SEPTEMBER 2010 / compositesworld.

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■ One-piece supercar passenger cell

■ Private space race: Composites win
■ SQRTM profile/Antiballistics update
■ Airshows: Farnborough & Oshkosh
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FEATURES
24 Farnborough International
Airshow 2010
Although uncertainties remain, air-
craft OEMs see recovery in order
numbers.
By Sara Black & Eddie Kania
26 EAA AirVenture 2010
28
Rain on Wittman Field runways can’t
dampen Oshkosh Fly-In enthusiasm.
By Sara Black
28 The Private Space Race
NASA passes the development 38
torch to legacy contractors and
NewSpace entrepreneurs, igniting a
new competition in space transport.
By Karen Wood
38 Structural Armor or
Armored Structures?
Either way, antiballistics engineers
seek structural integrity and ballistic
deterrence from a single design.
By Michael R. LeGault
44 SQRTM Enables
Net-shape Parts 44
New out-of-autoclave process com-
bines resin transfer molding with
prepregs for a complex helicopter
part prototype.
By Sara Black
SEPTEMBER
volume: eighteen
number: five 2010
FOCUS ON DESIGN
60 F1-inspired MonoCell:
Racing Safety for the Road
McLaren Automotive’s Claudio
Santoni leads the production-car
arm of the famed McLaren Rac-
ing team in a successful effort to
adapt race car chassis technology
(pictured on the cover) for a new
family of exotic road cars.
By Bob Griffiths
TABLE OF CONTENTS
COLUMNS
7 From the Editor
HPC editor-in-chief Jeff Sloan
comments on the impact that
military drawdowns in the Mid-
dle East might have on the U.S.
composites industry.
8 Market Q&A
Investment banker Paul Weis-
brich gauges the aerospace/
defense M&A market in an ex-
clusive interview.
9 Testing Tech
Dr. Donald Adams appraises
existing methods for testing
the performance of fasteners
loaded in transverse shear.
64 Out of the Mold
HPC’s technical editor Sara
Black says recessionary scorn
of private flight unnecessarily
harmed the economically vital
general aviation industry.
DEPARTMENTS
13 News
51
52
Calendar
Applications
54 New Products
57 Ad Index
58 Marketplace
59 Showcase
ON THE COVER
The McLaren MonoCell marks the first
use in a street-legal automobile of the
one-piece carbon fiber/epoxy driver’s
cell pioneered by McLaren Racing
(Woking, Surrey, U.K.) in Formula 1
race cars. The complex part, produced
at a rate of 4,000 units per annum via
resin transfer molding, is the rolling-
chassis centerpiece of McLaren Auto-
motive’s new MP4-12C supercar.
Source: McLaren Automotive
SEPTEMBER 2010 | 1
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SEPTEMBER 2010 | 3
 EDITOR

FROM THE EDITOR

O ne of my job respon-
sibilities is to gather
composites industry
news each week for publica-
tion in our CompositesWorld
the U.S. has announced the de-
parture from Iraq of its last com-
bat brigade. Only 50,000 troops
remain to help keep the peace,
train Iraqi solders and continue
Weekly e-newsletter. I use rebuilding the country. In Af-
keyword searches on the ghanistan, a U.S. troop draw-
Internet to stay on top of down could begin as soon as
news and announcements next summer. As these conflicts
and have a stable of about jeff@compositesworld.com end their “hot” phases, demand
30 keywords I use, includ- for some composite parts and
ing company names, such as structures will wane as well. No
Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, Air- surprise, then, that U.S. Department of Defense Secre-
bus, Sikorsky, etc. tary Robert Gates has proposed military spending cuts
One thing I’ve learned, poring over search results, totalling $100 billion (USD) over the next five years.
is that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have been And that’s on top of the Pentagon’s decision in 2009 to
very lucrative for military contractors. I see, almost cut the F-22 fighter jet program. Will other high-profile
every day, announcements of federal defense con- projects also get the ax? The bottom line is that money
tracts, and a resulting increase in demand for com- will not flow to defense projects like it once did, and
posite parts and structures — unmanned aerial vehi- there will be consequences.
It would be helpful if there were other
Facing drawdowns in Iraq and Afghanistan emerging end markets to pick up the lost de-
mand. Wind energy, for one, shows promise to
that will reduce demand for military com- consume large quantities of composite ma-
posites, we must seek new opportunities. terials for many years, but it’s been hobbled
severely by the recession and accompanying
credit crunch. The auto industry, also laid low
cles, aircraft and helicopter components, naval patrol by the recession, is reorganizing itself to emphasize
boats, vehicle and personal armor, soldier housing electric drivetrain technology that may attract several
and more. (A good example of the armor R&D can be new uses of composites, but this looks to be a slow-
found on p. 38 of this issue, where contributor Mike evolving transition out of a very deep ditch.
LeGault explores the latest antiballistic composites We’ve become accustomed over the past nine years
technologies for battlefield application.) to tapping a full military funding pipeline for a variety
Setting aside for the moment the arguments for of products and projects and must now wean ourselves
and against our presence in these countries, the fact of this dependence as the war-funding flow slows to
that we have been in Afghanistan since 2001 and Iraq a trickle. We are faced with a classic challenge-vs.-op-
since 2003 has created a vigorous and well-funded portunity conundrum. It seems like an opportunity to
military economy that employs thousands of people me, and now is the time to think creatively about how
and consumes millions of pounds of composite ma- composites can be further adapted to replace metals
terials each year. It has spurred creativity and inno- and other legacy materials throughout the manufac-
vation in application of composite products that we turing world.
might otherwise not have seen. Use of military hard-
ware in combat has exposed many limitations, forc-
ing the military community to think more seriously
about composites as a means of lightweighting and
corrosion-prevention in its warfighting structures and
for protection of troops in harm’s way.
All of this has been wonderful for the composites Jeff Sloan
community, but like it or not, such gravy trains don’t
run forever. As I write this editorial in mid-August,

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 5
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AEROSPACE & DEFENSE M&A ANALYSIS: IT’S A SELLERS’ MARKET
Paul Weisbrich is
the senior man-
aging director of
McGladrey Capital
Markets LLC (Cos-
ta Mesa, Calif.). A
20-year investment-
banking veteran, he
frequently lectures
on that subject in
North America and
Europe, and he is an adjunct professor
of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) at the
University of Southern California’s (USC)
Marshall School of Business. He has a BA
in business from Loyola Marymount Uni-
versity, an MA in business administration
from USC and holds Series 7, 24 and 63
securities licenses.
H
PC recently talked with investment
banker Paul Weisbrich about the
financial health of the aerospace
and defense composites arena as well as
his take on the current M&A market and
market trends worth watching.
HPC: You recently attended the Farnbor-
ough Airshow in the U.K. What did you take
away from that event, relevant to the com-
posites market?
PW: Well, the most obvious thing
was the magnitude of aircraft orders.
Companies reported about $40 billion
in orders, but that is half the orders of
2008, when the show was last held, and
equal to the orders in 2006. While it was
certainly a good event, it points out that
we are recovered only to 2006 levels. That
said, there was tremendous excitement
generated by the appearance of the Boe-
ing 787 Dreamliner — it was very palpable.
To illustrate, on late Tuesday afternoon,
when the 787 departed the show, nearly
all the visitors stayed to watch the fly-
over, despite the fact that they knew they
would be caught in the notoriously bad
London traffic. The plane’s appearance
underscored the fact that its production
build cycle is imminent — finally. There
MARKET Q&A
was a noticeable spring in the step of the
Boeing suppliers who are involved in the
787. And Airbus’ A350 XWB is certainly
following closely behind.
The show demonstrated that com-
mercial aerospace is definitely on the
upswing now, while the military aero-
space side is becoming less attractive.
This shift is due to several factors: Global
debt worries will result in military budget
cuts worldwide — I think cuts could be
from 10 to 20 percent — and the U.S.’s
announced intention to pull back from
its military theaters will reduce up-tempo
spending. That is, there will be cutbacks
in consumable war materiel. So compa-
nies that are heavily invested in military
programs right now are going to be less
attractive as M&A targets and, logically,
valuation here will moderate.
Composites continue to be a domi-
nant theme right now in aerospace and
defense — and it’s not going away. There
are a lot of composite parts that need to
be designed, fabricated and eventually
repaired — presently a largely ignored
area — or replaced on a large aircraft like
the 787 or the A350, so more and more
Commercial aerospace is
definitely on the upswing now,
while the military aerospace
side is becoming less attractive.
companies are becoming involved in the
composites stream.
HPC: Speaking of M&A activity, what is
your perspective relative to companies involved
in composites?
PW: Aerospace and defense compa-
nies are very desirable in the M&A space
right now, despite the fact that the capi-
tal markets have experienced an increase
in volatility. Large companies are look-
ing for large deals — often the larger the
better — in the range of $20 million or
more EBITDA [earnings before interest,
taxes, depreciation and amortization].
MARKET Q&A
With smaller deals, say, less than $5
million of EBITDA, lending is tight. That
said, I think large strategic buyers would
still do a small deal if there is a unique
customer or key strategic technology
involved. Further, it is a seller’s market,
with significantly more interested buy-
ers than sellers in the composites space.
That makes it hard for buyers to find bar-
gains. Buyers continue to pay premiums
for composites companies. So if the
target company has design/build capa-
bility on top of its fabrication expertise,
expect a scarcity premium on the overall
composite space premium.
HPC: What trends do you see that leaders of
composites companies should be watching?
PW: Everyone is thinking, What is the
next game-changer technology? In my mind,
it’s going to be something that facilitates
a drop in the price of composite parts to
further displace metals. It will likely be
an out-of-autoclave process and could
involve a technology marriage between a
resin manufacturer and a fiber supplier,
creating a new, faster process. There’s a
lot of discussion about automated tape
laying [ATL], and it’s great for large parts,
but ATL isn’t optimized for smaller
parts [or] shorter runs, and its capital
cost is very high. A new area for com-
posites to conquer should be compos-
ites for jet engine parts, in both the
cold and hot sections.
HPC: What is your advice to a composites
company that is looking for an investor part-
ner or a sale?
PW: Know where you fit in the spec-
trum. Are you content with being a Tier
3 or 4 supplier, or should you up-tier by
investing in R&D [research and develop-
ment], new equipment and additional
processes for larger parts and go after
bigger contracts? Is commercial aero-
space your game, or are you willing to
pursue military work? Pick your spot and
optimize the technology and processes
that work for your targeted spot.
Editor’s Note: See HPC’s coverage of 2010
Farnborough Airshow composites news in this is-
sue, on p. 24.
SEPTEMBER 2010 | 7
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TURNING THE INDUSTRY UPSIDE DOWN...

Dr. Donald F.
Adams is the
president of Wyo-
ming Test Fixtures
Inc. (Salt Lake
City, Utah). He
holds a BS and an
MS in mechanical
engineering and
a Ph.D in theo-
retical and applied
mechanics. Following a total of 12 years
with Northrop Aircraft Corp., the Aero-
nutronic Div. of Ford Motor Co. and the
Rand Corp., he joined the University of
Wyoming, directing its Composite Mate-
rials Research Group for 27 years before
retiring from that post in 1999. Dr. Adams
continues to write, teach and serve with
numerous industry groups, including the
test methods committees of ASTM and
the Composite Materials Handbook 17.
M
echanical fasteners, such as
screws, bolts, pins and rivets, have
been used for hundreds of years
to assemble wood and metal structures.
As composites have replaced other ma-
terials in structural applications, the
use of mechanical fastening systems of
various types has continued, and occa-
sionally these systems even employ fas-
teners made from composite materials.
Although one goal of the composite ma-
terials community is to use fewer fasten-
ers and rely more on adhesive bonding
when assembling components, fasteners
remain in widespread use and, therefore,
require testing.
In service, the typical fastener is
loaded primarily in one of two ways:
axial tension or transverse shear. Shear
loading is much more common. Axial
tensile testing of fasteners is relatively
straightforward and requires minimal
specialized fixturing. This is not true for
shear testing; therefore, considerable
development work has been conducted
over the years. Depending on the design
of the joint, the shear loading is single
or double shear, as indicated in Fig. 1.
TESTING TECH
TESTING TECH
FASTENER SHEAR TEST METHODS
Obviously, the fastener can carry twice
as much load if it is subjected to double
shear. Also, double shear results in sym-
metrical loading, which minimizes bend-
ing effects in both the fastener and the
structure. But a structural design may
not permit this configuration.
In double-shear testing, the fixture is,
by far, most commonly some version of
that shown in Fig. 2. This particular fix-
ture conforms to NASM Standard 1312-
a) Single-Shear b) Double-Shear
131, often (and properly) still referred to
as MIL-STD-1312-13. No scale is indi- Fig. 1 Fastener loaded in single-shear vs.
cated in the photograph because each double-shear.
fixture is sized to fit a specific fastener di-
ameter. The diameter of the fastener can
range from a few millimeters to several
centimeters. Therefore, some fixtures for
testing large-diameter fasteners are rela-
tively massive — and expensive.
The NASM design in Fig. 2 is a three-
piece configuration consisting of a base,
an anvil and a blade. Although it provides Fig. 2 Disassembled fastener double-shear
additional stability, it is questionable ttestt fi
fixture
t (NASM 1312
1312-13).
13)
what other function the base performs,
so it could probably be eliminated. In
fact, it is missing in some fixture designs
(e.g., the fixture in Boeing Corp. Specifi-
cation D2-28602).
In the NASM Standard 1312-13 de-
sign, the fastener is placed across the
supporting anvil and sheared into three
pieces by a compressive force applied to
the blade. The relative thicknesses of the
anvil supports and the blade, as well as 0’’ 3’’ 6’’
the tolerances of various other critical
Fig. 3 Single-shear
Fi Si l h test fixture
fi
dimensions, are defined in the standard. (NASM 1312-20).
This fixture has existed for many years
and performs well. One emerging prob-
lem, however, is that metallic fasteners,
particularly some of those now used in
the aerospace industry, are being made
of progressively stronger materials. It
is increasingly difficult to find materi-
als from which to fabricate an anvil and
Source (all photos): Don Adams
blade that are stronger and tougher than
the fastener material. Currently, fixtures
are most commonly made from high-
hardness tool steel. 0’’ 3’’ 6’’
Less frequently used are double-shear Fig.
ig. 4 Example of a nonstandard
designs in which the fastener passes single-shear
single shear test fixture
fixture.
SEPTEMBER 2010 | 9
 TESTING TECH

