOOLING
Thermal control
technology
U.K.-based Surface Generation
is employing its thermal control
technology to make several large,
composite structural body panels for a
European automotive OEM. The panels
are overmolded and comprise PA6,
short carbon fiber and four, carbon
fiber prepreg reinforcing inserts. The
parts have been installed in vehicles
and are currently being road tested
as part of a demonstration project to
prove the structural and commercial
capabilities of composites to replace
metal in high-volume automotive
automobile applications.
Source | Surface Generation
of the carbon fiber inserts was designed with a “scarf” joint around force of 1,700 tons was needed to mold the parts for the TOSCAA
the periphery to enhance bonding between it and the filled PA6 project. Halford says an economic analysis performed concurrently
overmolding matrix. Halford says the zonal temperature control with the project validates the commercial viability of PtFS-enhanced
facilitated by PtFS was exploited to ensure optimum bond strength overmolding used here. If, as anticipated, the ongoing assessment
between continuous fiber reinforcement and the overmolding is successful, he says the supply chain comprising the project is
material. The thermal control system also keeps the average tool positioned to ramp up and address any remaining barriers to full
temperature higher during injection, permitting a reduction of commercialization, with potential volumes as large as 10,000 to
clamping force and injection pressures required to fill the mold. 100,000 parts per year.
Halford estimates that less than a quarter of the total clamping In the aerospace industry, ATC Manufacturing (Post Falls, Idaho,
U.S.) makes a variety of thermoplastic
composite parts for the aerospace industry
using its in-house continuous compression
molding (CCM) process. ATC’s inventory
of parts includes various types of clips and
brackets for hydraulic and electrical lines, to
larger structural ribs and C-channel parts,
some as long as 25 feet, used for joining
even larger structural components such as
wing skins. The primary factor driving the
adoption of thermoplastic composites, says
David Leach, ATC director of business devel-
opment, is cost reduction, primarily on the
labor side. “If you can get the materials into
a laminate or sheet then you can form it into
parts very quickly,” he says. This is compared
to thermoset composites processing, which
normally involves time-consuming layup,
bagging and autoclave cycles.
The parts, which comprise both
secondary and primary structures, are
formed from laminates made from UD
carbon fiber prepreg tape, as well as glass
and carbon fabrics impregnated with
polymers such as PEI and PPS (secondary)
and PEEK and PEKK (primary). ATC buys
the UD prepreg tapes and fabric lami-
nates from several suppliers, such as Solvay
(Alpharetta, Ga., U.S.), Toray Advanced
Composites (Tokyo, Japan) and Teijin (Tokyo). Because of the resins’ of the material,” Leach reports. Some thermoplastic materials can
high melting temperatures, the forming takes place at tempera- have up to three coefficients of thermal expansion (CTEs) — one at
tures well above those used for thermosets, at 370°C and higher, crystallization, another above the polymer glass transition temper-
which requires the use of steel or aluminum tooling. Typically, the ature, and one more as the material cools to room temperature.
laminate is heated above its melt temperature, quickly transferred The ability to accurately model and predict the shrinkage proper-
to a rapid-closing press and kept at a constant temperature in the ties of the materials became even more critical as the company
range of 205 to 260°C, which forms and cools the part at the same began making structural parts with more stringent tolerances.
time. While the Leach says there was much trial and error required to develop
part is still hot, it is proprietary thermal modeling software the company now uses
stable enough to to account for all thermally induced dimensional changes and
Read this article online |
short.compositesworld.com/tooling remove from the achieve the required angular and dimensional tolerances. “We can
Read more about the PtFS process | tool and enable typically achieve ±1 degree angular and 0.010 inch surface toler-
short.compositesworld.com/PtFS molding of the next ance requirements,” Leach says.
Read more on the TOSCAA project | part. Time is also It is clear that suppliers of tooling materials, tooling equipment
short.compositesworld.com/TOSCAA saved by avoiding and the tools themselves are under increasing pressure to help
cycling the tool speed composites throughput, reduce costs and tighten dimen-
temperature and sional control. This pressure will only increase as OOA and ther-
having to wait for the tool to recover to its processing temperature. moplastic technologies continue to evolve. Suppliers, it appears,
ATC designs the tooling but outsources tool fabrication. One of are poised to answer the call.
the trickier elements in building tooling for high-temperature TPC
molding is compensating for the different rates of thermal expan-
sion, in both the tooling and the composite materials.
“You have such a large difference from the temperature of the Michael R. LeGault is a freelance writer located in Seattle, Wash.,
laminate blank to the tool temperature to the part service temper- U.S., and the former editor of Canadian Plastics magazine
ature that you have to put in a lot of thermal compensation design (Toronto, ON, Canada). mlegault@compositesworld.com
into the tooling components in order to allow for the contraction
Since 1991, Anderson America has been satisfying the most demanding US customers with
over 4500 CNC Router installations for Composites, Aluminum and Non Ferrous in North
America. We exclusively use FANUC control systems matched with FANUC servos and
electronics which have a 25 year parts availability guarantee.
