CW Blog

Carbon Fibers 26 May 2016

Taking the hit without added weight

High-modulus polypropylene (HMPP) fiber hybrids graduate from tennis to ... tornados!

Carbon Fibers 26 May 2016

All-carbon fiber wheel moves to the carbon fiber-bodied Ford GT

This carbon fiber wheel, manufactured by Carbon Revolution, already had been specified for the 2015 Ford Shelby GT350R Mustang. Each wheel reduces unsprung wheel mass by 2 lb per wheel compared to the aluminum versions.

Pressure Vessels 26 May 2016

Thermoplastic composite riser making waves in oil and gas work

The use of composites in deepwater oil and gas drilling has been long sought, and few companies have been more active than Netherlands-based Airborne Oil & Gas, which manufacture thermoplastic composite pipe that is being tested in Brazilian waters.

Carbon Fibers 26 May 2016

Pixelated temperature control

Surface Generation is providing digital process control for composites molding that cuts energy use, cycle time and processing pressures while breaking boundaries in thickness, complexity and embedded elements.

Compression Molding 25 May 2016

Composites manufacturing — where the excitement lives

A regular CW columnist and the chief commercialization officer for the Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI, Knoxville, TN, US), Dale Brosius points out that for today's engineering students, a Ph.D in manufacturing could open the door to an exciting, alternative career path.

Marine 24 May 2016

VABO Composites: Dutch innovator excels in diverse applications

From yacht masts and ship doors to front loader buckets and architectural projects, VABO uses resin infusion and ingenuity to push composites forward vs. metals.

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Autoclave 17 May 2016

Using 3D printing for composite molds and tools: the trend continues

Additive manufacturing (AM), or 3D printing, is becoming more common in the aerospace tooling realm. Production tooling can be made quickly and on-demand, which helps the tooling industry keep pace with accelerating composite part design cycles and demand for faster overall part processing speeds.

Autoclave 16 May 2016

3-D printing autoclavable composite molds

The polymer additive manufacturing research team at the Department of Energy’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory reports that it has successfully fabricated autoclave-capable carbon fiber composite molds, manufactured using large-scale 3D printing/additive manufacturing.

Aerospace 16 May 2016

Composites recycling becomes a necessity

Boeing and Airbus each is generating as much as a 1 million lb of cured and uncured carbon fiber prepreg waste each year from 787 and A350 XWB production. If you include the entire supply chain for these planes, the total is closer to 4 million lb/year. And with the automotive industry poised to consume (and waste) more carbon fiber than ever, recycling of composite materials has become an absolute necessity. The technology is there, but the markets are not. Yet.