through holes in the anvil and blade in-
stead of resting in semicircular cutouts.
This fixture configuration is specified in
ASTM Standard B 7693, sometimes referred
to as the Amsler Shear Fixture, and in Brit-
ish Standard BS EN 28749 (ISO 8749).4
Although single-shear testing of joints
is frequently conducted, single-shear
testing of the fastener itself is less com-
mon. In one method, NASM Standard
1312-205, three single-shear test fixtures
are described in detail. All three use the
same shear plates, but two use a large
number of ball bearings to minimize fric-
tion between the moving parts. The third
fixture is more practical, using a parallel-
bars linkage to load the closely spaced
shear plates without allowing them to
come into contact with each other. This
fixture is shown in Fig. 3. There are no
sliding surfaces, only pivot rotations,
thus minimizing frictional effects. In all
three of the fixture designs, the fastener
is inserted in the center hole of a pair of
shear plates, as indicated in Fig. 3. The
overall dimensions of the shear plates
are held constant so they fit in the fixture.
The center holes vary to accommodate
the specific fastener. Hole diameters are
held very close to the specific fastener 2
Boeing Corp. Specification D2-2860, The Boe-
diameters. ing Co. (Seattle, Wash).
In addition to standardized designs, 3
ASTM Standard B 769, “Shear Testing of Alu-
such as that shown in Fig. 3, there are minum Alloys,” ASTM International (W. Consho-
a number of other single-shear fixture hocken, Pa.), 2008 (originally published 1987).
designs that have been developed for 4
British Standard BS EN 28749 (ISO 8749:1986),
specific applications. A representative “Pins and Grooved Pins — Shear Test,” approved
by CEN Technical Committee 185, 1992.
example is shown in Fig. 4. In this case,
5
the fastener specimen is clamped in the NASM 1312-20, “Method 20 — Single Shear,
National Aerospace Standard,” Aerospace Indus-
base after insertion into the close-fitting
tries Assn. of America Inc. (Arlington, Va.), 1997.
hole in the loading head. The box-shaped This standard supersedes MIL-STD-1312-20,
opening in the base constrains the load- but the test method designation remains MIL-
ing head to keep the shearing edges in STD-1312-20.
close proximity. Although the fixture
details differ, the basic test principle —
LEARN MORE
application of a single-shear load to the @
www.compositesworld.com
fastener — is in operation. This is true of
most other ad hoc fixtures as well. To read Dr. Adams’ previous discussions of
At the present time, the NASM Stan- fastener-related testing of composites, see the
dard 1312-13 double-shear fixture shown following articles in the “Testing Tech” series:
in Fig. 2 is probably the best available
“Single-fastener, double-shear laminate
shear fixture for testing fasteners. bearing strength by tensile testing,” HPC
January 2008 (p. 9) or visit http://short.
References compositesworld.com/zMzTkAlT.
1
NASM 1312-13, “Method 13-Double Shear,”
National Aerospace Standard, Aerospace Indus- “Multiple-fastener, single-shear laminate
bearing strength testing,” HPC March 2008 (p.
tries Association of America Inc. (Arlington, Va.),
1997. This standard supersedes MIL-STD-1312- 11) or visit http://short.compositesworld.com/
13A, but the test method designation remains LyvILnfM.
MIL-STD-1312-13.

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 NEWS

NEWS
Spirit AeroSystems opens Kinston composite aerostructures plant
New facility to produce Airbus A350 fuselage panels, front wing spars

O n July 2, Wichita, Kan.-based Spir-

Source: Spirit AeroSystems

it AeroSystems officially opened
its 682,000-ft2/63,360m2 facility in
Kinston, N.C. Initially the plant will be
dedicated to the production of center
fuselage panels and the front wing spar
for the forthcoming Airbus (Toulouse,
France) A350 XWB.
Awarded the A350 parts contract in
May 2008, Spirit broke ground at the
Kinston site in September of that year.
Site selection was motivated, in part,
by its proximity to the coast and an
11,500-ft/3,505m runway, giving the
company air and sea options for trans-
atlantic shipping. Also influential was
North Carolina’s $125 million (USD) in
incentives, including a $5 million grant
and more than $20 million payable over
12 years, tied to job creation.
The Kinston plant will manufacture
six composite panels for Section 15,
the 65-ft/20m long, 20-ft/6m wide,
9,000-lb/4,082-kg fuselage barrel (see Completed pan-
diagram) adjacent to the wing. Four els will ship by sea
panels have constant-contour surfaces, to Spirit’s 60,000-ft2
but two are lateral junction panels, with (5,574m2) assembly
both convex and concave curvatures facility in Saint-
that provide an aerodynamic fairing Nazaire, France (it
and structural connection to the all- opened July 23 and
composite wingbox. Each panel’s layup is scheduled for first
is tailored to meet unique stresses. An production by the
Electroimpact (Mukilteo, Wash.) S-15 end of 2010), where they will be joined to edly capable of 60m/min (2,362 inches/
dual-head automated fiber placement form Section 15. From there, the barrel min) layup rates, an order of magnitude
(AFP) machine (photo) will form the will move next door to the Airbus Saint- greater than previously possible, thus
panels from Hexcel’s (Stamford, Conn.) Nazaire plant for mating with the A350’s making spar production economically
Hexply M-21 carbon fiber/toughened center wingbox, then it will move on to viable. The machines manage both the
epoxy prepreg on a male Invar tool, using Toulouse for final aircraft assembly. tight U-shaped geometry along the spar
machine paths developed with CGTech’s Spirit’s Kinston plant also will pro- component edges — where issues arise
(Irvine, Calif.) VERICUT 3-D simulation duce the A350’s forward wing spar, a 102- as 45° material is applied over 90° cor-
software. Feed rates as high as 2,000 ft/31.2m long structure (Spirit’s largest ners — and provide the higher tempera-
inches/min (50.8m/min) — necessary to and first-ever all-composite spar). The ture and greater compaction required
make the large parts affordable — were structure comprises a 7m/23-ft long inner for the lower-viscosity Hexply. Each ma-
achieved by re-engineering its guillotine- spar, a 12.7m/42-ft long middle spar and chine can lay up two spars simultane-
type cutter and optimizing the feed-, an 11.5m/38-ft long outer spar. The spar ously on 15m/49-ft composite mandrels.
tow path-, creel- and machine-control parts are made with up to 100 plies of After autoclave cure, spar sections will
systems. The panels’ integrated carbon- CFRP, tapering from a width of 6 ft/1.8m be shipped to Spirit’s Prestwick, Scot-
composite stringers will be made by a at the finished spar’s root to roughly 1 land, facility for assembly, where they
cantilever-type 2-D AFP machine built by ft/3.3m at its tip. will be mated with the fixed leading edge
MTorres (Torres de Elorz, Spain). Stringer A partner in the spar’s process de- and other fixtures and then transported
layups will be placed on the panels and velopment, MTorres supplied two TOR- to the Airbus U.K. facility in Broughton,
cocured in an autoclave at 121°C/250°F. RESFIBERLAYUP AFP systems, report- Wales, for assembly with the A350 wing.

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 13
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BIZ BRIEFS
Automated Dynamics (Schenectady, N.Y.) has delivered
a new piece of high-performance composite processing
equipment to GKN Aerospace (Isle of Wight, U.K.). The
July 29 announcement notes that the machine was in-
stalled in GKN’s new preproduction facility, which will
support the Environmental Lightweight Fan (ELF) re-
search program. The program’s goal is to develop an all-
composite jet engine fan blade that will improve aircraft
performance and reduce emissions. Automated Dynam-
ics’ equipment reportedly will help GKN effectively manu-
facture the complex, often-curved jet engine structures.
LASER PROJECTION SYSTEMS FOR
OUTLINES, TEMPLATES, SHAPES
CGTech (Irvine, Calif.), the developer of VERICUT CNC
verification and simulation software, has formed a subsid- High precision laser template projection
iary in Brazil. Headquartered in São Paulo, CGTech-Brasil and laser measurement on flat and cur-
is responsible for marketing, sales, technical support ved surfaces. Red, green or multicolor.
and reseller support throughout South America. “There
is a growing demand for simulation of complex machine www.LAP - LASER.com
tools,” says company president Jon Prun. “CGTech is well
positioned to provide manufacturers with the skills and
technologies they need to be successful.” In conjunction
with the office opening, CGTech has launched a Web site
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 Solar-powered
composite UAS sets
flight duration record
Source: ACG

=B??>K>GMB:M>RHNKL>E?

Q inetiQ Group PLC (Farnborough,

Hampshire, U.K.) reported in July
that its composite-airframed Zephyr,
a solar-powered, high-altitude/long-en-
durance (HALE) unmanned air system
(UAS), stayed aloft for more than two
weeks, exceeding by a large margin the
previous UAS record of 30 hours, 24 min-
utes set in 2001 by Northrop Grumman’s
RQ-4A Global Hawk. Launched by hand
(see photo) on July 9 at the U.S. Army’s
Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona, Zephyr
landed on July 23.
QinetiQ claims its “eternal” aircraft has
the potential to provide low-cost, persis-
tent surveillance capability over a period
of months rather than days, supporting
Earth observation and communications
relay in a range of defense, security and
commercial applications. According to
the company, this potential owes much
to a breakthrough design that incorpo-
rates an entirely new, uniquely shaped
22.5m/74-ft wing and “T” tail.
Advanced Composites Group Ltd.
(ACG, Heanor, Derbyshire, U.K.) supplied
MTM45-1 carbon fiber/epoxy prepregs for
the wing and fuselage frames. This vari-
able-cure-temperature toughened epoxy
system, which is optimized for low-pres-
sure vacuum bag processing, also can be
When you want your product to stand out in a crowd, start with a material that
autoclave-cured. Zephyr’s two propellers
are driven by electric motors, powered by stands out. Introducing Barracuda®, a fabric with the looks of moldable steel and the
day via wing-mounted, paper-thin amor- strong, durable, lightweight characteristics of traditional high-performance fabrics.
phous silicon solar arrays. The arrays Together, these attributes provide a unique combination of beauty and strength that
also recharge lithium-sulphur batteries,
will transform any composite product into something that dares to be different.
supplied by Sion Power Inc. (Tucson,
Ariz.), which power the motors at night.
The solar power system and lightweight
composite structure (total weight slight- Learn more about Barracuda® at
ly more than 50 kg/110 lb) results in an barracuda-bgf.com or call 1-800-476-4845.
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throughout the day/night cycle, deliver- Barracuda is a registered trademark of BGF Industries, Inc.

