Thermoplastics
Green resins: Growing up
High hurdles remain, but the push for sustainable sources of resin monomers is gaining momentum.
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2011 International Paris Air Show
At the 49th event, records are set for attendance and aircraft orders, and airframers go on record about composites-related developments.
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Small wind gets big
Massive growth, complex blade designs reopen challenging market in wind energy niche.
Read MoreBarrier coats in pool production
Barrier coats protect fiberglass swimming pools from invasive water-treatment chemicals.
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High-speed press cure for high-speed racers
Trapped tooling and compression molding bring cocuring efficiencies to previously autoclave-cured, aerodynamic fins and planes.
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Carbon fiber/PEEK takes hydraulic pump to new depths
A switch from metal to composites reduces weight, minimizes part deflection in ultradeep ocean installations.
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Thermoplastic composites: Sustainable transport
Cyclic PBT oligomers used to mold Class 8 semitrailer bed via vacuum-bag processing.
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A new "tunable" polyurethane could revolutionize composites
A novel polyurethane-based resin system with tailorable pot life and cure, from Huntsman Polyurethanes (Auburn Hills, Mich. and Everberg, Belgium) now permits composites manufacturers to tailor resin pot life and onset of cure to fit the processing requirements.
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Thermoplastic composites: Primary structure?
Yes, advanced forms are in development, but has the technology progressed enough to make the business case?
Read MoreTPCs on the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350
Although The Boeing Co.’s (Seattle, Wash.) 787 Dreamliner and the Airbus (Toulouse, France) A350 XWB have earned much press as showcases for thermoset composites in aircraft structure, both programs also have advanced the use of thermoplastic composites.
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