sustainability CFRP and eco-friendly technologies introduced to a future concept car By At the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, Hyundai Motor Company revealed a concept car that uses CFRP and eco-friendly materials developed by Lotte Chemical. Ph.D. Se Hoon Kim General Manager Research Coordination Team Lotte Chemical Research Institute T he Intrado concept car (project name: HED-9) features a super-lightweight concept that uses CFRP (carbon fibre-reinforced plastics) and eco-friendly materials for interior and exterior parts. These automotive parts were developed by Lotte Chemical in collaboration with Hyundai Motor Company. Injection-mouldable LFT High performance and light weight properties for future automotive applications have been achieved using carbon fibre-based long fibre-reinforced thermoplastics (LFT). Injection-mouldable LCFT (long carbon fibre-reinforced thermoplas- Fig. 1: The HED-9 concept car Fig. 2: Automotive applications of LFT (Supran) produced by Lotte Chemical tics) such as Lotte Chemical's Supran are new materials mainly intended for metal replacement which are produced with a unique impregnation technology. Supran's general applications include automotive parts (e.g. door modules, engine covers and fan shrouds) and home appliances such as air conditioners and printer covers. Supran is used to produce a plastic door module for the Intrado that pro- 40 jec composites magazine / No91 August - September 2014 tects the passengers in case of side impacts. This material results in 20% faster assembly and reduces weight by around 40% compared with steel. As a result, it is possible to improve productivity and to expect cost savings as well. New process for lighter bumper back beams WLFT (woven long fibre hybrid thermoplastics) are thermoplastic