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SEPTEMBER 2010 | 17
NEWS
3M revives composites focus as part of recent renewable energy initiative
F ormally commissioned in February
2009, the Renewable Energy Division
at 3M (St. Paul, MInn.) briefed the
trade press in July on numerous division
developments during the past 18 months.
Launched during the depths of the recent
recession, the new task group has redirect-
ed and recombined the efforts of select
scientists and engineers within a number
of 3M’s 45 existing core product develop-
ment areas to provide solutions for the
burgeoning market. The new division has
two areas of concentration: Energy Gen-
eration and Energy Management.
One consequence of the move is the
resuscitation of 3M’s composites focus.
Once a strong 3M emphasis, the com-
posites market was overshadowed in
the past few years by R&D in 3M’s more
traditional web materials (tape and film)
emphasis. The one exception was 3M’s
ACCR metal-matrix composite trans-
mission cable product, which was intro-
duced to the electric power industry (see
HPC’s sister magazine, Composites Technol-
General aviation aircraft builder selects Maine site
M
aine Governor John
E. Baldacci and
Kestrel Aircraft
Co. (Brunswick Landing,
Maine) announced on
July 23 the selection of
the soon-to-be decom-
missioned Naval Air Sta-
tion Brunswick (NASB) as
the company’s new head-
quarters. Kestrel plans to
develop, certify and man-
ufacture its $2.5 million
Kestrel JP10 at the site. The move report-
edly involves a more than $100 million
investment and is expected to support
more than 300 jobs in full production.
The JP10, a carbon fiber composites-
intensive six- to eight-seat turboprop,
is the latest embodiment of a concept
originally developed by Richard Noble,
whose Thrust SSC jet car once held the
world land speed record. Although No-
ble’s first air effort, at Farnborough Air-
craft in 1998, failed to make the concept
work as an air taxi, Kestrel’s CEO and
18 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
ogy, June 2010, p. 17, or visit http://short.
compositesworld.com/QfqQapD5). But
Michael Roman, VP/GM of 3M’s Renew-
able Energy Div., notes that 3M’s contacts
with “all the major wind energy players”
indicate a great need for laminating res-
ins and adhesives tailored to meet spe-
cific needs in rotor blade fabrication.
Among the first products commercial-
ized by the Energy Generation group is a
matrix resin optimized for resin infusion
of carbon-fiber-reinforced spars in wind
turbine blades (see entry in “New Prod-
ucts,” p. 55). Energy Generation business
director Tracy Anderson says the nano-
enhanced thermoset meets a growing
need for weight reduction as blades get
longer, particularly for offshore turbine
placements, where blade manufacturers
feel hard-pressed to “reduce the cost per
kilowatt hour.” The company soon plans
to release a new two-part epoxy adhe-
sive tailored for joining molded infused
blade halves. The adhesive, according to
3M advanced production engineer Greg
Source: HPC/Photo: Scott Stephenson
chairman, Alan Klapmeier, is commit-
ted to the JP10’s FAA certification, with
Farnborough as a partner. (Klapmeier,
with his brother Dale, cofounded Duluth,
Minn.-based Cirrus Aircraft Co.) Kestrel’s
development, certification and initial
production are scheduled to begin this
fall with the aid of Farnborough Aircraft
alumnus Anthony Galley.
Powered by a 1,000-shp Pratt & Whitney
Canada PT6A-67B, the JP10 is expected to
deliver 350-knot speed, short-field takeoff
capability, and a 1,500 nautical mile range.
Bluem, will exhibit a 40 percent reduc-
tion in exotherm and a better matchup
of coefficient of thermal expansion, com-
pared to conventional blade adhesives,
thus reducing the risk of microcracking in
joined blade shells.
3M Renewables reportedly is already
3M’s fastest-growing division, thanks, in
part, to grants from the U.S. Departments
of Energy and Defense totaling $30 mil-
lion (USD). Roman noted that 3M already
had five divisions involved in the renew-
ables arena, focusing on fuel cell/battery
technologies, the ACCR cable, and wind,
solar and bio-fuels research. In January
2009, teams at manufacturing and labo-
ratory sites worldwide were organized
and formally folded into the new division
under Roman’s leadership. As a result of
their previous related work, the teams
were able to hit the ground running. 3M
expects that in 2010 the new division will
account for 30 percent of the company’s
new product introductions. By 2014, 3M
hopes that margin will reach 40 percent.
BIZ BRIEF
At a ribbon cutting ceremony on
July 28, officials at Lockheed Mar-
tin’s Marietta, Ga., facility formally
announced the start of the plant’s
F-35 Lightning II center wing pro-
duction. Center wing assembly for
the multirole fifth-generation air-
craft began July 30 in a 320,000-ft2
(29,730m2) space in the Marietta
site’s B-1 aircraft building. The as-
sembly activity could employ more
than 600 workers by 2016 as the pro-
gram ramps up to full-rate produc-
tion of one aircraft per workday. The
program’s center wing assembly op-
eration was established in Marietta
to alleviate capacity constraints at
the F-35’s final assembly site in Fort
Worth, Texas, and to take advantage
of available manufacturing capacity
and existing fifth-generation aircraft
production expertise in Marietta,
says the company.
Goodrich announces initiatives
ROHACELL®
The Core for Sandwich Solutions

U nder a three-year memorandum of agreement signed

in July, Goodrich Corp. (Charlotte, N.C.) will design, de-
velop and qualify prototype polymer matrix composite
(PMC) landing gear drag braces for F-35 Lightning II fighter jet
prime contractor Lockheed Martin Aeronautics (Ft. Worth,
Texas). Goodrich will work with Fokker Landing Gear (Hel-
mond, The Netherlands). The braces could be incorporated
into the main F-35 landing gear for conventional takeoff/
landing (CTOL) and short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL)
variants. Fokker will do detailed component design and
qualification. Goodrich will perform system-level design and
integration. The goal is a single, lighter, low-maintenanace
brace common to the CTOL and STOVL variants.
At the Farnborough Airshow (see HPC’s show notes on p.
24), Goodrich revealed that it will work with the University of
Dayton Research Institute (UDRI, Dayton, Ohio) to produce a
nanomaterial with metal-like conductive properties. Under an
award from the State of Ohio’s Third Frontier initiative, UDRI,
Goodrich and two other firms will build and equip a facility
capable of producing the “fuzzy fiber” nanomaterial known
as NAHF-X (see HPC July 2010, p. 17, or visit http://short.
compositesworld.com/DWqBOgWR). Goodrich has commit-
ted $1 million in funding, intending the hybrid composite for
jet engine nacelles, and will explore aircraft structural health
monitoring, wheel/brake and deicing applications. ROHACELL® is a closed cell polymethacrylimide rigid foam,
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20 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
Nanotechnology company gets new
funding for graphene research
A July 12 agreement between Seoul, South Korea-based
conglomerate Hanwha Group and XG Sciences Inc.
(East Lansing, Mich.) will lead to $1 million in funding
for further research on the latter’s trademarked xGnP Gra-
phene Nanoplatelets.
A spinoff from Michigan State University (MSU), XG Sci-
ences was formed in 2006. Initial funding for graphene nano-
platelet research was provided by MSU and a grant from the
Michigan Economic Development Corp.’s 21st Century Jobs
Fund. XG developed a fast, inexpensive process for sepa-
rating layers of graphite (graphene) into stacks less than
10-nm thick but with plate diameters of 100 nm to several
microns. XG also can tailor the particle surface chemistry to
make it compatible with water, resin or plastic systems. Low
concentrations of xGnP nanoplatelets in polymers result in
multifunctional nanocomposites that, the company claims,
possess an array of enhanced strength properties and signifi-
cantly increased electrical and thermal conductivity.
Commenting on the agreement, Larry Drzal, a distinguished
professor of chemical engineering and materials science at
MSU and one of the founders of XG Sciences, noted, “This
collaboration represents a major milestone in our develop-
ment and an important recognition of the significance of our
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 Hanwha, the ninth largest conglomerate in Korea, with sales
of more than $25 billion, produces plastics and other chemical
products. The company made a major commitment to growth
WABASH
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a research facility near Detroit, Mich.

BIZ BRIEFS
HITCO Carbon Composites (Gardena, Calif.), a subsid-
iary of SGL Group (Weisbaden, Germany), announced on
July 19 a contract from Boeing Research & Technology
(BR&T), the R&D arm of The Boeing Co. (Seattle, Wash.).
BR&T is developing technology and processes for out-
of-autoclave manufacturing of composite structures for The leader in compression molding!
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cate three large composite spars using prepreg supplied Wabash produces a wide range of hydraulic presses
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tom designs from 15-1000 tons with various heated
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SEPTEMBER 2010 | 21
NEWS

Carbon fiber production plants:

TOOLING
SGL breaks ground in Moses Lake,
MRC resumes build, AKSA starts up

T
HH
igh Temperature Bond Tools
x BMI hree July announcements from carbon fiber producers
x Epoxy testified to renewed activity and post-recession growth
Mill Fixtures in the worldwide carbon fiber market.
SGL Automotive Carbon Fibers (Munich, Germany) — a
Pressure Intensifiers / Cauls joint venture of the Munich-based BMW Group and SGL
Group (Wiesbaden, Germany) — broke ground on July 7 for
Backup Structure Materials its $100 million (USD) carbon fiber manufacturing facility in
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ses Lake Mayor Jon Lane and more than 90 local guests were
in attendance for the festivities.
Initially, the plant will run two carbon fiber lines, each
with an annual capacity of 1,500 metric tonnes (more than
3.3 million lb), with the first scheduled for commissioning in
the third quarter of 2011. The fiber will be used exclusively
by BMW, with the first application in its upcoming Megacity
vehicle, an urban commuter car scheduled for launch in 2013
under a BMW subbrand. (For background, see HPC May 2010,
p. 28, or visit http://short.compositesworld.com/wzW8lIsZ.)
On July 9, Mitsubishi Rayon Co. Ltd. (MRC, Tokyo, Japan)
said it had resumed construction of a new carbon fiber plant at
its Otake production center in the Hiroshima prefecture. The
facility will commence production of P330-series large-tow

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(50K to 60K) carbon fiber in the second quarter of 2011. Origi-
nally the plant was intended to meet increased demand from
growing wind, pressure vessel and automotive segments, all
of which were expected to sustain long-term growth. MRC
suspended construction in March 2009 when many custom-
ers’ projects were delayed or sidelined in response to global
economic conditions. But demand from sports and leisure
applications increased significantly early this year. That and
the resumption of several large industrial projects prompted
MRC’s decision to restart construction.
The facility will have an annual production capacity of
2,700 metric tonnes (>5.95 million lb) — the company claims
it will be the largest carbon fiber plant in the world, with a
capital investment of ¥12 billion ($135.7 million USD). Pend-
ing startup of the new plant, MRC will manufacture P330 at
its U.S. company, Grafil Inc. (Sacramento, Calif.), for initial
customer evaluation and marketing.
Hürriyet Daily News and Economic Review, Turkey’s English-
language daily newspaper, reported on July 25 that acrylic
fiber manufacturer AKSA (Istanbul, Turkey) had opened the
country’s first carbon fiber production facility in the north-
western province of Yalova, during a ceremony attended by
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other top
officials. With an AKSA line now in full production, Turkey
has become one of only 10 countries where carbon fiber
is made. AKSA says it is aiming for a 10 percent share in
the global market. (See the interview with AKSA’s general
manager, Mustafa Yilmaz, in HPC January 2009, p. 20, or visit
http://short.compositesworld.com/WyGVjS3S.)

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SEPTEMBER 2010 | 23
 SHOW COVERAGE

FARNBOROUGH
INTERNATIONAL
AIRSHOW 2010
Although uncertainties remain,
aircraft OEMs see recovery in
order numbers.

Source: HPC/Photo: Eddie Kania

N ot quite as impressive as 2008’s

boom-year event, the 2010 edition
of the biennial Farnborough Inter-
national Airshow (July 19-25) neverthe-
less hosted 1,450 exhibitors, 57 more
than in 2008, and 280,000 attendees, says
event organizer Farnborough Interna-
tional Ltd. (Farnborough, North Hamp-
shire, U.K.). Although considerable buzz
was generated by the international debut
of The Boeing Co.’s (Chicago, Ill.) Dream-
liner and appearances of other aircraft
that have dominated aviation news (see
photos, this page), the big news was that
the huge trade fair attracted buyers from
44 countries who placed orders totaling
a postrecession-respectable $47 billion
(USD) — no match for 2008’s $88.7 bil-
lion but on par with 2006, at $46 billion.
Aircraft sales: Hot (and not)
Boeing Commercial Airplanes president/
CEO Jim Albaugh explained in his press
Source: Airbus
briefing that despite some continued un-
certainties, Boeing’s view of the commer-
cial aircraft market is increasingly posi-
tive as the world regains its economic
footing. The market is “clearly” coming
back, he claimed, citing more than 3,304
unfilled orders for Boeing aircraft as of
June 30. For single-aisle aircraft, Albaugh
said, “Boeing will set a strategic direc-
tion with respect to further developing
the 737 and new airplane designs within
a few months. Our decision will be deter-
mined by the best way to meet the future
needs of our customers.”
On the show’s first day, events under-
scored Boeing’s confidence. GE Capi-
tal Aviation Services (Stamford, Conn.)
placed a $3 billion order for 40 next-gen-
eration 737-800 jets. An order for 15 more
came from Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA
(Fornebu, Norway). Beijing, China-based
Okay Airways followed with an order for
10 — its first-ever Boeing purchase.
Composites in commercial jets:
The newest and biggest
Farnborough was the stage for the midsize
Boeing 787’s European debut, and a return
appearance of the massive Airbus A380.
Boeing also announced its new eco-
Demonstrator program, a platform that
will integrate new technologies for reduc-
ing fuel consumption and aircraft noise.
Helped by a $25 million matching-fund
award from the U.S. Federal Aviation
Admin., Boeing plans to field advanced
engines with composite components,
adaptive wing trailing-edge flaps, fuel
cell technology and other innovations
on a next-generation 737 in 2012 and a
twin-aisle aircraft in 2013.
Airbus (Toulouse, France) affirmed
its confidence in the airline industry’s
comeback, with 133 firm orders and 122
commitments booked at the show (re-
portedly worth $28 billion) in addition to Source: Boeing

