Focus on Design Column

Thermoplastic composite pipes provide 59% reduction in H2 distribution CO2 emissions

Hive Composites’ multilayer thermoplastic composite pipe (TPC) design meets hydrogen permeation requirements while ensuring substantial CO2 reductions compared to conventional steel pipe systems.

Stewart Mitchell
Contributing Writer

Design for manufacturing, assembly and automation enables complex CFRP telescope supports

Airborne delivered two mirror support structures for the FYST and SOLAT telescopes, assembling 26,300 components while maintaining near-zero CTE, strict tolerances on 6.5 × 6.5 × 1.8-meter assemblies.  

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All-recycled, needle-punched nonwoven CFRP slashes carbon footprint of Formula 2 seat

Dallara and Tenowo collaborate to produce a race-ready Formula 2 seat using recycled carbon fiber, reducing CO2 emissions by 97.5% compared to virgin materials.

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Carbon fiber, bionic design achieve peak performance in race-ready production vehicle

Porsche worked with Action Composites to design and manufacture an innovative carbon fiber safety cage option to lightweight one of its series race vehicles, built in a one-shot compression molding process.

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Aviation-specific battery system uses advanced composites to address electric, hybrid flight

BOLDair’s composite enclosure, compression structures and thermal runaway management enables high-performance electric energy storage.

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Carbon fiber composite pallet revolutionizes freight industry

LOG Point Pallet fuses advanced materials with innovative design and manufacturing to improve supply chains worldwide.

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Thermoplastic composites: Cracking the horizontal body panel nut

Versatile sandwich panel technology solves decades-long exterior automotive challenge.

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Composite bipolar plates provide 81% improvement to hydrogen fuel cell power density

Hycco’s development of ultra-thin CFRTP bipolar plates achieve 7.5 kilowatt/kilogram power density while maintaining high durability for heavy-mobility fuel cell applications.

Stewart Mitchell
Contributing Writer

Next-generation airship design enabled by modern composites

LTA Research’s proof-of-concept Pathfinder 1 modernizes a fully rigid airship design with a largely carbon fiber composite frame. R&D has already begun on higher volume, more automated manufacturing for the future.

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CirculinQ: Glass fiber, recycled plastic turn paving into climate solutions

Durable, modular paving system from recycled composite filters, collects, infiltrates stormwater to reduce flooding and recharge local aquifers.

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Composites enable massive wastewater infrastructure project

To build complex drop shafts for New Zealand’s Central Interceptor project, RPC Technologies pushed the limits with glass and carbon fiber, vertical filament winding and UV-cure resins.

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3D-printed CFRP tools for serial production of composite landing flaps

GKN Aerospace Munich and CEAD develop printed tooling with short and continuous fiber that reduces cost and increases sustainability for composites production.

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Jeep all-composite roof receivers achieve steel performance at low mass

Ultrashort carbon fiber/PPA replaces steel on rooftop brackets to hold Jeep soft tops, hardtops.

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CompositeWorld's top ten articles from our "Focus on Design" column

CW’s Focus on Design assists our readers in staying up to date on the latest trends and innovations in composite materials and design. Take a look at the top ten most read articles from our popular column. 

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Pultruded CFRP chassis enables 36% payload increase for specialized commercial vehicles

CarbonTT’s quadraxial NCF composite chassis adds 185-kilogram capacity to Borco Höhns’ 3.5-ton Fiat Ducato market vehicle.

Stewart Mitchell
Contributing Writer

Composites-reinforced concrete for sustainable data center construction

Metromont’s C-GRID-reinforced insulated precast concrete’s high strength, durability, light weight and ease of installation improve data center performance, construction time and sustainability.

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Composite sidewall cover expands options for fire-safe rail components

R&D project by CG Rail explores use of carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastics and recycled manufacturing scrap to meet fire safety, weight and volume targets.

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Seat frame demonstrates next-generation autocomposites design

Light weight, simplified/cost-effective manufacturing, passenger comfort and safety informed materials and process innovations and won awards for the 2022 Toyota Tundra‘s second-row seat frame.

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Novel composite technology replaces welded joints in tubular structures

The Tree Composites TC-joint replaces traditional welding in jacket foundations for offshore wind turbine generator applications, advancing the world’s quest for fast, sustainable energy deployment.  

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High glass transition temperature, 100% bio-based thermoset resins for space composites

With the European Commission Restrictions Roadmap soon banning entire classes of chemical substances found in fossil fuel-based synthetic polymers, the space industry is looking to a chemical combination to produce competitive thermoset resins.

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Thermoset-thermoplastic joining, natural fibers enable sustainability-focused brake cover

Award-winning motorcycle brake disc cover showcases potential for KTM Technologies’ Conexus joining technology and flax fiber composites.

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Carbon fiber/flax landing gear achieves 54% weight reduction via tailored layup optimization

Fuko’s Biogear showcases how strategic composite material distribution and natural fiber damping properties can lightweight and enhance critical aerospace structure performance.

Stewart Mitchell
Contributing Writer

CFRTP upper stage propellant tank

PROCOMP uses in-situ consolidation AFP and ultrasonic welding to demonstrate lightweight, novel tank design.

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One-shot manufacture of 3D knitted hybrid thermoplastic composite structures

MAPICC 3D project replaces steel seat support in heavy-duty vehicle with a 3D knitted composite made from thermoplastic hybrid yarns comprising the matrix and reinforcing components.  

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Protecting EV motors more efficiently

Motors for electric vehicles are expected to benefit from Trelleborg’s thermoplastic composite rotor sleeve design, which advances materials and processes to produce a lightweight, energy-efficient component.

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CFRTP enables better, greener smartphones

Carbon Mobile’s “monocoque” design eliminates separate case, cover and frame, better protects electronics and simplifies disassembly.

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Modernizing the mechanical rotor sail

Composites are key for Norsepower’s award-winning redesign of a century-old rotor sail for reducing carbon emissions on passenger and cargo ships.

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Composite buildings go monocoque

Superior protection from the elements plus fast, affordable installation and maintenance have quickly made Orenco Composites’ DuraFiber buildings an attractive choice for water and wastewater, communications, transportation and power industry outbuildings.

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