JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Special Issue Composites for mobility - May 2020 - 47

A composite white cane with unprecedented lightness, sensitivity and aesthetics

ty) requirements for aerospace and
defence applications.
What exactly is your MaaS service? Is it open to all businesses around the world?
H. B.: MaaS is a cloud-based platform that partners can license for
the on-demand production of ultra-strong, lightweight 3D-printed
composite parts. This service is
based on Arevo's Aqua platform,
the world's first industrial-grade
continuous fibre 3D printing system capable of printing parts of up
to one metre cubic volume. It features our easy-to-use Xplorator™
software, which accelerates design
cycles for composite parts from
months to hours.
We seek to create a worldwide network and we are looking forward to
the rescheduled JEC World, where
we will meet with prospective
manufacturing partners from the
consumer, industrial and aerospace
sectors to expand our MaaS service
in order to produce truly innovative
composite parts, as demonstrated
by the e-Moto.

The e-Moto

What makes this concept innovative?
H. B.: In terms of design and materials, the e-Moto design explores a
cantilevered unibody frame with a
single-sided chainstay, a single-sided fork design and an integrated
hub motor in a wheel showing off
Arevo's capability to utilize composite materials to their maximum
and create parts ready to use in the
field.
In terms of a commercially-viable
product, the Arevo+StudioWest
team set out to create a completely unique vehicle combining the
product performance of the latest
e-mobility hardware with the outstanding material performance of
Arevo's composite processes. The
team's goal was to leverage the
most advanced materials technology and creative design engineering from two industries to create a
cutting-edge vehicle that would not
have been possible in such a time
frame by any other means. The resulting vehicle reflects the very best
of both e-mobility and composite
construction performance.
Why did you opt
for a thermoplastic resin?
H. B.: As compared to the thermoset (TS) materials predominantly
used today for composite manufac-

turing, continuous fibre-reinforced
thermoplastics (CFRTP) are recyclable materials that do not have a
limited shelf life and do not require
refrigeration for storage. They also
do not require a secondary curing
operation in an oven, which is very
energy intensive. All of these benefits mean a more sustainable, efficient, and cost-effective production
cycle. Furthermore, from an engineering performance point of view,
thermoplastics offer outstanding
resistance to harsh chemicals and
excellent mechanical strength and
dimensional stability. They are
tougher and not as brittle, which
means they will last much longer in
the field.
What type of
reinforcement do you use?
H. B.: Our composite material is
a 1.2mm-diameter filament. It uses
a PEEK (polyetheretherketone)
thermoplastic matrix and a 12K
AS4, aerospace-grade continuous
carbon fibre tow with up to 50%
fibre volume. The composition of
the polymer matrix, carbon fibres
and other additives is optimized
for process speed, minimum void
content and the highest strengthto-weight mechanical performance.
This material combination meets
stringent FST (fire, smoke, toxici-

The Aqua
platform

SPECIAL ISSUE Mobility / May 2020 /

Are you planning to market your
Aqua platform?
H. B.: Yes, we are. As the Aqua
platform lies at the heart of our
MaaS initiative, the marketing of
both goes hand in hand. Or, in a
manner of speaking, Aqua is a "sine
qua non" for MaaS.

jec composites magazine

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Special Issue Composites for mobility - May 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Special Issue Composites for mobility - May 2020