Back from the military brink Manned-to-unmanned conversion

Long delayed and, during the worst of the global recession, thought to On display at The Boeing Co. (Chicago, Ill.) stand, the Dominator
be endangered, the A400M cargo airlifter from Airbus Military (Madrid, unmanned aircraft system is based on a manned DA-42 composite
Spain) performed impressive daily flights at the Farnborough Airshow. airframe from Diamond Aircraft (London, Ontario, Canada)

24 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
Emirates Airline’s (Dubai, U.A.E.) order opmental flaps will be delivered early in Israel), the manufacturer of the Watch-
for 32 additional A380 aircraft announced 2011. GKN Aerospace already has pro- keeper 450 UAV on display at the Thales
in June. “The recession is definitely over,” duction composite-assemblies contracts Group (Neuilly-sur-Seine, France) stand.
declared John Leahy, Airbus’ chief oper- for the rear spar and fixed trailing edge ACG’s MTM46 out-of-autoclave prepreg
ating officer, citing renewed liquidity in on the plane’s wings. permits fabrication on lower-cost tooling
the marketplace, increased air traffic and Among the composite material suppli- while producing parts that are still capa-
gross domestic product (GDP) growth as ers at the show, Advanced Composites ble of achieving the performance speci-
factors in “strong growth.” Group Ltd. (ACG, Heanor, Derbyshire, fications. EAST-4D Carbon Technology
As Airbus and Boeing basked in the U.K.) exhibited its epoxy, bismaleimide GmbH (Dresden, Germany) showcased
new-orders glow, Bombardier (Montreal, and phenolic prepregs for civil aircraft in- its expertise in carbon composite com-
Quebec, Canada), an aspiring competitor teriors and structural components. ACG ponents for aviation and other markets
in the 100- to 149-passenger commercial highlighted its status as a qualified epoxy via filament winding and resin transfer
aircraft niche, reportedly came away from prepreg supplier to Elbit Systems (Haifa, molding.
Farnborough without a single new order
for its composites-intensive CSeries jet.
Preshow expectations were high: Bom-
bardier had collected 90 firm orders and
an equal number of options, and had
reported ongoing conversations with 11
airlines. Various media reports focused
blame on the plane’s shorter-than-com-
mon range (2,200 nautical miles) and its
engines. Bombardier did not come up
empty-handed, however. Orders for 16
business jets came through in the week
preceding the event and during show
week, valued at ~$800 million USD.

The ever-expanding UAV market

Also in the spotlight were unmanned aer-
ial vehicles (UAVs) of all types and sizes.
Notable among them was Turkish Aero-
space Industries’ (Ankara, Turkey) new
“operative-class” medium-altitude, long-
endurance (MALE) UAV. Dubbed ANKA,
the craft was unveiled in Ankara a few
days prior to the show and showcased at
a Farnborough press event. Its 56-ft/17m
wingspan is similar to that of General
Atomics’ (San Diego, Calif.) Predator and
its airframe design likewise incorporates
composites.
Boeing announced a memorandum
of understanding with Aeronautics Ltd.
(Yavne, Israel) to market the Dominator
(see photo. p. 24), a UAV adaptation of
a piloted Diamond Aircraft (London, On-
tario, Canada) all-composite twin-engine
DA42. According to Boeing’s Chris Chad-
wick, president of Boeing Military Aircraft
(St. Louis, Mo.), the MALE segment of
the UAV market is expanding rapidly.

Aircraft composites contracts

GKN Aerospace (Redditch, Worcester,
U.K.) revealed that it had won contracts
to develop and produce all the compos-
ite components for the inboard and out-
board landing flaps of the Airbus A350
XWB. The first components for devel-

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 25
SHOW COVERAGE
EAA
AIRVENTURE
2010
Rain on the Wittman Field runways can’t
dampen Oshkosh Fly-In enthusiasm.
D espite heavy rains early on — some
wags dubbed the event “Galosh-
kosh” — the Experimental Aircraft
Assn.’s (EAA) AirVenture show, held July
25-Aug. 1 in Oshkosh, Wis., still attract-
ed 535,000 visitors. That total was about
7 percent less than 2009, as expected by
organizers, but EAA president Tom Po-
berezny says exhibitor numbers and par-
ticipants’ spirits were flying high. “This
year’s weather challenges had an effect,”
he noted, “but the second half of the
week was outstanding.”
Aviation and aerospace news abound-
ed. Especially notable was a new, all-
composite aircraft from Cobalt Aircraft
Industries (Toussus-le-Noble, France).
Unveiled at a press conference on Wed-
nesday, July 28, the five-seat Co50 fea-
tures a front canard wing and will be
propelled by a 350-hp twin-turbocharged
Continental in a pusher configuration,
said company CEO David Loury. With a
projected maximum cruise speed of 245
KTAS (282 mph), the new plane will be a
fast, high-performance piston prop plane
similar to a Cessna 400 or a Cirrus SR22.
“We are planning to fly the prototype
before the end of the year,” Loury report-
ed, adding that Cobalt is targeting certifi-
cation in two years, but he acknowledged
that the process could take three or four.
Noting that 90 percent of sales leads
for the $650,000 (USD) aircraft are, so far,
from the U.S., Loury says Cobalt is set-
ting up a U.S. office in San Francisco, Ca-
lif., and by early 2011, it will select a U.S.
manufacturing site to support dual U.S./
France production.
26 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
Source: www.aopa.org
Terrafugia (Woburn, Mass.), mean-
while, unveiled its next-generation Tran-
sition flying car on July 26, with the news
that it expects the craft to fly publicly for
the first time at next year’s AirVenture
2011. The new model is a more refined
version of the twin-boom, folding-wing
pusher the company originally designed
in 2006, but it will fly with the same 100-
hp Rotax engine. The original proof-of-
concept vehicle, on display at the show,
made 28 flights near the company’s
headquarters before it was retired. Terra-
fugia CEO Carl Dietrich said the Transition
will incorporate aircraft and automobile
safety features and become “one of the
safest light sport aircraft in the world.”
The company obtained FAA permission
for a 110-lb/50-kg weight increase from
the normal light sport aircraft (LSA) limit
of 1,320 lb/599 kg. The company hasn’t
set a retail price for the redesigned Tran-
sition, although the original was more
than $180,000. Company officials report
80 orders so far.
Another LSA manufacturer, ICON Air-
craft (Los Angeles, Calif.), announced
that it will outsource structural compos-
ite assemblies for its ICON A5 to Liberty
Aerospace (Melbourne, Fla.) and Flytech
Kft. (Szombathely, Hungary). The deci-
sion marks an important milestone on
the way to production of the amphibious
aircraft. It also illustrates ICON’s resolve
to take advantage of existing capabilities
in the certified aircraft sector rather than
recreating them, said the company. This
frees ICON engineers to focus solely on
the remaining development of the pro-
Source: HPC/Photo: Eddie Kania
New sport-plane competitor
& sporty entry for land or sea
The composite airframed, five-seat Co50
(top photo, minus it’s canard front wing)
is Cobalt Aircraft Industries’ (Toussus-le-
Noble, France) answer to high-performance
piston-engined planes, such as the Cessna
400 and Cirrus SR22. Tied up at the EAA
AirVenture’s Seaplane venue at nearby
Lake Winnebago, the amphibious ICON
A5 (bottom photo) from ICON Aircraft (Los
Angeles, Calif.) features a sportscar-inspired
two-seat interior, a carbon-composite
airframe and pusher-prop propulsion.
duction aircraft design (which will permit
owners to trailer the plane like a boat)
and control all final assembly, system in-
tegration and testing.
ICON also revealed that former Boe-
ing CEO Phil Condit has joined its board
of advisors, bringing with him more than
40 years of aviation experience. “There
are few individuals with the breadth of
experience, expertise and influence in
our industry as Phil Condit, and we’re
honored to have him,” said ICON found-
er/CEO Kirk Hawkins. (See photos and
background in HPC November 2008, p.
38, or visit http://short.compositesworld.
com/FKYd0M4b.)
Honda Aircraft Co. Inc. (Greensboro,
N.C.) released a program update at the
show that highlighted achievement of
two HondaJet program goals: power-on
for the first conforming flight test and the day/night cycle in August, in anticipation ite airframe has a very low empty weight
successful consolidation of fuselage and of a planned around-the-world flight of 561 lb/171.5 kg, half of which is its bat-
wing assemblies for the first static-test (see http://short.compositesworld.com/ tery pack. Its maximum take-off weight is
aircraft, which will enter structural test- HOgSOljn). not quite twice that figure. With a wing-
ing this month. Also on hand was the E430, a 54-hp span of 45.2 ft/13.8m, the 22.9-ft/7m long,
“The success of our power-on tests is two-seat electric plane from Yuneec In- V-tailed craft is capable of up to three
an important step in the completion of ternational of Potters Bar, U.K. Selected hours of flight on a charge, and recharges
the first conforming flight-test aircraft,” by the Symposium as this year’s Best in three hours for about $5 (USD). Re-
said Honda Aircraft president and CEO Electric Aircraft, its development has portedly already FAA-certified, the E430
Michimasa Fujino. “With this significant been financed personally by Yuneec CEO will be available in the U.S. in the LSA
milestone achieved, we are now focused Tian Yu and will be built in a recently fin- category, at a mere $89,000.
on the integration of avionics and other ished 260,000-ft2/25,000m2 factory near Next year’s EAA AirVenture show will
electrical systems in anticipation of first Shanghai, China. The craft’s all-compos- be held July 25-31, 2011.
flight later this year.”
Ongoing stress tests at Honda Aircraft’s
R&D facility in Greensboro employ a new
system that incorporates 61 hydraulic ac-
tuators and a 2,600-channel data acquisi-
tion system within a structural test fixture
designed exclusively for the HondaJet. This
system enables testing of the entire air-
craft simultaneously to prove static and
fatigue strength under various flight and EXCELLENCE IN
CORE SOLUTIONS
ground load conditions. Honda’s test fa-
cility includes an environmental chamber www.corematerials.3AComposites.com
that can simulate the hot-wet conditions
required for the validation of composite For today’s vacuum infusion, use
structures. Since U.S. HondaJet sales com- today’s choice cores.
menced in October 2006, the company
has accumulated orders for more than
100 of the $4.5 million planes, Honda’s
first-ever production aircraft. The HondaJet
is scheduled for first delivery in the third
quarter of 2012.
As HPC reported previously (HPC Janu-
ary 2006, p. 34 or visit http://short.com-
positesworld.com/EpI7s5qY), the Honda-
Jet has a composite fuselage, with metal
wings and tail. Left and right fuselage
halves feature a carbon/toughened epoxy
solid laminate, likely made from prepreg
supplied by Cytec Engineered Materials
(Tempe, Ariz.) with Toho Tenax (Tokyo,
Japan) intermediate-modulus fiber. Fuse-
lage skins are cocured with press-formed
stringers and frames. The cockpit and ta- Innovative building methods infusion applications. The result:
pered tail section will be cored compos- contribute to a cleaner environment, No voids and highly-efficient use of
ites, with aramid honeycomb core and higher-quality laminates and faster materials.
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carbon/epoxy skins. AIREX® foams and BALTEK® balsa infusion methods and compatible cores
At the event’s day-long Electric Aircraft cores, as well as Lantor SORIC® and as well as technical support, contact
Symposium, keynoted by general aviation FINISHMAT® materials have been the experts at 3A Composites Core
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pioneer and Scaled Composites (Mojave,
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perimental craft, the Solar Impulse, which Visit us at IBEX Booth #1814
Borschberg piloted through a complete

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 27
FEATURE / AEROSPACE COMPOSITES

THE PRIVATE SPACE RACE

NASA passes the development torch to legacy contractors and NewSpace
entrepreneurs, igniting a new competition in space transport. BY KAREN WOOD

S
ince the Obama Administration’s
cancellation of NASA’s Constella-
tion program, the spotlight — and
government space policy — has
focused on the private space in-
dustry. More importantly, so have gov-
ernment development dollars.
“We will be providing industry with
NASA technical expertise,” said NASA’s
deputy administrator Lori Garver,
speaking at the U.S. Federal Aviation
Admin.’s Commercial Space Transpor-
tation Conference in February. “We will
provide serious seed money ... and a
firm commitment to buy crew trans-
portation services on the market side.”
To diversify its risk, NASA is funding
competitive systems. “No single com-
mercial system will represent the criti-
cal path,” says Garver. “We’re going to
see the most exciting space race that
NASA’s seen in a long time, and there’s
likely to be more than one winner.”
NASA has made good on the first
promise, doling out funds not only to
expected players — Boeing, Lockheed
Martin, United Launch Alliance — but

