JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #56 - April 2010 - 33

JEC INNOVATION AWARDS 2010
RAW MATERIALS
Winner: Advanced Fiber Materials Technologies Co., Ltd. (China)
Partnership network: OCV Reinforcements (China); Shandong Shuangyi Group Co., Ltd. (China) Name: Han-3D-Fabrics and Han-3D-Composites. New type of fabrics to avoid the problem of delamination and lack of resistance in general adhesives. Description: The low interlamination strength of composites often leads to out-of-plane failures such as delamination under various loads, especially under impact and compression fatigue loads. Han3D-Fabrics are a new international patent-pending approach from Advanced Fiber Materials Technologies, Co., Ltd. that uses Velcro (hook-and-loop fasteners) on both sides of fibre sheets to produce 3D composites with increased interlaminate strength. They do not disturb the 2D laying processes of today’s main composite production technologies. The hook-and-loop fabrics can be made of any fibres such as carbon fibre, glass fibre and Kevlar fibre, using proprietary technologies. Advantages or salient features: Test results and theoretical analyses show that Han-3D-Composites can increase interlaminate strength by 50%-100%, compression strength by more than 20%, impact strength by about 20% and lay-up efficiency by 40%. Han-3D-Fabrics can also significantly increase the fatigue strength, bolt hole strength, bonding/connection strength and quality of composites, while greatly increasing the efficiency and consistency of the lay-up process by enabling automation due to the easy handling of hook-and-loop fabrics. Hook-and-loop 3D fabrics are cost competitive with the 2D laminate composites currently available in the market. They can be used in the energy, aerospace, automotive, chemical and construction industries. State of development: The development of Han-3D-Fabrics is completed and they have been launched in China and the USA. Shandong Shuangyi Group Co., Ltd. uses the low-cost 3D fabrics to make wind-turbine nacelle covers and other products. It is estimated that 10% to 25% of all composite products in the world can be made using this new 3D technology. Contact: nathan.han@3dnanocomposites.com material is heated by the contact areas. With a non-planar tool, the IHP can produce different open profiles such as U-profiles and angle profiles. The only condition is that this profile have a 2D geometry. IVW achieved a breakthrough in the one-step production of hollow profiles: a floating core was integrated in the centre of the tool.

Finalist: Chismatech srl (Italy)
Name: New material with auxetic properties for core applications and the corresponding production process. Description: Auxetic means that the material has a negative Poisson ratio, i.e. it becomes thicker when stretched rather than getting thinner. One of the main benefits is that the core can be bent with a complex curvature without any “saddle effect”, as is usually observed for hexagonal honeycombs. The production technology used is RTM (Resin Transfer Moulding). Using the RTM technology allowed cost savings and reduced toxic emissions.

Finalist: Klebchemie m.G. Becker GmbH & Co. KG (Germany)
Partnership network: The Wall AG (Germany) Name: Construction panels using the SwissCell honeycomb technology and Kleiberit adhesives. The panels allow the fast construction of houses with their interior furnishings, directly on site. Description: Low-cost houses for less developed countries. Modules were developed to meet the need for over 100 million low-cost houses built in a few hours, lasting for several decades, well insulated, and absolutely fire resistant. The houses are made directly on site in a mobile factory, so only small volumes have to be transported. Thanks to the adhesive technologies developed by Kleiberit, the houses are assembled quickly, even under adverse conditions. The new Kleiberit® adhesive technology makes it possible to produce all interior furnishings quickly, stably and inexpensively with the new panels. Despite their large shape and small struts (0.4 mm), the honeycomb can hold over 200 tons of surface load per m2.

Finalist: Institut für Verbundwerkstoffe GmbH (Germany)
Partnership network: Xperion Aerospace GmbH (Germany) Name: One-step production of hollow hat profiles based on continuous fibre-reinforced thermoplastic the CBT® matrix (cyclic butylene terephthalate). Description: The continuous manufacture of hollow profiles using continuous fibre reinforcements, a variable layer set-up and different types of thermoplastic matrices was demonstrated for the first time. The use of an in-situ polymerized pCBT® matrix improves the cost efficiency of thermoplastic FRPC production. Combining the interval-hot-press technology with the in-situ polymerization Polymer pCBT® optimizes part performance while reducing production costs. A feed unit pulls the sheets through the open press. When the pillar press is closed, the

No56 April 2010 / jec composites magazine

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #56 - April 2010

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