Jeff Sloan Brand Vice President, CompositesWorld & Plastics Technology

Out of Autoclave 29 Apr 2016

BMW cars again a composites showcase at JEC World 2016

BMW AG (Wolfsburg, Germany), already notable for its progressive use of composite materials in its i3 and i8 automobiles, provided the Parisian canvas for a palate of composites innovations.

Hi-Temp Resins 29 Apr 2016

Polybenzoxazine on the horizon?

Benzoxazine veteran Dr. Hatsuro Ishida at Case Western Reserve University has developed what he calls the fourth generation of this versatile high-heat, high-strength matrix resin.

28 Apr 2016

Carbon fiber-based BMC wears well

Carbon fiber and ceramic are combined with a proprietary resin system to create a novel, extremely high-wear bulk molding compound (BMC) for centrifugal pump application.

Automotive 27 Apr 2016

Ashland unveils low-density, high-performance SMC

Ashland's new Arotran 771 sheet molding compound (SMC) offers a specific gravity of 1.2, with good mechanical and physical properties. The company is targeting 1.0 specific gravity, which would put SMC on par with aluminum in automotive applications.

Composites 4.0 25 Apr 2016

Local Motors to use Siemens software for 3-D printed vehicles

The partnership combines Siemens’ PLM software technology with Local Motors’ leadership in co-created and 3-D-printed vehicles – direct digital manufacturing (DDM).

Glass Fibers 25 Apr 2016

US Army evaluating composites solution for airfield damage repair

The US Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) is working on use of an FRP matting system to repair damaged military airfields.

Injection/Overmolding 21 Apr 2016

High-definition part surface quality on injection molded parts

RocTool (Le Bourget du Lac, France; Charlotte, NC, US) has introduced a new technology, called HD Plastics, that applies the company's fast, high heating and fast cooling to the improvement and optimization of thermoplastic resin systems in injection molding applications.

Aerospace 19 Apr 2016

Airbus, Siemens to develop hybrid-electric aircraft propulsion

Airbus Group and Siemens plan to demonstrate the technical feasibility of hybrid-electric aircraft propulsion by 2020.

Aerospace 15 Apr 2016

Thermoplastics riding into automotive, aerospace

The legacy of composite parts and structures is built on a family of thermosets — including epoxy, vinyl ester, polyester and phenolic — that have helped tremendously to make the industry what it is today. Not to be forgotten are thermoplastics, which have played a serious role as well, and offer advantages that promise to make this material type one of the fastest growing over the next decade.