28 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
 launch (opening photo) of its 180-ft/55m
tall two-stage Falcon 9 rocket. Although
SpaceX founder/CEO Elon Musk declared
the event “a major milestone not only
for SpaceX but the increasingly bright
future of space flight,” other milestones
await. The Falcon 9 and its Dragon orbital
craft (see photo, p. 31) must first dem-
onstrate their capabilities under a $278
million Commercial Orbital Transporta-
tion Services (COTS) agreement before
SpaceX can use them to supply the Inter-
national Space Station (ISS) under a $1.6
billion Commercial Resupply Services
(CRS) contract for a minimum of 12 car-
go flights. But since the launch, SpaceX
signed what is reportedly the largest-ever
commercial and, more importantly, non-
NASA launch deal for $492 million with
Iridium Communications Inc. (McLean,
Va.) to replace the latter’s existing satel-
lites between 2015 and 2017.
Intended to be fully recoverable, the
Falcon 9 is capable of inserting an 11-ton
payload into low Earth orbit (LEO). Al-
though the first and second stage barrels
and domes are aluminum, a carbon com-
posite interstage structure joins the stag-
es and houses the second stage’s engines
and four parachutes that return the first
stage to Earth. The interstage is 3.6m/12-
Source: SpaceX/Photo: Chris Thompson
ft in diameter and ~8m/~26-ft tall.
A switch from an aluminum to a com-
posite interstage was made during devel-
opment of the company’s Falcon 1 rocket,
which began in 2002. “Falcon 1 was es-
sentially a materials proving ground for
the Falcon 9,” says Chris Thompson, VP,
Structures and Development Operations
NewSpace venture rockets to at SpaceX, noting that “the composite in-
private launch prominence terstage reduces mass by between 1,000
lb and 1,500 lb.”
The Falcon 9 two-stage launch vehicle
developed by SpaceX (Hawthorne, Calif.)
Toray Industries’ (Tokyo, Japan) T-700
lifts off from Cape Canaveral, Fla., for a multidirectional carbon fiber material
successful insertion of the second stage is used for the facesheets, with vented
and Dragon spacecraft qualification unit aluminum honeycomb for the core. “Ply
into a 250-km/155-mile-high circular orientations are dependent upon load
Earth orbit. paths, positioning of cutouts, and re-
quirements of additional loading, such
as in and around the safe-separation fit-
tings,” explains Thompson.
several “NewSpace” companies, the term SpaceX installed laser projection sys-
now used of firms run by entrepreneurs tems from Laser Projection Technologies
willing to risk their own money to devel- (LPT, Londonderry, N.H.) and Assem-
op private avenues into space. bly Guidance Systems Inc. (Chelmsford,
Mass.), and the company uses FiberSIM
Affordable, reusable launch system software from VISTAGY (Waltham, Mass.)
SpaceX (Space Exploration Technologies to produce the fiber layup drawings. “The
Corp., Hawthorne, Calif.) recently leaped projection systems have cut layup time by
into contention with the successful June 7 nearly half,” says Thompson.
The interstage is oven-cured in-house
over the course of one day, according to
Thompson, and includes a rigorous ramp-
up procedure. “With the number of plies
that we’re dealing with, our decision not
to use an autoclave initially led to some
challenges in terms of learning how to get
necessary compaction to avoid large sur-
face area voids between the core material
and the facesheets,” explains Thompson.
“We were able to work through these chal-
lenges during coupon testing.”
The rocket’s nine SpaceX-built Merlin
jet fuel/liquid oxygen (LOX) engines gen-
erate nearly 1 million lb of thrust. They’re
integrated into a truss structure that dis-
tributes the thrust upwards into the first
stage tank. Above the truss, a carbon
composite skirt houses the plumbing
that feeds LOX and fuel to the engines.
There are no immediate plans to convert
first- or second-stage tanks to composites,
says Thompson. “Because we’re dealing
with a cryogenic tank in the first stage, it
becomes more complicated to move to
composites,” he explains, adding that “it
takes us less than three weeks to build
the first-stage tank in aluminum. Without
a multimillion dollar tape laying machine
and other automated equipment, it would
be nearly impossible to do this in compos-
ites efficiently and economically.”
Thompson does, however, see a “tre-
mendous amount of opportunity for
composites in the right applications.”
The company has installed a thermo-
forming press to more quickly produce
smaller composite components that
were produced previously by hand layup.
“Also, we have a 5.2m/17-ft fairing pro-
gram kicking off later this year that will
use composites,” he adds.
Initially designed for composites, the
Dragon’s pressure vessel was built with
aluminum to ensure success under the
company’s delivery deadlines. However,
its thermal protection system’s carrier
structures and its primary heat shield are
made from bismaleimide (BMI) prepregs.
The former are fabricated with materials
from Advanced Composites Group Ltd.
(ACG, Tulsa, Okla.) and Cytec Industries
(Woodland Park, N.J.). The latter is a BMI
sandwich structure with a Rohacell foam
core from Evonik Foams Inc. (South Mag-
nolia, Ark.).
When the Dragon reenters Earth’s at-
mosphere at around 15,660 mph (25,200
kmh), heating the shield’s exterior to
1850°C/3362°F, the capsule’s interior
SEPTEMBER 2010 | 29
 REGISTER
TODAY!

NOVEMBER 9 - 10

Prepare yourself to meet the business opportunities and technical

challenges that lie ahead in the field of high-performance fibers.
CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRS:
DANA M. GRANVILLE / COMPOSITE MATERIALS ENGINEER / MATERIALS MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY BRANCH
WEAPONS MATERIALS RESEARCH DIRECTORATE / U.S. ARMY RESEARCH LABORATORY
PATRICK J. OWENS / GLOBAL MARKETING DIRECTOR / PUBLIC SECTOR
DUPONT ADVANCED FIBER SYSTEMS
PRE-CONFERENCE SEMINAR NOVEMBER 9TH:
“The Influence of Weaving, Ballistics and Environment on Fiber Strength”
JOSEPH DEITZEL / ASSOCIATE SCIENTIST / CENTER FOR COMPOSITE MATERIALS
UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE
IN ASSOCIATION WITH:

R E G I S T E R T O D AY AT C O M P O S I T E S W O R L D . C O M / H P F
will be kept at room temperature by a
few inches of PICA-X heat-shield ablator,
a rigid, lightweight epoxy-impregnated
carbon foam developed by SpaceX’s
propulsion group with the assistance of
NASA, the originator of the phenolic-
impregnated carbon ablator (PICA). The
material also is used as a heat shield on
the Falcon 9 second stage, on its return
from orbit for recovery and reuse.
“We tested three different variants,”
said Tom Mueller, VP of propulsion at
SpaceX. “Compared to the PICA heat
shield flown successfully on NASA’s Star-
dust sample return capsule, our SpaceX
versions equaled or improved the perfor-
mance of the heritage material.”
SpaceX has more than 40 flights on
manifest, including three demonstration
flights by spring 2011 for NASA’s COTS
program. And, as a free-flying spacecraft,
Dragon also provides a platform for in-
space technology demonstrations and
scientific instrument testing. SpaceX is
currently pursuing commercial, non-ISS
Dragon flights under the name “Dragon-
Lab.” Further, Falcon 9 and Dragon report-
edly meet NASA’s standards for astronaut
transport, allowing for a comparatively
rapid transition from cargo to crew ca-
pability within three years of receiving a
crew transport contract.
SIDE STORY
Building on CCM lessons learned
In space, every pound of weight affects mission
capacity and overall project cost, which makes
the use of composites very attractive. That’s
why the NASA Engineering and Safety Center
(NESC, Hampton, Va.) designed, built and tested
a composite crew module (CCM) in parallel with
the Constellation program’s Orion crew module
development. Some of the lessons learned were
applied to Orion and are now benefiting other
programs within NASA and beyond.
“Members of the composite crew module
team have had technical discussions with Blue
Origin and Sierra Nevada regarding how we
used composites, including our design, analysis,
manufacturing and test processes,” says Mike
Kirsch, NESC principal engineer and CCM project
manager. “We have been asked to participate in
design reviews of their systems,” he adds, con-
firming that both companies are using composites
in their primary structures.
Source: SpaceX
Building on small orbital successes
Orbital Sciences Corp. (Dulles, Va.) also
has been tapped to resupply the ISS. Its
$1.9 billion CRS contract calls for eight
flights from 2011 to 2015, and Orbital
is leveraging its experience to build an
unmanned Cygnus space freighter and a
new rocket, the Taurus II, to launch it.
Founded in 1982, Orbital has a proven
track record with small-to-medium rocket
launches for commercial customers, the
U.S. military and NASA. Orbital’s small
Pegasus XL and Taurus XL rockets have
drawn 30 NASA scientific and technolo-
gy-demonstration mission assignments
since 1990. NASA has selected the com-
pany to launch the Carbon Observatory-2
(OCO-2) satellite on a Taurus XL in 2013,
despite a failed attempt in 2009.
The NESC worked with a number of NASA and
industry partners on the CCM project (see “Learn
More,” p. 37).
Fabricated at Alliant Techsystems (ATK, Iuka,
Miss.), the CCM incorporated an innovative
approach to joining composites developed by
Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems (Re-
dondo Beach, Calif.) and carbon fiber tooling firm
Janicki Industries (Sedro-Woolley, Wash.). The
top and bottom halves of the CCM were hand
layed sandwich structures with an aluminum
honeycomb core and carbon fiber-reinforced
facesheets. During layup, critical orthogonal
joints were assembled, using preformed three-
dimensional weaving technology. After they were
autoclave-cured, the two halves were spliced
together, using local heaters and vacuum bags,
reports the NESC. According to the NESC, the use
of complex composite shapes allowed the integra-
tion of the packaging backbone (used to secure
Capsule to carry cargo, crew or both
The pressurized Dragon spacecraft,
developed by SpaceX, employs a flexible
cargo and crew configuration, and is able to
accommodate up to seven crew members per
flight. Unpressurized cargo can be transported
in the “trunk,” which is designed to support
the pressurized capsule during ascent and
contains a truss structure to hold cargo.
The new two-stage, medium-class Tau-
rus II builds on its smaller predecessors
and is capable of delivering single or
multiple payloads weighing up to 7,000
lb/3,175 kg. Prime contractor Orbital’s
experienced Taurus II team includes Ap-
plied Aerospace Structures Corp. (AASC,
Stockton, Calif.), which is responsible
for composite primary structures. These
include a 3.9m/12.7-ft diameter by
9.9m/32.4-ft-long payload fairing (alumi-
num honeycomb core between carbon/
epoxy facesheets), and several shorter
barrel components of 1.8m/6 ft in length
or less: a fairing adapter, the stage 2 mo-
tor adapter, the stage 2 interstage, the
payload adapter, and the avionics cylin-
der. The initial launch for the Taurus II is
scheduled for 2011.
internal components) with a membrane-lobed
floor and pressure-shell walls, which reduced
mass by approximately 150 lb/68 kg.
“As loads and environments change with pro-
gram maturation, inner mold line tooling offers the
opportunity to optimize or change design through
tailoring of layups or core density,” reports the
NESC. “Composite solutions offer opportunity for
lower piece-part numbers, resulting in a lower
drawing count, which helps minimize overall
lifecycle costs. Also, a minimal number of tools are
required to manufacture the primary structure.”
The module was pressurized to twice Earth’s
atmosphere to “demonstrate the ultimate design
capability of the structure,” explains Kirsch. This
was followed by push-pull tests to simulate the
on-mission forces. In all, the CCM showed that it
could complete its mission, even with the kind of
damage that is likely to occur in space.
— Karen Wood
SEPTEMBER 2010 | 31
 ''6#'4152#%'&'5+)0X&'8'.12/'06
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Includes
sites
AEROCompo
Feature
Program
     
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r06*'&#;4')+564#6+10hPGN'064;
 AASC also will manufacture and test
the 12-sided, 2.6m/103-inch diameter by
1.27m/50-in tall Cygnus structure, which
is based on Orbital’s STAR 2 platform. It
will comprise forward and aft aluminum
rings and carbon facesheets with alumi-
num honeycomb core for the forward/
aft decks, bulkhead and gussets (the re-
maining parts will be metal-bonded alu-
minum facesheet panels). The composite
structure will house the spacecraft’s mo-
tors and maneuvering control system.
Although the Orbital contract does not
include ISS crew transport, the company
believes it is well positioned to provide it,
given its experience developing NASA’s
Orion capsule launch abort system.

