CURING

Curing

Chantiers de l’Atlantique reveals 66-meter, all-composite SolidSail mast

A technological feat, the large carbon fiber mast prototype targets the Silenseas sailing liner and sailing cargo ships for up to 40% reduction in CO2 emissions.

Grace Nehls
Managing Editor, CompositesWorld

RTM

sensXPERT Digital Mold earns 2022 AVK Innovation Award

Data-driven sensor technology optimizes and increases composites manufacturing efficiencies in real time, achieved through collaborative network.
#sensors #composites4_0

Filament Winding

Mikrosam, H2Storage collaborate on 300+-liter Type IV hydrogen tanks

Automated filament winding cell achieving wind speeds of 6 meters/second improves production performance, shortens curing cycle for serial production of 700-bar Type IV tanks.
#hydrogen

RTM

Ulster University, Synthesites advance intelligent cure monitoring

Research collaboration to enable active control and optimization for RTM process for composite structures manufacture.

Carbon Fibers

Fast-FlexMont2 project targets optimized, large-structure CFRP assembly

Advanced measuring and referencing methods, highly precise positioning technologies and continuous digital process control by Fraunhofer IFAM demonstrate automated rudder hinge assembly.
#automation

OOA composites in next-generation launch systems

As United Launch Alliance ULA replaces Atlas and Delta with next-generation launch rockets under the Vulcan name, supplier Ruag Space has been selected to provide lower cost/improved quality out-of-autoclave fabrication of Vulcan’s composite primary structures. Ruag will manufacture 5.4m payload fairings and 400-series interstage adapters for ULA’s Atlas V rocket.
#cuttingtools #weaving #camx

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Curing |

Fingerprinting liquids for composites

Collo uses electromagnetic sensors and edge analytics to optimize resin degassing, mixing, infusion, polymerization and cure as well as monitoring drift from benchmarked process parameters and enabling in-situ process control.
#sensors #outofautoclave #trends

Ginger Gardiner Senior Technical Editor, CompositesWorld

Videos / Podcasts

Prepregs

Hengshen to produce rear pressure bulkhead demonstrators

December 08, 2021 - 10:00 AM EST

China-based Hengshen Carbon and Composites will produce five 4.5-meter demonstrator composite rear pressure bulkheads (RPB) for a Chinese aerospace OEM.

ATL/AFP

Episode 38: Alan Hiken, Kane Robotics

May 10, 2021 - 12:00 AM EST

Alan Hiken, COO of Kane Robotics, talks about historic, current and future composites use in aircraft fuselage structures and the role of automation in next-gen manufacturing environments.
#787 #trends

Testing

Contactless measurement of temperature, pressure in composites

July 13, 2022 - 12:00 AM EST

Magnetic microwires enable contactless measurement of temperature and pressure during cure and in service.
#trends #composites4_0 #sensors

C-FREX carbon fiber composite exoskeleton structural analysis and design

Carbon Fibers

C-FREX exoskeleton depends on CFRP for unpowered movement

August 24, 2020 - 12:00 AM EST

C-FREX uses a novel design and CFRP to overcome the heaviness and weakness of metallic exoskeletons.
#insidemanufacturing #layup #autoclave

Curing

Hyperjoint: additive metal + composites = stronger, tougher joints

May 26, 2020 - 9:30 AM EST

Eliminates drilling holes with lap shear 60% higher than bolted joints and almost twice that of bonded joints.
#adhesives #airbus #cuttingtools

Filament Winding

Corebon expands induction-based composites production into new facility

November 12, 2019 - 8:40 AM EST

Results for cutting CFRP cycle time to be presented at Carbon Fiber 2019 conference.
#adhesives #cuttingtools #outofautoclave

Wind/Energy

Composites 4.0: digital assistants, edge computing and the future of smart factories

October 17, 2019 - 6:00 AM EST

Plataine reviews developments and discusses where composites manufacturing is headed.
#infrastructure #layup #workforcedevelopment

