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Momentive carbon fibre door wins automotive award
APPLICATIONS
Carbon fibre car demonstrates potential of 3D printing
The Strati: printed in one piece over 44 hours.
A CARBON fibre reinforced thermoplastic compound from SABIC has been used to produce the world’s first 3D-printed vehicle. SABIC delivered the materials and processing expertise needed to create the concept vehicle
using 3D printing (also known as additive manufacturing) during the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) in Chicago, USA, this September. The fully functional vehicle was printed from scratch and
assembled by automotive design firm Local Motors. The company collaborated with Cincinnati Inc, a large-scale manufacturing system builder, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), a pioneer in advanced materials research, and SABIC to develop and validate the technology and materials needed. SABIC reports that its LNP™ STAT-KON™ carbon fibre reinforced thermoplastic was chosen for its strength-to-weight ratio and high stiffness, which minimises warping during the 3D printing process, enabling enhanced aesthetics and performance. The company adds that material selection and validation, as well as equipment specification and processing, were
instrumental throughout the development process. Tony Cerruti, marketing director, Americas, for SABIC’s Innovative Plastics business comments: “SABIC’s materials and processing knowledge, together with this advanced additive manufacturing technology, will help to address the manufacturing challenges our customers are facing – the high cost to innovate. We believe that this technology has far-reaching potential for applications across the multiple industries that SABIC serves, bringing designs to market faster and enabling mass customisation.” SABIC; www.sabic-ip.com
Momentive carbon fibre door wins automotive award MOMENTIVE SPECIALTY Chemicals Inc’s carbon fibre/epoxy car door structure won the People’s Choice Award for the Most Innovative Composite Part at the Society of Plastics Engineers’ Automotive Composites Conference & Exhibition (ACCE) last month. The carbon fibre/epoxy door and window frame profile was produced by Benteler-SGL for 2013 and later Porsche 911 GT3 Cup coupes. The composite component was manufactured by high pressure resin transfer moulding (HP-RTM) using Momentive’s EPIKOTE™ 04695-1/EPIKURE™ 05357 epoxy resin system, Sigrafil® type C40 carbon fibre supplied by SGL Group, and polyester fibre. The component’s Class A surface was finished in the body colour. The part has a simplified, integrated 2-piece design with a
www.reinforcedplastics.com
single structural inner piece incorporating the header, and a Class A outer panel. The door is a lightweight, trimmed body structure weighing 5.5 kg, compared to 15 kg for the standard series door. The raw body of the door weighs 4 kg and the polycarbonate window and paint weigh 1.5 kg. The inner and outer shells are manufactured via HP-RTM, and the outer shell is designed as a ‘micro-sandwich’ to achieve the requisite buckling strength and performance at the minimum weight. The composite door offers: a greater than 60% weight reduction compared with metal; lower vehicle centre of gravity; Class A appearance; and short cycle-time production.
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014
REINFORCEDplastics
5
Carbon fibre car demonstrates potential of 3D printing
The Strati: printed in one piece over 44 hours.
A CARBON fibre reinforced thermoplastic compound from SABIC has been used to produce the world’s first 3D-printed vehicle. SABIC delivered the materials and processing expertise needed to create the concept vehicle
using 3D printing (also known as additive manufacturing) during the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) in Chicago, USA, this September. The fully functional vehicle was printed from scratch and
assembled by automotive design firm Local Motors. The company collaborated with Cincinnati Inc, a large-scale manufacturing system builder, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), a pioneer in advanced materials research, and SABIC to develop and validate the technology and materials needed. SABIC reports that its LNP™ STAT-KON™ carbon fibre reinforced thermoplastic was chosen for its strength-to-weight ratio and high stiffness, which minimises warping during the 3D printing process, enabling enhanced aesthetics and performance. The company adds that material selection and validation, as well as equipment specification and processing, were
instrumental throughout the development process. Tony Cerruti, marketing director, Americas, for SABIC’s Innovative Plastics business comments: “SABIC’s materials and processing knowledge, together with this advanced additive manufacturing technology, will help to address the manufacturing challenges our customers are facing – the high cost to innovate. We believe that this technology has far-reaching potential for applications across the multiple industries that SABIC serves, bringing designs to market faster and enabling mass customisation.” SABIC; www.sabic-ip.com
Momentive carbon fibre door wins automotive award MOMENTIVE SPECIALTY Chemicals Inc’s carbon fibre/epoxy car door structure won the People’s Choice Award for the Most Innovative Composite Part at the Society of Plastics Engineers’ Automotive Composites Conference & Exhibition (ACCE) last month. The carbon fibre/epoxy door and window frame profile was produced by Benteler-SGL for 2013 and later Porsche 911 GT3 Cup coupes. The composite component was manufactured by high pressure resin transfer moulding (HP-RTM) using Momentive’s EPIKOTE™ 04695-1/EPIKURE™ 05357 epoxy resin system, Sigrafil® type C40 carbon fibre supplied by SGL Group, and polyester fibre. The component’s Class A surface was finished in the body colour. The part has a simplified, integrated 2-piece design with a
www.reinforcedplastics.com
single structural inner piece incorporating the header, and a Class A outer panel. The door is a lightweight, trimmed body structure weighing 5.5 kg, compared to 15 kg for the standard series door. The raw body of the door weighs 4 kg and the polycarbonate window and paint weigh 1.5 kg. The inner and outer shells are manufactured via HP-RTM, and the outer shell is designed as a ‘micro-sandwich’ to achieve the requisite buckling strength and performance at the minimum weight. The composite door offers: a greater than 60% weight reduction compared with metal; lower vehicle centre of gravity; Class A appearance; and short cycle-time production.
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014
REINFORCEDplastics
5