Designing an LEO crew vehicle LEO-capable space freighter

One crew transport is under development
at Denver, Colo.-based Sierra Nevada
Corp. (SNC) Space Systems. Awarded the
biggest chunk of NASA Commercial Crew
Development (CCDev) program funds —
$20 million — SNC Space Systems was
established in 2009 to join SNC subsid-
iary MicroSat Systems and SpaceDev and
realize the latter’s Dream Chaser. Modeled
after NASA’s early 1990s HL-20 lifting
body concept and designed to ferry a
crew of six and cargo to the ISS or other
LEO destinations, Dream Chaser is a pi-
Orbital Sciences Corp. (Dulles, Va.) is
leveraging its previous space vehicle
experience to build an unmanned space
freighter called the Cygnus. After launch into
LEO atop the Taurus II rocket (see inset),
Cygnus will maneuver to and dock with the
International Space Station.
a private spaceport in West Texas, where,
under a shroud of secrecy, it is develop-
ing New Shepard, a vertical takeoff/vertical
landing (VTVL) suborbital vehicle. The

Source: Orbital Sciences

loted solution. Fitted with SpaceDev’s
hybrid rocket technology for orbital ma-
neuvers (the same employed by Mojave,
Calif.-based Scaled Composites’ Space-
ShipOne when it won the Ansari X Prize
in 2004), the craft launches vertically and
lands horizontally on a conventional run-
way. SNC is working with Denver, Colo.-
based United Launch Alliance to launch
Dream Chaser atop an Atlas V rocket.
SNC plans to upgrade the design with
composites and believes the cylindrical
shape of its pressure vessel may make
it more suitable for composites than a
more complex capsule shape. Report-
edly, AdamWorks (Centennial, Colo.) will
develop internal structures for structural
testing. Boeing Phantom Works (St. Lou-
is, Mo.) will build the test article. Also,
Straight Flight (Englewood, Colo.), an
SNC aircraft repair subsidiary, is report-
edly building the tooling and some of the
exterior body panels. SNC plans to have a
an orbital vehicle in service by 2014.
Providing the crew escape system
Backed by Amazon.com founder Jeff Be-
zos, Blue Origin (Kent, Wash.) operates
firm has received $3.7 million in NASA
CCDev funds to support development of
an astronaut escape system and build a
composite pressure vessel prototype for
ground-based structural testing.
This NewSpace firm finds itself in
good company. Along with SNC, other
recipients of NASA funds for crew de-
velopment include the Houston, Texas-
based Boeing Space Exploration Div. of
The Boeing Co. ($18 million) and United
Launch Alliance ($6.7 million).
The “push” escape system would em-
ploy thrusters under the crew cabin to lift
it away from the launcher in the event of
a malfunction, rather than using a con-
ventional NASA “tractor” type escape
system, mounted on top of the crew cap-
sule to pull it away. A composite pressure
vessel would reduce the crew capsule’s
weight, and Blue Origin is reportedly
working with NASA to leverage lessons
learned on the composite crew module
(CCM) pressure vessel developed along-
side NASA’s baseline and mostly metal
Orion design (see sidebar, p. 31).
Blue Origin began test flights in 2006
with its Goddard demonstration vehicle,
which the company says doesn’t repre-
sent the final launch vehicle, but it has
been a source of many lessons learned.
What is known is that the New Shepard
reusable launch vehicle (RLV) stacks the
crew capsule on top of the propulsion
module and will be capable of separat-
ing and operating autonomously during
flight. The company is currently targeting
the research and education market, as
well as space tourism.
Under development is a standard cab-
in payload system to host experiments
inside the New Shepard crew capsule. The
company has identified three programs
for its Phase 1 research flight demonstra-
tion project. Test flights could occur as
early as 2011, with unmanned commer-
cial operations shortly thereafter. New
Shepard reportedly could house three or
more astronauts, but no date has been
set for manned commercial flights.

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 33
FEATURE / AEROSPACE COMPOSITES

Retooling for suborbital tourism
HPC has followed closely the develop-
ment of fledgling space tourism firm
Virgin Galactic’s all-composite captive-
carry launch system (see “Learn More”).
Built by The Spaceship Co. (Mojave,
Calif.), a joint venture of Scaled Com-
posites and London, U.K.-based Virgin
Group, the SpaceShipTwo suborbital craft
and the WhiteKnightTwo launch aircraft
(see photo, p. 35) are scaled-up ver-
sions of Scaled systems that claimed
the Ansari X Prize.
Renamed Eve, the launch air-
craft’s one-piece wing spar measures
140-ft/43m long — the longest carbon
composite aviation part ever manufac-
tured. The first of several planned sub-
orbital craft, the Virgin Space Ship (VSS)
Enterprise, is designed to carry two pi-
lots and six passengers. Both Eve and
Enterprise were hand built, using new
MTM45-1 out-of-autoclave prepregs
developed by Advanced Composites
Group Ltd. (ACG, Heanor, Derbyshire,
U.K.). The prepreg features a variable-
cure-temperature toughened epoxy ma-
trix optimized for low-pressure vacuum
bag processing in both prepreg and film
infusion formats. MTM45-1 may be cured
at temperatures as low as 80°C/176°F,
allowing the use of low-cost tooling for
prototypes and short production runs.
Eve has substantially completed its
flight-test program (27 fights so far), and
Enterprise, rolled out in December 2009,
has completed two captive-carry flights.
Full-scale test firings of its hybrid rocket
motor began at SNC this summer, with a
followup drop/glide tests program. The
first powered test of Enterprise is expected
in early 2011. Reportedly, Enterprise (and

Track Smarter
Whether you have a laser tracker or
several forthcoming clones) will be capa-
ble of flying twice daily, and Eve will sup-
port four spaceflights a day. Virgin Galac-
tic aims to fly 500 passengers in the first
about to purchase one, the Verisurf-X year of commercial operations.
model-based metrology software suite
is the intelligent choice. Selling a ticket for one to space
Smaller in scale, the Lynx suborbital
Supports virtually all other devices spacecraft from Mojave-based XCOR
Not only does Verisurf work with any laser Aerospace is a small rocket-powered air-
tracker right out of the box, it provides an craft designed to take off from a runway
economical shared-software platform and then make a steep ascent, accelerat-
that lowers training and support costs. ing to Mach 2 (~1,522 mph/~2,450 kmh)
Improves your productivity with 2.5 G-force within three minutes. Ca-
With intuitive, user-friendly menus and newly enhanced features like additional pable of carrying a pilot and one passen-
device interfaces, improved inspection guidance and laser-tracker Smart Tools, ger with a payload on a suborbital path,
Verisurf software will increase your tracker’s productivity, while reducing the Lynx Mark I will reportedly fly to 61
manpower costs. km/200,000 ft and provide one minute of
microgravity, while the Lynx Mark II will be
Take our “Improve Your Productivity” challenge able to reach 100 km/330,000 ft and pro-
No matter what you’re making or measuring, Verisurf will improve vide nearly three minutes of microgravity.
your productivity by making your metrology devices track smarter XCOR has a contract to provide subor-
and work harder. bital space launch services via the Lynx
Visit www.verisurf.com/tracker today and let us prove it. Mark II for the Yecheon Astro Space Cen-
Verisurf. Very Smart. ter in South Korea under a “wet lease”
model (XCOR will provide the spacecraft,
crew, maintenance and insurance). The
Lynx is currently under construction in-
house. Test flights are expected to begin
in the second half of 2011 and should last
9 to 18 months.
The Lynx Mark I employs a carbon/
epoxy construction with a thermal pro-
tection system for its leading edge. The
Lynx Mark II is made from carbon/cyanate
ester with a nickel alloy for the nose and
leading-edge thermal protection.
“Composites … allow us to work with
seamless complex shapes, such as the
cabin pressure vessel and outer mold
line of the vehicle,” explains XCOR’s Mike
Massee. “In the production version ... the
Booth 3827 or E3840 outer skin of the composite LOX tank
WWWVERISURFCOMs  
and inner skin of the fuselage are one in

34 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
Source: Virgin Galactic/Photo: Thierry Boccon-Gibod

Eight-seat, all-composite “tour bus”

The six-passenger VSS Enterprise fuselage
is assembled at Scaled Composites (Mojave,
Calif.). To achieve suborbital flight, the
launch aircraft Eve will carry the Enterprise
to approximately 45,000 ft/14 km, at
which point the latter will be released to
fire its rocket motor and climb. After motor
shutdown, it will travel a wide arc, peaking
at 361,000 ft/110 km, before descent. At
70,000 ft/21.5 km, the ship’s unique wing
action turns its body into the airstream,
rapidly slowing the spacecraft, without heat
buildup, for a conventional wheeled landing.

Source: Virgin Galactic/Photo: Mark Greenberg

the same, saving quite a bit of weight in

structural support.”
For this purpose, XCOR is develop-
ing a cryo-compatible composite mate-
rial, trademarked Nonburnite. “Unlike
ordinary composites, Nonburnite is not
flammable in an oxygen-rich environ-
ment and resists microcracking at the
very cold temperatures required for LOX
storage,” says Massee.
Typically, LOX tanks are made of alu-
minum or stainless steel. XCOR uses a
thermoplastic fluoropolymer composite
material with a foam core that serves as
thermal insulation as well as structure.
XCOR reports that “compared to carbon/
epoxy, it is noncombustible, and com-
pared to aluminum, it has lower density,
lower coefficient of thermal expansion
and higher strength.”

Cutting costs via trial and error

With fully reusable VTVL suborbital re-
search and passenger flights in its sights,
Armadillo Aerospace’s (Rockwall, Texas)
technology is similar to NASA’s but re-
portedly will be built at a price that will
eventually put space travel within reach
of other than the wealthy. The company’s
existing MOD and Super-MOD vehicles
reach lower altitudes using LOX-ethanol
and LOX-methane engines, but two pro-
gressively more advanced systems — the
Tube and the SOST — are under construc-
tion. The four rockets are an outgrowth of
what Armadillo’s communications team
sees in terms of step-by-step progress:
“We approach rocket design much like
software design. We build ... incremental
designs that we can test constantly and
work out all the kinks as we go.”

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 35
FEATURE / AEROSPACE COMPOSITES
MOD was awarded first prize in Level
1 of NASA’s Lunar Lander Challenge in
2008. Super-MOD has additional out-
board composite high-pressure tanks.
Armadillo is currently offering payload
opportunities and is reconfiguring both
vehicles to a target maximum altitude
of 50 km/164,042 ft. The Tube, sched-
uled to begin carrying commercial pay-
loads in third-quarter 2010, employs a
conventional rocket-style vehicle and
is designed to travel to heights of 100
km/328,084 ft. The SOST transport con-
Leaders in Thermoplastic
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sists of a four-tank arrangement with The first of Bigelow’s orbital stations —
a capsule for manned and unmanned the mini Genesis I and II — have been orbiting
flights. Test flights are scheduled for 300 miles/483 km above Earth since launch-
2011, and commercial passenger flights es in 2006 and 2007, respectively. Next up is
could begin as early as the end of 2012. a full-scale 180m3/6,357 ft3 module, Sun-
dancer. Designed to house three people,
Inflatable space stations long-term, and as many as six for short-
Bigelow Aerospace (Las Vegas, Nev.) is term stays, Sundancer has its own power,
looking beyond the ISS to next-generation environmental-control and life-support
space stations. The company hopes to house systems and avionics. Bigelow also has
astronauts, scientists and even tourists in its developed the BA-330 module, with
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proposed and designed by NASA un-
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ISS crew quarters. After TransHab was
Advanced Composites canceled, Bigelow acquired the rights
Advanced Armor to commercialize several of NASA’s key
module technologies.
According to one Bigelow patent,
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Kevlar, and a variety of other fabric or
sheet materials. Sponge-like materials,
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t
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based on the company’s previous work:
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Although composites will contribute
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These include atomic oxygen, which can
cations companies and tourists to foot
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insertions. Most certain is that, hence-
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In recent testimony before the Senate
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bertson echoed the confidence common
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conditions, relationships and invest-
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demonstrate safe and reliable crew
transportation systems for International
Space Station support by 2015,” he pre-
dicted, but warned that to do so, New-
Space and NASA must yield autonomy. “I
do not envisage commercially provided
crew services being conducted entirely
by industry with a hands-off approach
from NASA. Nor can these commercial
services be provided efficiently with tra-
ditional levels of government involve-
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ft2/17,187m2) to enable mass production.