CompositesWorld.com 35
APPLICATIONS
See the
Difference Source | Leonardo SpA
Composites Events
June 5-7, 2019 — Metz, France June 19-20, 2019 — Warwickshire, U.K. Sept. 10-12, 2019 — Messe Stuttgart, Germany
ICWAM 2019 - International Congress on Ecocomp 2019 Composites Europe
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Non-Destructive Testing
June 25-26, 2019 — Berlin, Germany Sept. 23-26, 2019 — Anaheim, Calif., U.S.
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ACMA Composites Executive Forum
July 3, 2019 — Vigo, Spain Oct. 1-3, 2019 — Tampa, Fla., U.S.
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MATCOMP19 IBEX 2019
June 12-13, 2019 — Stade, Germany matcomp19.com ibexshow.com
CFK-Valley Stade Convention 2019
July 10-12, 2019 — Shanghai, China Oct. 8, 2019 — Enschede, Netherlands
CFK-Valley.com
Lightweight Asia 2019 Future of Thermoplastic Composites Conference
June 12-14, 2019 — Jinan, China lightweightasia.com tprc.nl/events
8th Annual World Congress of Advanced Materials
July 22, 2019 — Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada Oct. 22-23, 2019 — Oxford, U.K.
bitcongress.com/wcam2019
CANCOM 2019 Composites in Motorsport
June 13, 2019 — Rosemont, Ill., U.S. CANCOM2019.ca compositesinmotorsport.com
Additive Manufacturing Workshop for
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ICCM22 — The 22nd International Conference on Carbon Fiber 2019
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June 17-23, 2019 — Paris, France iccm22.com
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Paris Air Show
Aug. 27-29, 2019 — Austin, Texas, U.S. WindEurope Offshore 2019
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Additive Manufacturing Conference and Expo windeurope.com/offshore2019
June 18-19, 2019 — Santa Clara, Calif., U.S. additiveconference.com
MT360
Sept. 4-6, 2019 — Novi, Mich., U.S.
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SPE Automotive Composites Conference See more events at:
June 19-20, 2019 — Chicago, Ill., U.S. and Exhibition (ACCE) short.compositesworld.com/events
JEC Chicago 2019 speautomotive.com/acce-conference
jec-chicago.events
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CompositesWorld.com 37
NEW PRODUCTS
New Products
» PREPREG MATERIALS
Aerospace prepreg optimized for
vacuum-assisted pressure molding
Toray Industries Inc. (Tokyo, Japan) reports that it has developed
a new carbon fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) prepreg optimized for Source | Broetje-Automation
» MACHINING ACCESSORIES
Special coolant for composites machining
Petro Lube Inc. (Toronto, Canada), North American distributor for indus-
trial lubricant supplier Rhenus Lube (Mönchengladbach, Germany), is
featuring Rhenus special coolants for composites machining. According
to the company, using the coolant during the machining process enables
up to 60% higher feed rates and produces up to four times more parts.
Materials that can be used with this coolant include carbon fiber-
reinforced polymers (CFRP), glass fiber-reinforced polymers (GFRP) and
other lightweight composite materials.
The use of special coolants offers significant advantages compared
to dry machining or minimal-quantity lubrication, the company says,
including higher-quality cuts and drillings, cost savings and reduction
of waste.
Rhenus coolant can be used with existing machinery and tools and
existing processes for wet machining, the company says, and its use
contributes to fail-safe strategies when machining sensitive components.
It is also said to reduce tool wear, minimizing tool costs. Increasing feed
rate increases cutting speeds and reduces production times. A special
rinsing effect is said to keep the machine room cleaner. Delamination is
also avoided, eliminating time and costs associated with rework.
In addition, coolant use eliminates the health risks associated with
the fine dust generated by dry machining, as well as the costs associated
with extraction and filter systems for dust removal.
petrolube.com
www.smarttooling.com
T O O L I N G
CompositesWorld.com 39
NEW PRODUCTS
Source | Airtech
Source | Xenia
polymer-based materials, introduces its XECARB 11 series of short High-stretch polyester breather
carbon fiber-filled polypropylene (PP) thermoplastic composite grades. Airtech Advanced Materials Group’s (Huntington Beach, Calif.,
After more than a year of testing and improvements, Xenia says U.S.) Stretch Flow P 2000 is a knitted, polyester breather with
XECARB 11 offers a solution for a range of applications in chemical, high-stretch characteristics that are said to enable it to conform to
industrial and sporting goods applications that require a high modulus- complex contour surfaces, ensuring good application of pressure by
to-density ratio. vacuum bags.