Curing |

Plant tour: Bucci Composites, Faenza, Italy

A stalwart in Italy’s “Motor Valley” opens its doors for a discussion and exploration of the company’s history in composites manufacturing for high-performance cars and other applications.
#planttour

Jeff Sloan Editor-in-Chief, CompositesWorld

Curing

Synthesites, Purdue CMSC advances real-time cure monitoring

Partners are developing cure simulation using data from dielectric sensors to monitor infusion and autoclave composite structures in real time.
#sensors

Molds/Tools

HORYZN emergency UAV harnesses CFRP tooling from Voith Composites

Voith Composites collaborated with HORYZN, a student initiative that leverages CFRP tooling and composites know-how for its Mission Pulse UAV project.

Fabrics/Preforms

Saint-Gobain, Roctool join efforts to boost composite 3D textile preform parts manufacturing

3D automated knitted preform layup technology and heat and cooling technologies for additional curing efficiency open a new window of application opportunities for composite and thermoplastic parts.
#automation #layup #autoclave

Aerospace

Haydale Graphene awarded Innovate UK grant to develop smart composite tooling

The ESENSE project aims to replace costly autoclave processes with a multi-zone OOA self-heated tooling solution, potentially cutting lead times by 20%, energy by 15% and halving the cost of autoclave manufacturing.
#outofautoclave

Carbon Fibers

Classic Recreations announces carbon fiber bodied Shelby Cobra race car

The officially licensed 1965 CSX Shelby Cobra race car features an autoclave-cured carbon fiber body, including the floor and doors, and is said to rival supercars in weight and horsepower.

ATL/AFP

NCC’s all-composite Type V tank demonstrates future composite space tank technology

SpaceTank project delivers a 96-liter carbon fiber composite tank with 4.0-5.50-millimeter nominal wall thickness for 30% weight savings in launch vehicle and satellite propellant tank applications.
#trends #space #layup

Design/Simulation |

Using machine learning to accelerate composites processing simulation

A speed gain of 1,000 to 10,000 times greater than traditional FE models has been achieved using machine learning models, enabling near real-time simulation for large composite components.
#design-and-testing

NEW PRODUCTS: CURING

Infusion

CURING

Chantiers de l’Atlantique reveals 66-meter, all-composite SolidSail mast

sensXPERT Digital Mold earns 2022 AVK Innovation Award

Mikrosam, H2Storage collaborate on 300+-liter Type IV hydrogen tanks

Ulster University, Synthesites advance intelligent cure monitoring

Fast-FlexMont2 project targets optimized, large-structure CFRP assembly

OOA composites in next-generation launch systems

Fingerprinting liquids for composites

Videos / Podcasts

Hengshen to produce rear pressure bulkhead demonstrators

Episode 38: Alan Hiken, Kane Robotics

Contactless measurement of temperature, pressure in composites

C-FREX exoskeleton depends on CFRP for unpowered movement

Hyperjoint: additive metal + composites = stronger, tougher joints

Corebon expands induction-based composites production into new facility

Composites 4.0: digital assistants, edge computing and the future of smart factories

Plant tour: Bucci Composites, Faenza, Italy

Synthesites, Purdue CMSC advances real-time cure monitoring

HORYZN emergency UAV harnesses CFRP tooling from Voith Composites

Saint-Gobain, Roctool join efforts to boost composite 3D textile preform parts manufacturing

Haydale Graphene awarded Innovate UK grant to develop smart composite tooling

Classic Recreations announces carbon fiber bodied Shelby Cobra race car

NCC’s all-composite Type V tank demonstrates future composite space tank technology

Using machine learning to accelerate composites processing simulation

NEW PRODUCTS: CURING

CAMX 2022 exhibit preview: SWORL

CAMX 2022 exhibit preview: BriskHeat Corp.

CAMX 2022 exhibit preview: Bondtech Corp.

CAMX 2022 exhibit preview: Wisconsin Oven

JEC World 2022 preview: Heraeus Noblelight

Harper International expands product offering with lab-scale rotary furnace