Reaching space together

Time alone will reveal whether or not
these programs are viable and sustain-
able. Much will depend on the U.S. gov-
ernment’s ability to provide funding and
the willingness of researchers, communi-

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SEPTEMBER 2010 | 37
FEATURE / NEXT-GENERATION ANTIBALLISTICS

STRUCTURAL ARMOR OR
ARMORED STRUCTURES?
BY MICHAEL R. LEGAULT

Either way, antiballistics engineers

U
ntil recently, there were good
antiballistic materials and good
seek structural integrity and ballistic structural materials, and — ma-
terials engineers and end-users
deterrence from a single design. have usually assumed — never
the twain shall meet. For example, a fiber
reinforcement and matrix must, by de-
sign, capture and stop projectiles. Anti-
ballistic materials, reinforced with aramid
or various types of polyolefin fibers with
superior elongation-to-break character-
istics, absorb and dissipate the energy of
a high-velocity impact through a number
of energy-absorbing mechanisms. These
include spall formation, tensile fiber fail-
ure of primary yarns, fiber debonding, fi-
ber pullout and interlayer delamination.
Unfortunately, each is a failure mechanism
that all good structural materials are sup-
posed to avoid. Carbon-fiber/epoxy, one
of the best structural materials available
due to carbon’s stiffness, high tensile
strength and extremely low elongation,
is therefore a poor performer from a bal-
listics standpoint. “When a high-speed
projectile strikes a carbon-fiber panel,
that point of impact becomes a localized
point of failure,” says David Fecko, new
business development manager at AGY
Huntingdon (Aiken, S.C.).
This difference is by no means trivial. In
practical terms, it means that structures
and the armor for those structures often
are engineered and produced separately:

Structural glass:
Antiballistics with less mass
Part of the United Kingdom’s Light Protected
Patrol Vehicle Program, the new SPV400
all-terrain military vehicle built by Supacat
Source: Supacat

(Devon, U.K.), maximizes roadside blast

protection with an all-composite crew pod
constructed of prepreg panels reinforced
with S-2 Glass from AGY (Aiken, S.C.).

38 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
Ground vehicles and stationary shelters
are designed and built conventionally.
Then armor is added (often literally, in kit
form) at extra expense. Add-on armor, of
course, contributes significantly to over-
all weight. In the case of vehicles, there
is a corresponding reduction in mobility,
maneuverability and fuel efficiency.
This dichotomy is changing, however,
as engineers take steps to bridge the
performance gap with new materials and
hybrid constructions that meet multiple
performance demands while increasing
manufacturing efficiency and reducing
cost. The goal is a finished composite
component that has sufficient structural
strength for the intended use and exhib-
its the required antiballistic properties.
Armor-worthy structural glass
One candidate for a viable structural
antiballistic material is S-glass fiber,
which has taken a significant leap into
the limelight in a new all-terrain mili-
tary vehicle for the U.K.’s Light Protected
Patrol Vehicle (LPPV) Program (open-
ing photo). The SPV400 is designed for
maximum roadside-blast protection,
says Nick Ames, managing director of
SPV400 manufacturer Supacat (Devon,
U.K.), who claims that its construction
offers LPPV “protection levels far beyond
those [currently] available in other ve-
hicles in the 7.5-ton class.” The vehicle
incorporates a V-shaped armored hull
for underside protection and an all-com-
posite crew pod made from woven-glass
prepreg panels. Supacat has formed an
alliance agreement with NP Aerospace
(Coventry, U.K.) to supply armor for the
vehicle. AGY supplies its proprietary S-2
Glass for the composite panels.
Although AGY’s S-2 Glass product
is armor capable, glass fiber generally
outweighs the aramids and other ther-
moplastic fibers classically employed
in armor applications. For that reason,
AGY introduced Featherlight S-2 Glass
fiber to the market in 2008. The fiber
was developed in response to the U.S.
military’s initiative to build lighter ve-
hicles with better structural and antibal-
listic performance. The new fiber has a
5 to 10 percent greater tensile strength
than conventional S-2 Glass. Therefore,
Featherlight can be used either to make
composite armor of the same weight
with improved ballistic performance, or
to make lighter armor with identical bal-
listic properties. Featherlight is the re-
sult of changes to the fiber architecture,
namely smaller diameter filaments with
more fibers per bundle.
Fecko believes there is potential for
greater improvement. During the past
four years, in fact, AGY and the Army
Research Laboratory (ARL, Adelphi,
Md.) have collaborated to investigate
ways the performance properties of S-2
Glass might be modified, using sizing
technology developed by ARL. The pur-
pose of the project is to maximize the
structural performance of armor pan-
els during low-strain conditions (e.g.,
typical road vibrations) and optimize
energy absorption during high-strain
conditions (e.g., ballistic impact). Re-
searchers found that ARL’s multicom-
ponent sizing imparts higher structural
integrity to an S-2 Glass/epoxy compos-
ite while doubling the Mode II (in shear)
fracture toughness of the system, with-
out damaging fibers or increasing mois-
ture uptake. Further, drop-tower testing
showed that the damaged area of the
composite was greatly reduced when
compared to samples made with tradi-
tional sizing.
Although the sizing is not yet com-
mercial, AGY’s Fecko says the research
results are promising enough to compel
“a full-blown research project to launch
the next-generation S-glass fiber.” Fecko
says the unique chemistry of S-2 Glass
SIDE STORY
New MIL antiballistics standard
New military specifications for unidirectional
thermoplastic laminates used in antiballistics
applications are circulating in draft form for
comments and should be completed by year’s
end. Materials suppliers assisted the Army
Research Laboratory (Adelphi, Md.) in drafting
the MIL specifications, which cover four classes
of fiber used to reinforce in thermoplastic
matrices: aramid, polypropylene, ultrahigh-
molecular-weight polyethylene and glass.
Dr. Karl Chang, research associate at DuPont
Protection Technologies (Wilmington, Del.), says
the MIL specifications will not require armor
manufacturers to change their practices, but
rather, the intent is to provide those responsible
for military procurement with a high degree of
certainty that the product they buy today is the
same as the product they bought last month.
(its higher silica content, in particular)
imparts higher tensile and compressive
strength, which makes it ideal for struc-
tural applications, but it is not always
the best choice for ballistic protection.
He suggests, however, that there might
be ways to change the glass chemistry
to enhance antiballistic performance, yet
it retains some features that make it at-
tractive for structural hard armor. Beyond
modifications to chemistry, AGY also will
investigate the fiber/matrix interface,
fabric architecture and other factors that
have an impact on performance.
Elsewhere on the materials front, Mil-
liken and Co.’s (Spartanburg, S.C.) new
version of its Tegris self-reinforced poly-
propylene (PP) composite, trademarked
Tegris LM, shows promise for structural
antiballistic applications when com-
bined with other fibers. Tegris is based
on the company’s (pat. pend.) PURE
technology, a three-layer coextruded
tape consisting of a polymer skin of PP
fibers with a relatively low melting point,
a highly-drawn PP fiber core and another
layer of low-melt PP skin. Drawing axially
orients the core fibers, creating a highly
reinforcing material that acts, in a com-
posite, like glass fiber, but contributes
much less weight. Typically, Tegris yarn is
woven into fabrics and consolidated into
sheets that subsequently are thermo-
formed or compression molded. The
The specifications include details of how
to make and mold test panels, as well as
criteria for passing the Fragment Simulating
Projectile Ballistic 50 antiballistic performance
standard. The FSPB50 protocol specifies the
velocity at which 50 percent of the projectiles
are expected to penetrate a panel while the
remainder is stopped.
Dr. Chang points out that the new MIL
specification should not be interpreted to mean
the military is getting substandard laminates.
What’s at issue is uniform application of
requirements. “It’s a classic problem. If there
is a requirement but no specification, that
requirement is open to interpretation,” he
explains. “There is no other way to interpret a
specification than how it is written.”
— Michael R. LeGault
SEPTEMBER 2010 | 39
FEATURE / NEXT-GENERATION ANTIBALLISTICS
rmoured hull
ubframes
V-shaped armoured hull
pod and
Sacrificial
tection kit subframes
e modules
Composite pod and
ballistic protection kit
Replaceable modules
Blast
low-melting skins become the polymer
matrix when heat sufficient to melt the
sheath but not hot enough to melt the
fiber core is applied during the molding
process. Milliken recently shipped 20,000
Tegris armor kits for vehicles deployed in
Iraq and Afghanistan. Predominantly flat
panel systems for spall liners, the kits
are used, for the most part, to retrofit
SIDE STORY
Hybrid Enhanced Combat Helmet enters final testing phase
The U.S. Army and Marine Corps are conduct-
ing final validation testing of the U.S. military’s
next-generation — and radically new — com-
bat helmet at the Army Research Laboratory’s
Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. Testing on
the Enhanced Combat Helmet (ECH), is expected
to last 6 to 12 months. The previous-generation
Advanced Combat Helmet (ACH) — currently
in use by most U.S. combat troops — is made
primarily of Kevlar and phenolic resin. The ECH
will be the first to incorporate thermoplastic resin
in its construction. Military sources tell HPC that
40 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
Source: Supacat
Maximum protection, modular design
The SPV400’s modular design enables easier
system upgrades to meet new threats. Its
V-shaped hull protects the crew sitting above
it from an underbelly mine strike. Sacrificial
subframes, such as the axle systems, can
be blown away in the event of a wheel mine
strike, enhancing protection.
vehicles for enhanced protection against
Explosively Formed Projectiles (EFPs).
In the standard Tegris product, matrix
formation is initiated at ~300°F/~149°C
and pressures of 300 psi and greater.
But Tegris LM can be molded at tem-
peratures ranging from 225°F to 300°F
(107°C to 149°C) and pressures from as
low as 30 psi to a high of 300 psi. This
the ECH comprises a carbon-fiber inner cage
overmolded with a preform made from Spectra
ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHM-
WPE), supplied by helmet development partner
Honeywell Advanced Fibers and Composites
(Colonial Heights, Va.).
“The ECH involves a change in materials,
a change in the manufacturing process and a
change in the specifications,” says Honeywell’s
armor industry technical leader Lori Wagner.
While the UHMWPE outer hemisphere imparts
the energy-absorbing antiballistic behavior, the
broader processing window makes Tegris
LM compatible with autoclave process-
ing and infusion molding, which enhanc-
es, in turn, the material’s suitability for
comolding with carbon, aramid and/or
polyethylene fiber forms to create hybrid
structures that combine good structural
and ballistic properties.
Eric Brockman, Milliken’s national sales
manager, says the impetus for Tegris LM
was customer requests. “When we first in-
troduced the Tegris product, you basically
had to compression mold to make a part,”
says Brockman. “We heard, over and over
again, ‘Great material. Love that it’s fairly
structural. But if you could broaden the
processing window it would increase the
opportunity to use the material.’” Milliken
already has demonstrated and qualified
Tegris LM for one military body armor ap-
plication and has submitted the material
for two other applications.
Brockman allows that Tegris LM is un-
likely to be the only product used in an ar-
mor design, but he contends that used in
conjunction with other antiballistic fibers,
it can save weight, control delamination
and reduce cost. In a typical body armor
design, a layer of Tegris LM can replace
the layer of Kevlar- or polyethylene-fiber-
reinforced polymer immediately behind
the ceramic strike face to support the
ceramic and help control back-face de-
formation. Brockman says testing shows
that this configuration can improve multi-
hit performance at a lower cost.
Milliken is looking for Tegris LM to
expand the company’s presence in body
carbon inner cage is designed to resist deforma-
tion, offering better local-impact protection for
the wearer. The design reportedly results in a 10
percent improvement in ballistic protection while
reducing helmet weight.
The military is expected to issue production
contracts to several manufacturers. The helmet
will be made using an out-of-autoclave, auto-
mated compression-style press. Automation is
expected to reduce the cost of making the ECH by
10 to 15 percent compared to the ACH.
— Michael R. LeGault
 Source Polystrand Inc.
armor, including products with complex
geometries, such as combat helmets. Al-
though the U.S. military’s new Enhanced
Combat Helmet (ECH) will be a hybrid
construction made of a carbon-fiber
shell or cage overmolded with high-mo-
lecular-weight polyethylene (see sidebar,
p. 40), Brockman believes Tegris could
find a place in future helmet designs. The
ECH’s carbon-fiber shell is needed to add
structural integrity and control ear-to-ear
compression or dynamic deflection, but
he suggests that future helmets could in-
corporate a layer of Tegris and eliminate
the need for more costly fibers. “If you
took the playing field of materials before Ballistic protection and structural function
Tegris, you had a group [that] was struc- After-test views (front and back) of Polystrand Inc.’s (Montrose, Colo.) patented new
tural and included glass and carbon, then antiballistic panel, comprising layers of S-glass, E-glass and aramid tapes that together
you had an area of antiballistic-type ma- fulfill design expectations for both antiballistic and structural performance.
terials, such as brands of ultrahigh-mo-
lecular-weight polyethylene [UHMWPE], glass-fiber mat, followed by an outer ce- a proprietary epoxy adhesive system.
and aramid materials that were weak in ramic layer. The inner thermoplastic lay- Pressures used to consolidate the pan-
terms of structural performance,” notes er acts as a spall liner, the impregnated els depend on the types of individual
Brockman. “Tegris fits the niche between glass fiber provides structural strength layers in the construction. Panels con-
these materials.” and the ceramic outer adds protection taining just glass fiber and ceramics can
Polystrand Inc. (Montrose, Colo.) has from armor-piercing rounds, says Alan be consolidated at pressures as low as
focused on the integration of multiple Johnson, director of business develop- 250 psi/17.24 bar, while pressures as
materials in a single hybrid design. The ment at Norplex-Micarta. The individual high as 3,000 psi/206.84 bar are used to
company received formal approval on layers are consolidated and bonded with consolidate panels that also include
a patent for hybrid thermoplastic com-
posite ballistic panels (Patent No. U.S.
7,598,185 B2). Polystrand is best known
for its ThermoBallistic family of materi-
als, which combine continuous strands
of glass or aramid fibers with proprietary
polypropylene or polyethylene fibers in
the form of sheets or layered tape lami-
nates. The new hybrid panel combines
layers of S-glass, E-glass and aramid fi-
bers. ThermoBallistic reinforcing tapes
are used in a 0°/90° cross-ply layup that
is subsequently compression molded at
360°F/182°C with pressures as low as 100
psi/6.89 bar. Polystrand president Ed Pil-
pel says the hybrid panel fulfills antibal-
listic and structural functions: “Our test-
ing ... showed this construction could
effectively be used on future military ve-
hicle platforms to reduce costs.”
Similarly, Norplex-Micarta (Postville,
Iowa), manufactures laminated panels as
large as 4 ft by 9 ft (1.2m by 2.7m), consist-
ing of a number of different layers of ma-
terials that are placed in a press and con-
solidated in a single step under heat and
pressure. A typical construction might
consist of an inner layer of UHMWPE
— either Honeywell’s Spectra or DSM’s 1.800.2.MCLUBE
(Geleen, The Netherlands) Dyneema —
info@mclube.com mclube.com
followed by a layer of infused, semicured