The carbon fiber-reinforced compounds are electrically conductive Benefits are said to include a stretchable breather fit for a variety
and have a tensile strength up to 115 MPa. Compared to non-composite of complex shapes; stretch properties that eliminate wrinkles and
compounds, XECARB 11 is said to also feature good chemical resistance, possible quality issues; a variety of size applications accommodated
high heat deflection temperature, better dimensional stability and by stretchable, knit construction; and the elimination of bridge
reduced post shrinkage, as well as better surface hardness and good conditions that can result in resin-rich corners that require rework.
resistance to ultraviolet (UV) rays. xeniamaterials.com airtechonline.com
MANUFACTURING SUPPLIERS
TESTING
ADVERTISING INDEX
Janicki Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
www.janicki.com
LEWCO Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
www.lewcoinc.com
LMT Onsrud LP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
www.onsrud.com
Stick To Quality®
Smart Tooling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
www.smarttooling.com
Teijin Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
www.teijin.com
CompositesWorld.com
43
FOCUS ON DESIGN
Recycled
CF/PA6
LFT stake
pockets
Aluminum liftgate
structure
2019 GMC Sierra Denali and Sierra AT4 CarbonPro Pickup Box
› CFRTP sheets are waterjet trimmed, heated, › Offal from CFRTP trimming operations is › Using urethane structural adhesive, three sub-
preformed, then compression molded in a reground then used to mold recycled-LFT bonding steps join cross-car sills, wheel-well and
little over a minute, cooled and trimmed to stake pockets (with additional virgin PA6 side-panel modules, and those sub-assemblies
final size. resin to enhance flow). are then brought together in a final bonding step
to produce the CarbonPro box.
Evolving technology produce far better surfaces out of the tool, eliminating the signifi-
Sereebo is a sheet-form composite featuring a polyamide 6 (PA6) cant post-mold finishing — such as sanding and painting — that
matrix reinforced with discontinuous/chopped carbon fiber (25 often are necessary with thermoset composites. In addition,
millimeters, 24K tow). The fiber bed has been described as being a “tough” polymer like PA6 extends thermal performance and
very well distributed, giving the material isotropic properties increases damage resistance compared to polypropylene, the most
depending on how it’s molded. common matrix for thermoplastic composites used in automotive.
The thermoplastic matrix provides many benefits. First, because Another benefit is that thermoplastic offal/scrap is easily recycled
they’re supplied pre-polymerized, thermoplastics mold much (melt reprocessed) by grinding the material and putting it into
faster than thermosets, which polymerize and cross-link in the another feedstream with the same resin system — although this
tool. The downside of pre-polymerized polymers, however, is that does shorten fiber reinforcements.
molecular chains are longer, stiffer and more tangled, so it’s more Of course, carbon fiber contributes higher stiffness and
difficult to get good fiber wetout. Therefore, fiber-volume fraction strength than glass fiber, at lower weight and thinner wall sections
tends to be lower than with thermosets. Second, thermoplastics — albeit with a small sacrifice in impact strength, which can
also tend to have lower density than thermosets, contributing be improved via resin selection. Heavier tows are more afford-
lightweighting opportunities. Most importantly, thermoplastics able than finer aerospace-grades and are commonly used in
CompositesWorld.com 45
FOCUS ON DESIGN
Featuring impact
resistance and
cargo space
The CarbonPro pickup box has
numerous features designed to
enhance both the vehicle and its cargo
space. First, the box is incredibly
impact resistant, which is a huge
functional benefit and eliminates the
need for a bedliner. Not only will it not
rust or dent, but the molded-in-color
(MIC) black composite needs no paint/
coatings to protect against scratching
and weathering. Second, much work
went into designing the corrugated
floor structure. A light texture is used
in troughs so dirt and grime wash away
easily, while a “grippy” aggressive
texture is molded into crests to ensure
good stability even when the bed is
wet or dusty.
Source | General Motors Co.
the automotive industry, where modulus is usually the limiting Voss. “Still, we’re achieving depths of draw of 14 to 16 inches [36 to
factor in designs rather than ultimate strength. By using chopped- 41 centimeters] on the side panels in structural materials,” he adds.
rather than continuous-fiber reinforcement, ultimate strength is “The Sereebo material molds like GMT and D-LFT,” explains
reduced, but remains more than adequate for automotive appli- Steve Pelczarski, CSP engineering director for program and
cations and can be improved via thicker sections or by adding product development. “However, we deliberately keep flow low
geometry (for example, ribbing) or both. Reportedly, a single by limiting blank temperature during preheating — a choice that
grade of Sereebo in two thicknesses is being used to mold most of protects both resin and UV-stabilizer — and by preforming the
the pickup box’s components. sheet over the press just before forming. The depth of draw and
features you can produce in Sereebo are endless as long as you
Hybrid forming preform the shape prior to presenting material to the tool.”
