Tow steering, Part 2: The next generation
Wings on next-generation commercial aircraft will be longer, thinner, more aerodynamic and more efficient. They also are ideal candidates for the application of steered tows. One project aimed to design, fabricate and quantify a tow-steered wing skin.
Jeff Sloan
Editor-in-Chief, CompositesWorld
Tech Table: Curing Ovens
A table of composite curing ovens composed of data provided by suppliers.
The markets: Oil and gas (2021)
Composites continue to play a critical role in onshore hydraulic fracturing, and thermoplastic composites are on the rise for deepwater pipelines.
The markets: Sports and recreation (2021)
The use of lightweight and high-performance composite materials in sports equipment continues to increase.
The markets: Industrial (2021)
Composites often must meet a certain aesthetic in applications where the consumer is the end user. But fiber-reinforced materials are just as valuable in industrial applications where corrosion resistance, high strength and durability are the performance drivers.
The markets: Civil infrastructure (2021)
Composites are slated for growth in bridges, water treatment systems, rebar and other concrete reinforcement, offering longer service life, competitive costs and improved sustainability.
The markets: Aerospace (2021)
The coronavirus pandemic, a once-in-a-millennia global catastrophe, has depressed commercial air travel in unprecedented and disastrous ways. Implications start with the airlines themselves and trickle down to major airframers and the entire tier structure of the aerospace supply chain.
The markets: Electronics (2021)
Consumer demand in the electronics market for greater durability and more features at lower cost and weight is driving OEMs toward composite solutions.
Hannah Mason
Associate Editor, CompositesWorld
The markets: Utility infrastructure (2021)
Corroded metal infrastructure continues to be a problem, and composite materials, including new advancements in graphene nanotubes, are providing solutions.
The markets: Renewable energy (2021)
Wind energy continues to dominate in this segment and remains the world’s largest market for glass fiber-reinforced composites.
2020 CW Top Shops recognizes top-performing facilities
CW's second annual Top Shops benchmarking survey helps composites fabricators put their operations into perspective and illuminates top-ranking facilities.
AFP tow steering comes of age, Part 1: Current state
It used to be enough that AFP systems could precisely and quickly place and cut multiple tows to build complex aerostructures. Now, fabricators need those tows steered, and the tighter the radius, the better.
Moving forward on the Multifunctional Fuselage Demonstrator (MFFD)
Clean Sky 2’s MFFD program continues to move toward its goal of delivering a welded, thermoplastic composite fuselage demonstrator using next-generation manufacturing processes.
Reprocessable thermosets and thermoplastic epoxies: An expanding landscape
New chemistries give thermosets new thermoplastic-like versatility.
The markets: Pressure vessels (2021)
Demand for composite pressure vessels for storage of natural gas and hydrogen is expected to increase substantially over the next decade as OEMs and governments look for ways to reduce vehicle emissions.
Jeff Sloan
Editor-in-Chief, CompositesWorld
Carbon fiber in pressure vessels for hydrogen
The emerging H2 economy drives tank development for aircraft, ships and gas transport.
Next-generation composites qualification
Fully digital qualification hasn’t yet arrived, but simulation and analysis software continue to evolve and work together with physical testing practices.
Bridging the gap between CFRP and CMC
Novel composites offer performance up to 1000°C with faster processing.
Automated aerocomposites production: Liquid molding or welded thermoplastic?
Two materials and process approaches are demonstrated for CFRP bulkhead production.
3D printing with continuous fiber: A landscape
Growth continues in suppliers, part size, production volume and markets.
Composite aerostructures in the emerging urban air mobility market
In the not too distant future, point-to-point, limited-distance, piloted and autonomous air travel for people and cargo will be the norm. Composites will make it possible.
The markets: Boatbuilding and marine (2021)
Boat sales surge during pandemic, carbon fiber continues to increase with demand for electric power, foiling and performance, while progress is seen for glass fiber composites in ships, 3D printing and recycling.
Ginger Gardiner
Senior Editor, CompositesWorld
Combining AFP with 3D printing for flexible parts production
Electroimpact creates a multifunctional manufacturing cell for complex, aero-quality continuous fiber composite parts.
Update: Lower wing skin, Wing of Tomorrow
Airbus is evaluating several advanced composites technologies as part of its Wing of Tomorrow program. Among these is liquid resin infusion of the lower wing skin, being developed by Spirit AeroSystems.
Composites 4.0: Digital transformation, adaptive production, new paradigms
An evolving landscape of automation, sensors and AI software is not an end, but a means to achieve the cost, quality, efficiency and agility required for future manufacturing.
Composites in the race to space
Advanced materials use in current and upcoming NASA missions.
The growing role of composites in infrastructure
From bridges to rebar and pilings, composites provide installation and life cycle cost savings over steel and concrete.
Composites' role in seawater reverse osmosis desalination
Part two of a two-part series on the role of composites for meeting California’s 21st-century water needs.
