What are thermoplastic tapes?
28th June 2021 Joseph Holt
Thermoplastic tapes offer different advantages and disadvantages to their thermoset counterparts due the difference in the matrix properties. One of the key advantages of thermoplastics is their ease of processability by melting, which is in contrast to the chemical processing requirement of thermosets.
How Sustainable Materials are Shaking up Motorsport
7th April 2021 Tasmin Boam
As more and more people become acutely aware of the Global Warming threat motorsport series, such as F1, have come under increasing pressure to reduce their carbon emissions. In recent years many motorsport series have introduced new regulations in an effort to enhance their environmental image, though there are calls for further action.
What is a peel test?
3rd March 2021 Valentina Guerra
Peel tests measure the strength of the bond between a substrate and the material being peeled off (known as the adherend). This peel strength is expressed as the load required to separate the adherend from the substrate, per unit width of the bond.
What is Automated Fibre Placement (AFP)?
19th January 2021 Gary Foster
Automated Fibre Placement (AFP) is part of a family of manufacturing techniques, which refer to the precise laying of continuous fibre tapes to manufacture multi-layered composite products, typically with significant strength.
Tips for Working with Satin Weaves
11th December 2020 Tala Abbasian
Woven textiles are used extensively to produce composite materials; they are made into prepregs, infused with resins or even have resins applied with a bucket and a brush. These textiles are produced from yarn, strands or filaments by weaving “weft” or “fill” at 90 degrees to the “warp” at 0-degree direction.
What are Polymer Nanocomposites?
9th September 2020 Ben Hargreaves
In a nutshell… A polymer nanocomposite is simply a composite in which we combine a polymer matrix (which could be thermosetting or thermoplastic) with some kind of nanomaterial. In keeping with conventional polymer composites, there may also be some other form of conventional fibre reinforcement (such as woven carbon fibre) included. …and a nanomaterial is…? […]
The Short Beam Shear Test for Composite Materials
20th September 2019 Joe Carruthers
The “short beam shear” test is a relatively quick, easy and inexpensive test to perform. This is due to the simplicity of its test fixtures and samples. It is typically used to compare or benchmark the performance of different materials for R&D or quality control purpose.
Choosing the Right Reinforcement Format for Composites
3rd September 2019 Tala Abbasian
When deciding upon the right reinforcement material to use in a new composite component, it can be tempting to focus solely on the fibre type (i.e. glass, carbon, natural fibre etc.). However, the way in which the reinforcement fibres are arranged – the fibre format – can have at least the same impact on the final component properties as the type of fibres chosen.
Composites for the Non-Composites Engineer
2nd September 2019 Lucy Bull
Going back to basics to explain the fundamentals and highlight some common processing methods of composite materials.
Types of Polymer Matrix
23rd August 2019 Elliot Fleet
There are many different types of polymers that can be used as a matrix for composite materials. In this explainer, we’ll look at ways in which these materials can be categorised and highlight the key differences between them.
Can I Have it in Composites?
15th August 2019 Ben Hargreaves
In this explainer, we’re going to focus on the fundamental choices which need to be made with regard to materials and part production methods and consider the links between the two.
The Opportunities for Thermoplastic Composites
31st May 2019 Chris Hare
The primary driving force behind the emergence of thermoplastic composites into the mainstream is the automotive industry. And the things that drive the automotive industry are weight saving and low cost, so how do thermoplastic composites meet the challenge?
What is Composite Ballistic Armour?
1st February 2019 Chris Hare
Ballistic Armour is a generic term for a protective layer of material that protects a person or object from projectiles. The common requirement of all systems is to dissipate the projectile energy with minimal damage to the target. This requirement for energy dissipation is where multi-layer composites can provide some advantages.
Compression Moulding: How to make High-performance Thermoplastic Composites
7th November 2018 Francisco Saraiva
An in-depth look at how compression moulding can be used for the production of high-performance thermoplastic composite components, highlighting technique as a precise and potentially rapid process for producing high-quality composite parts in a range of volumes.
What is Vacuum Bagging?
20th September 2018 Joe Carruthers
Vacuum bagging is a very flexible process for consolidating fibre-reinforced polymers of a wide range of shapes and sizes.
What is Compression Moulding?
19th July 2018 Joe Carruthers
Compression moulding is a precise and potentially rapid process for producing high quality composite parts in a wide range of volumes. It typically employs a matched metal tool in a heated (hydraulic) press to consolidate sheet materials or moulding compounds at relatively high pressures.
Composite Material Testing – The Challenges of Batch-to-Batch Variation and How to Manage Them
29th June 2018 Elliot Fleet
Statistics is a branch of mathematics that deals with managing data and evaluating logically how well it fits a preconceived pattern or model. Similarly a large part of composites R&D and materials science is concerned with generating data and using it to support a hypothesis. The use of statistical methods is therefore absolutely critical to […]
What is Resin Transfer Moulding (RTM)?
25th April 2018 Joe Carruthers
Resin transfer moulding (RTM) is a closed-mould process for manufacturing high performance composite components in medium volumes (1,000s to 10,000s of parts).
What is Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA)?
22nd April 2018 Gary Foster
Dynamic Mechanical Analysis or DMA for short, is an extremely versatile and flexible analytical technique for measuring the physical properties of a range of materials.