Although Sereebo flows once preheated and placed in a tool, The four biggest CarbonPro parts — the headboard, right and
to maintain its natural isotropy, the team isn’t flow-forming it left side panels, and the platform/floor — are formed on a new
like conventional glass-mat thermoplastic (GMT), direct-long- 3,600-metric ton Dieffenbacher press with a rapid (5-second)
fiber thermoplastic open/close cycle (See Learn More) at CSP’s Huntington, Ind.,
(D-LFT), or SMC. U.S. plant, 30 minutes from GM’s Fort Wayne Assembly plant
Rather, an inter- (Roanoke, Ind., U.S.) where 2019 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC
Read this article online |
short.compositesworld.com/CarbonPro esting hybrid forming Sierra pickups are assembled. Several smaller CarbonPro parts —
Read more on CarbonPro’s new process is used. It in virgin Sereebo as well as in some recycled-LFT (using ground
forming process | combines an innova- Sereebo scrap plus some virgin PA6 to enhance flow) — are
short.compositesworld.com/CP_form tive preforming step compression molded nearby on a smaller 1,200-metric ton press.
Read more on the Denali’s features | accomplished using Three sub-bonding steps join cross-car sills, wheel-wells and side-
short.compositesworld.com/Denali a robot-mounted panel modules, then those sub-assemblies are brought together in
Watch an impact test on the pickup bed | preforming device a final main-box bonding step where final box assembly occurs. A
short.compositesworld.com/CProvideo
(RMPD) followed by two-part urethane structural adhesive (Pliogrip 8500 from Ashland
Read more about the formation of Sereebo | compression molding LLC, Columbus, Ohio, U.S.) is used throughout.
short.compositesworld.com/Sereebo
at “conventional pres- “We’re getting 75% property retention in the recycled Sereebo
sures.” The RMPD is for left and right stake pockets,” Voss adds. “This is a big win-win,
described as complicated end-of-arm tooling that is unique for because it helps with our business case while making the process
each part being molded. Parts are molded larger than necessary — more sustainable.” Depending on how the post-industrial recy-
then trimmed to final size after molding. clate (PIR) parts fare in the field, GM and CSP have plans to repur-
“Sereebo’s isotropic properties are worth their weight in gold pose 100 percent of Sereebo scrap elsewhere in the vehicle, which
so we created a process to retain those material properties,” notes would make the new process zero-waste.
Motorcycle pockets
Special motorcycle pockets in the headboard and
bonded tie downs (each capable of 227-kilogram
loads — see top left) allow customers to secure two
dirt bikes on left and right sides of the CarbonPro
box (see bottom right), or one “Fat Boy” motorcycle
(from Harley-Davidson USA, Milwaukee, Wisc.,
U.S.) in the center of the box (see bottom left).
Additional tie downs are distributed strategically to
help stabilize various loads. Integral lights illuminate
the box around fender flares and the tailgate. The
CarbonPro box alone reduced mass 28 kilograms
versus the short-box in steel on the outgoing model
yet it is designed to carry a slightly higher payload
(reportedly at least 27 kilograms more depending on
configurations and equipment). Source | General Motors Co.
CSP also is producing compression molded end-gate covers in tie downs (each capable of 227-kilogram loads) allow customers
glass fiber/polypropylene D-LFT, injection molded wheel-house to secure two dirt bikes on left and right sides, or a Harley-
assemblies and front filler panels in glass fiber/PA6, mini-sills in Davidson “Fat Boy” motorcycle in the center-front of the box.
glass fiber-reinforced epoxy pultrusions, and three of the box’s Additional tie downs are distributed strategically to help stabilize
four cross-car sills in Sereebo. various loads. Integral lights illuminate the box interior around
fender flares and the tailgate (either standard or six-position
Customer-focused features Multipro — See Learn More).
The CarbonPro box also includes special features that enhance The composite box plays an important role in the Sierra’s mixed-
the vehicle and its cargo space (See Learn More). First, the box has materials construction (combining aluminum, high-strength and
proven to be incredibly impact resistant (See Learn More), which roll-formed steel, plus composite and plastic), a combination that
is a huge functional benefit that eliminates the need for a bedliner. shaves 163 kilograms off the outgoing model.
Not only will it not rust or dent, but the molded-in-color (MIC)
black composite needs no paint or coatings to protect it against
scratching and weathering.
Second, much work went into designing the corrugated floor
structure. A light texture is used in troughs so dirt and grime
wash away easily, while a “grippy” aggressive texture is molded Contributing writer Peggy Malnati covers the automotive and
infrastructure beats for CW and provides communications
into crests to ensure good stability even when the bed is wet or services for plastics- and composites-industry clients.
dusty. Special motorcycle pockets in the headboard and bonded peggy@compositesworld.com
CompositesWorld.com 47
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