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The wind energy market has long been considered the world’s largest market, by volume, for glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) composites — and increasingly, carbon fiber composites — as larger turbines and longer wind blades are developed, requiring higher performance, lighter weight materials. The outer skins of wind and tidal turbine blades generally comprise infused, GFRP laminates sandwiching foam core. Inside the blade, rib-like shear webs bonded to spar caps reinforce the structure. Spar caps are often made from GFRP or, as blade lengths lengthen, pultruded carbon fiber for additional strength.

Lighter-than-air flight is making a comeback with Hybrid Air Vehicles’ Airlander airliner and it’s taking composites and sustainability to the next level.

First seen in defense applications, unpiloted aircraft development is surging in the commercial world, enabled by a host of new material, process and assembly technologies.

EAA’s 2018 AirVenture at Oshkosh, WI, US happened during the last week of July and as always offered up a banquet of news and innovative new products, including flying cars, vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) personal air vehicles and combinations of the two. One of these concepts, called BlackFly and on display at Oshkosh for the first time, caught my attention.

Sweden-based CorPower Ocean designed its 9-meter-long, filament-wound GFRP buoy prototype for high-efficiency, durable wave energy generation and fast, on-site manufacture.

The carmaker plans to become carbon neutral in its global products and operations by 2040 and has committed to setting science-based targets to achieve carbon neutrality.

The U.S. Department of Energy reports 7,599 megawatts of land-based wind installed in 2018, and 25,824 megawatts of offshore wind in various stages of development.

Fibers used to reinforce composites are supplied directly by fiber manufacturers and indirectly by converters in a number of different forms, which vary depending on the application. Here's a guide to what's available.

Many automated production solutions were on offer at JEC Europe 2015, and several companies made announcements.

Flexible printed circuits and the Advanced Concepts for Aero‑Structures with Integrated Antennas and Sensors (ACASIAS) consortium.

Returning to the international composites trade show are the Innovation Awards, representing up to 33 finalists in 11 categories that highlight composites innovation excellence and fruitful collaborations.