Top 10 CompositesWorld news items of 2022

From the return of the Farnborough International Air Show to advances in the hydrogen, wind, aerospace and urban air mobility (UAM) markets, 2022 was a big year for the composites industry. Take a look at CW’s top 10 news pieces based on Google Analytics and revisit past events of the year, or see what you might have missed. 

 

10. 2022 Farnborough International Air Show highlights (July 2022)

The biennial Farnborough International Airshow (FIA), a trade exhibition for the aerospace and defense industries, took place the week of July 18-22, 2022, in Farnborough, U.K. This was the first Farnborough show since 2018 and served as a litmus test for how the post-COVID world is evolving for commercial aerospace, space, defense, sustainability, innovation, future flight and workforce development. 

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9. B&T Composites joins R&D project to develop novel composite hydrogen storage tanks (March, 2022)

B&T Composites (Florina, Greece) announced that it will be part of a new project focused on novel carbon fiber composite pressure vessels for hydrogen storage, to begin late 2022. As part of a European Union-backed IPCEI (Important Projects of Common European Interest) called H2CAT, B&T Composites seeks to develop novel pressurized hydrogen storage tank products that will eventually form a new market standard for stationary and transportation-related hydrogen storage. The company says this goal will be achieved by addressing major, well-documented issues with the current technology for pressurized hydrogen storage.

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8. First production Comac C919 narrowbody completes maiden flight, price higher than expected (May 2022)

As reported by Chen Chuanren for Aviation Week, China’s long-awaited, first domestically produced narrowbody airliner in the same class as the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320, achieved its maiden flight to and from Shanghai airport on May 14. Developed by Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC, Shanghai), the C919 is configured for 158-168 seats and a range of 4,075 to 5,555 kilometers. The aircraft — MSN007 — will be operated by Shanghai-based Chinese Eastern Airlines. It is the type’s launch customer and ordered five C919s in March 2021. China Eastern had expected to receive the first aircraft by the end of 2021, but delays in certification have forced the C919 entry into service back to late 2022.

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7.  JEC World reveals 2022 Innovation Awards finalists  (February 2022) 

Each year, since its creation more than 20 years ago, the JEC Composites Innovation Awards celebrate successful projects and fostered cooperation between players in the composite industry. Over this period of time, the competition has shined a light on some 198 companies and 475 partners, awarding them for their excellence in composite innovations.

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6. Re-Wind Network successfully installs repurposed wind blade pedestrian bridge (January 2022) 

On Jan. 26, the Re-Wind Network — comprising the University College Cork, Queens University Belfast, Georgia Tech and Munster Technological University (MTU) — announced the successful installation of a wind blade pedestrian bridge (BladeBridge) in Cork, Ireland, with remaining landscaping, removal of shoring platform underneath and handrail assembly to be completed shortly. The structure is one of two repurposed end-of-life (EOL) wind blade solutions initially designed and rendered in its fall 2021 Re:Wind Design catalogue, and was additionally designed to have the capacity and width to carry maintenance or emergency vehicles. 

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5. Boeing all-composite cryogenic fuel tank proves technology readiness (February 2022)

A new type of large, fully composite, linerless cryogenic fuel tank, designed and manufactured by Boeing (Chicago, Ill., U.S.) passed a critical series of tests at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center (Huntsville, Ala., U.S.) at the end of 2021. The successful test campaign proves the new technology is mature, safe and ready for use in aerospace vehicles, Boeing says.

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4. HyPoint partners with GTL to extend zero-emission flight with ultralight liquid hydrogen tanks (March 2022)

HyPoint (Menlo Park, Calif., U.S.) is developing zero carbon-emission hydrogen (H₂) fuel cell systems for aviation and urban/advanced air mobility (UAM/AAM). It is already supplying hydrogen aviation leaders ZeroAvia (Hollister, Calif., U.S.) and Piasecki Aircraft (Essington, Pa., U.S.). HyPoint has announced a partnership with Gloyer-Taylor Laboratories (GTL, Tullahoma, Tennessee, U.S.), an aerospace engineering R&D company, which has developed BHL Cryotank carbon fiber composite liquid hydrogen (LH₂) fuel tanks that have demonstrated a 75% mass reduction compared to existing state-of-the-art aerospace cryotanks (metal or composite).

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3. Joby Aviation advances toward FAA certification, highlights Toray prepreg and Coriolis AFP machines (March 2022)

Joby Aviation (Santa Cruz, Calif., U.S.) is a leader in the advanced air mobility (AAM) market. It is currently working toward two Federal Aviation Administration (FAA, Washington, D.C., U.S.) certifications simultaneously. One is its Part 135 air carrier certification, which will allow it to operate as an air taxi service in the U.S. It has begun the fourth of five stages in that process. The second is its S4 eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft type certification. For this, the FAA provided in 2020 a signed certification basis (G-1 issue paper at stage 4) which details the specific regulations and special conditions for the Joby S4 aircraft. Joby and the FAA are now close to completing the means for ensuring compliance to these regulations.

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2. Iberdrola, FCC Ámbito launches EnergyLOOP for wind turbine blade recycling (June 2022)

Iberdrola (Bilbao, Spain), through its PERSEO Venture Builder program, and FCC Ámbito (Madrid), a subsidiary of FCC Servicios Medio Ambiente, have launched EnergyLOOP to lead the recycling of renewable installation components for wind turbines, said to be one of the biggest medium- and long-term challenges in the sector. This initiative will also contribute to the energy transition and boost the circular economy in Spain.

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1. Elkhart Composites acquired by Thor Industries (January, 2022)

In December 2021, Thor Industries Inc. (Elkhart, Ind., U.S.), a U.S. manufacturer of recreational vehicles (RVs) acquired Elkhart Composites Inc. through Thor’s subsidiary, Airxcel Inc. (Wichita, Kan., U.S.). Elkhart Composites is engaged in the development and sale of a proprietary sustainable foamed polypropylene-based composite material marketed and sold under the “Elkboard” brand name. Lightweight, rigid, durable and sustainable, Elkboard is used in the RV industry for sidewalls, in lieu of traditional lauan-based sidewalls, alleviating susceptibility of rot or delamination.

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