Aerospace
Inside R and D: A-VaRTM takes flight in Japan
Tests show out-of-autoclave process can reduce costs on new regional jet.
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Is it really low-tech vs. high tech?
I’ll bet that a lot of folks who read this column regularly — assuming I’m lucky and lots of folks are reading — have spent their entire careers working with E-glass without ever thinking they were high-performance geeks, too. To them, welcome to the club!
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Low-cost methods realize high-concept Superbus
Multifunctional mass-transport vehicle concept takes shape via resin-infused carbon/epoxy and vacuum-formed glass-reinforced thermoplastic sandwich construction.
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Aircraft delays alter carbon fiber supply/demand balance
When Boeing announced in early December that it was officially pushing back the first flight and the first delivery of the 787 Dreamliner to second quarter 2009 and first quarter 2010, respectively, one of the first questions that circulated among our staff centered on the issue of carbon fiber supply.
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787 integrates new composite wing deicing system
The composite wing leading edge on Boeing’s Dreamliner features an integrated heating element that incorporates a sprayed metal conductive layer within the laminate stack.
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Beyond the Concorde: Next-generation SSTs
Civilian supersonic flight could begin a new era as aircraft developers position composites-intensive designs for market entry, particularly in the business-jet niche.
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Competitive to the core
 This new superyacht combines luxury innovations with energy-efficient construction, enabled by a new marine-grade balsa core.
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Watching a half-century of progress in composites
Looking back on my experience in the composites industry, from my first job in 1961 as a free-lance secretary to Brandt Goldsworthy to my last job as a free-lance writer for Composites Technology and High Performance Composites, gives me an uncommon perspective.
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Wind Blade Manufacturing: Cost-efficient materials-based strategies
The wind blade’s four key elements — the root, the spar, the aerodynamic shell or fairing, and the surfacing system — have present unique manufacturing challenges that must be met with carefully selected composite material systems and molding strategies.
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Wind Blade Manufacturing: Are thermoplastic composites the future?
In a market dominated by thermoset composites, some wind turbine blade manufacturers are actively pursuing new composite blade designs featuring faster-processing reinforced thermoplastics.
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