Peggy Malnati MMT, Contributing Writer
Rapid layup: New 3-D preform technology
Hook-and-loop fasteners speed layup of carbon, aramid, glass and hybrid fabrics while improving composites’ mechanical performance.
Read MoreMaterials characterization: Faster cheaper, better
Ford couples commercial codes to analyze auto interior parts more accurately.
Read MoreCleaner and greener: Bio-based end tanks
Plant-based polyamides break high-cost/low-performance paradigm to meet the demands of a challenging Toyota underhood application.
Read MoreAutomotive CFRP: Repair or replace?
As more carbon composites are used on structural car components, how will crash damage be assessed and repairs be made?
Read MoreMcLaren: Multilevel customer support
To address the customer “ownership experience” for its new supercar, the MP4-12C, McLaren Automotive Ltd. (Woking, U.K.) took a three-pronged approach: an intensive engineering and development program that was followed by manufacturing to demanding quality standards, and then an “after-sales safety net” that was designed to ensure an exemplary ownership experience.
Read MoreHow to patch a racecar
The current state of the art in automotive CFRP repair borrows heavily from experiences gained in the aerospace/aviation and racing fields.
Read MoreFormulation flexibility: Direct-SMC
Consortium applies inline-compounding technology to reinvent sheet molding compound.
Read MoreSpare wheel well: Functional integration
Gas-assist injection molding enables one-piece, one-shot thermoplastic composite/metal hybrid.
Read MoreA hidden revolution: composite rebar gains strength
Fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) replacing coated steel in more reinforced-concrete applications.
Read MoreAutomotive composites: Structural underbody
For Detroit’s Big Three, a joint precompetitive composite design, development, fabrication and testing program nears successful completion.
Read MoreThermoplastic composites: Sustainable transport
Cyclic PBT oligomers used to mold Class 8 semitrailer bed via vacuum-bag processing.
Read MoreSmall wind: Green energy gets greener
Kilowatt-rated vertical axis wind turbines supply green electric power where utility-scale turbines can’t.
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