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 41
FEATURE / NEXT-GENERATION ANTIBALLISTICS
the inner thermoplastic layer. Norplex-
Micarta also has developed a grout that
reduces damage in the event of a strike.
Typically, when a round hits, it not only
damages the ceramic tile it strikes but
the surrounding tiles as well, says John-
son. “This grouting material ... surrounds
each individual tile so when a round hits
it doesn’t shatter the adjacent tiles.”
Materials & intangibles drive change
Two factors have coalesced to acceler-
ate change and hasten the commercial-
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42 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
ization of hybrid constructions over the uum-assisted RTM (VARTM), for antibal-
past decade. First, advances in materials listic applications. “When we first started
other than fibers have led to increased testing composite materials,” he recalls,
processing flexibility and have provided “whenever you would add anything to
manufacturers with more manufacturing an epoxy to reduce viscosity, say, for a
options. Dana Granville, senior materials pultrusion application, we always sacri-
engineer at the ARL’s Weapons and Ma- ficed performance.” Granville also says
terials Research Directorate (Aberdeen, advances in sizing technology, such as
Md.), says improvements in the quality the AGY/ARL effort discussed earlier, are
of low-viscosity vinyl esters and epoxies enhancing antiballistic composites.
have played a crucial role in the growing A second factor has been a post-9/11
use of out-of-autoclave processes, such emphasis on lightweighting and cost
as resin transfer molding (RTM) and vac- reduction as testing under real-world
conditions (e.g., in Iraq and Afghanistan)
exposed limitations of then state-of-the-
art hard- and soft-armor, providing the
impetus for end-users and suppliers to
seek and fund radical change. “You need
drivers to push the industry to come up
with technology that will advance the
use of composites in ballistics design,”
says Lori Wagner, armor industry techni-
cal leader at Honeywell Advanced Fibers
(SFHPSZ
4NJUI
and Composites (Colonial Heights, Va.).
Wagner says that at one time, ballistics
engineers considered “a modification of
the type of water-repellent treatment,
or going from a 24x24 plain weave to a
25x25 plain weave” to be a significant
change to body armor construction. Now,
she believes, the industry is becoming
less conservative, citing for example a
manufacturer of body armor for law en-
forcement that switched its entire line
from woven fabric, once considered the
standard, to Honeywell’s unidirectional
Spectra Shield composite after testing
showed the latter would improve perfor-
mance. Spectra gel-spun extended-chain
polyethylene fibers, according to Honey-
well, have one of the highest strength-to-
weight ratios among man-made fibers.
Lightweighting has been a U.S. Army
research priority since the 2003 launch
of a formal program dedicated to reduc-
ing land vehicle mass of Future Combat
Systems (FCS) manned ground vehicles
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Log on to tewire.com to learn more. original directive called for develop-
ment of three generations of compos-
ite armor, culminating in panels that
would protect the 27-ton MGV in 2015.
This third-generation armor was to have
201-845-9400 www.tewire.com same antiballistic performance as then
current armor but at 25 percent less
weight. In April 2009, the Pentagon can-
celed the MGV, rolling the FCS initia-
tive into a new effort, the Army Brigade tored the resin flow front simultaneously tions, the quest for new multifunctional
Combat Team Modernization Program. at multiple locations and automatically materials is certain to continue. “There
Shortly thereafter, the army launched the controlled injection gating as the front are a lot of different materials out there,”
Ground Combat Vehicle (GCV) program, progressed. Granville contends that pre- observes Honeywell’s Wagner, “and we
seeking a replacement for the Bradley forms could be a key to cost control: “The are still in our infancy of understanding
Fighting Vehicle. The GCV program calls cost of a fiber preform can be less than the way they can be used in systems to
for a 50- to 70-ton vehicle with the un- two times the cost of the raw material, exploit the advantages each might have.”
derbelly protection of a mine-resistant, which is a lot cheaper than ... tape laying Manufacturers’ willingness to consider
ambush-protected (MRAP) vehicle and a part with those materials.” not only a broader array of fibers but
better side resistance than a Bradley. also a greater variety of fabrication pro-
Defense firms submitted proposals for More change to come cesses should ensure a lively period of
the first phase of the GCV in May of this Pushed by demands for better perform- innovation and profitable application of
year, and program officials are expected ing and more cost-effective armor solu- composites in antiballistic products.
to award as many as three development
contracts this month. Although research-
ers are still working out GCV design de-
tails, lightweighting appears to be the
prime objective: Army chief of staff Gen.
George Casey recently said that the GCV
needs to be closer to the weight of a
MRAP (about 23 tons).
Cost reduction is more important than
ever before because today’s armor solu-
tions are more complex. “A typical armor
construction today is a combination of
materials — steel, ceramic and com-
posites,” says Granville. The principal
question is how to combine and bond
them cost-effectively, yet maximize per-
formance. Consequently, there is greater
openness to alternative methods. Gran-
ville recalls a method that arose out of
an ARL effort, with collaborator United
Defense Industries (now BAE Systems,
Monroe, N.C.), to develop a composite
hull for a now-defunct vehicle platform.
Granville says the program’s purpose
was to demonstrate a 50 to 60 percent re-
duction in the cost to manufacture thick-
section, multifunctional armor. Although
the program was not completed, some
of its technology could be applicable to
future ground combat vehicles. The pro-
gram envisioned automatic delivery of
a vinyl ester resin, or the A and B com-
ponents of an epoxy, to infuse preforms
in a low-pressure molding process. A
network of programmed sensors moni-

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Read more in HPC’s sister magazine
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SEPTEMBER 2010 | 43
INSIDE MANUFACTURING
SQRTM
enables
net-shape
parts
New out-of-autoclave
process combines resin
transfer molding with
prepregs for complex
helicopter part prototype.
BY SARA BLACK
T
he current trend toward out-of-
autoclave (OOA) processing is
driven by manufacturers’ com-
peting needs to produce larger
parts to help decrease fabrica-
tion costs. Although many OOA materi-
als and methods have been introduced
over the past few years, few exceed the
elegance of SQRTM, an acronym for
Same Qualified Resin Transfer Molding.
Developed and now in the process of
commercialization by Radius Engineer-
ing Inc. (Salt Lake City, Utah), SQRTM is
a closed molding method that combines
prepreg processing and liquid molding
to produce true net-shape, highly unit-
ized aerospace parts. In short, SQRTM is
designed to produce an autoclave-quali-
ty part without the autoclave.
“The scale and the complexity of com-
posite aerospace parts has significantly
increased over the past several years,”
says Radius Engineering’s president,
Dimitrije Milovich. “We have designed
a viable alternative that duplicates the
44 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
g
eerin
ngin
ius E
ad
e: Rrc
Sou
Hybrid RTM/prepreg process produces complex one-piece part
This net-shape unitized part, fabricated by Radius Engineering (Salt Lake City, Utah), is a
prototype rotorcraft roof component produced as part of the SARAP (Survivable Affordable
Repairable Airframe Program) initiative. This underside view of the ~250 lb/~120 kg “grid-
stiffened” part shows its four thick, integrated longitudinal beams and several lighter
perpendicular frames as well as the integral upper-skin stiffeners.
qualified autoclave process while offer- is an integral part, achieved aggressive
ing significant advantages.” The SQRTM weight-reduction and cost-reduction tar-
method has been employed successfully gets. The successful effort on the cabin
in several aerospace projects, includ- roof helped the SARAP Virtual Prototype
ing the wingtip extensions for the RQ- and Validation Development Team win
1B Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle the American Helicopter Society Interna-
(UAV). But its toughest test, to date, was tional’s 2008 Robert L. Pinckney Award
an extremely complex, one-piece pro- (named in honor of an eminent Boeing
totype helicopter cabin roof, produced manufacturing engineer), which recog-
under the Survivable Affordable Repair- nizes notable achievements in manu-
able Airframe Program (SARAP), a coop- facturing research and development for
erative agreement between Sikorsky Air- vertical flight aircraft or components.
craft (Stratford, Conn.) and the U.S. Army
Aviation Applied Technology Directorate Liquid molding + prepreg
(AATD, Ft. Eustis, Va.). The innovative de- What sets SQRTM apart from standard
sign and manufacture of the SARAP fuse- resin transfer molding (RTM) is that, in
lage, of which the SQRTM-fabricated roof place of a dry fiber preform, it substi-
tutes a prepreg layup. Prepreg plies are
arranged within the mold, the mold is
closed, and then, somewhat counterin-
tuitively, liquid resin is injected into the
tool. “It’s what makes the process similar
to an autoclave process,” says Milovich,
noting that the injected resin is the same
as that used in the prepreg, and, there-
fore, those who adopt the process need
not requalify materials.
Precision-designed gating and chan-
nels within the tool facilitate evacuation
of air from the layup prior to injection
and also enable the injected resin to fill
all of the cavities along the edges of the
entire part at a uniform fluid pressure
of approximately 100 psi/6.89 bar. “The
resin isn’t intended to impregnate the
prepreg,” Milovich explains, but “only
to maintain a steady hydrostatic pres-
sure within the mold. The pressure keeps
volatiles and water vapor in solution to
prevent void formation.”
Indeed, traditional autoclave process-
es sometimes use high-temperature rub-
ber edge dams or other materials as part
of the layup and bagging to keep resin
from escaping from the prepreg under
the autoclave’s pressure — if enough
resin squeezes out and the laminate hy-
drostatic pressure drops, any air or
volatiles that come out of the
resin within the layup can
create voids. In the SQRTM
process, then, the injected,
pressurized resin acts as a
“fluid dam,” preventing resin
squeeze-out while replicating
an autoclave’s consolidation
pressure during cure.
“Laminate quality is more easily
controlled with SQRTM rather than
an autoclave,” claims Tom Coughlin,
head of business development for
Radius, “because the resin hydrostatic
pressure is directly controlled by the
resin injector instead of being dependent
on variables inside the autoclave vessel
and laminate under the bag.”
To accommodate its SQRTM process,
Radius has designed and manufac-
tured a large platen press system that is
equipped with upper and lower bolsters
of welded steel ground flat to high tol-
erance. When a loaded two-sided tool is
placed within the press, the lower bol-
ster is supported on a series of air bags
similar to fire hoses. Prior to injection,
the bags are inflated, forcing the lower
bolster up against the tool and the up-
per bolster to optimize clamping force,
notes Milovich.
Both the upper and lower bolsters are
electrically heated and water cooled by
zone, enabling temperature adjustments
during cure, says Coughlin. “If a tool has
a variable mass, based upon the part
configuration, with one area thicker than
another,” he explains, “the zonal heating
allows the press, after a complete heat
profile is completed for the tool, to apply
more heat in the thicker area so the part
always sees a consistent heat cycle.”
SQRTM is similar to RTM in that a vac-
uum is drawn on the tool and the press
and tool are heated. With SQRTM, how-
ever, heat is applied at the same ramp
rate as specified for the prepreg under
autoclave conditions, and resin is in-
jected via a process controller that also
monitors and adjusts the press tempera-
ture. Also unique to the SQRTM process
is the level of vacuum used, Coughlin
adds, pointing out that Radius develops
its vacuum pumps to create <0.5 mm/Hg,
which is “more vacuum than a standard
shop pump can produce.”
Because the higher thermal conduc-
tivity of the press and tool permit faster
ing
eer
ngin
sE
diu
Ra
e:
urc
So
heating and cool down, the SQRTM cure
cycle can be as much as two hours short-
er than an autoclave cycle.
There are other advantages compared
to conventional RTM. Part thickness is
controlled by matched tooling, avoid-
ing the potential thickness variation in-
herent in the vacuum bagging process.
Starting with fully impregnated, quali-
fied, toughened prepreg eliminates the
risk of dry spots during injection and the
need to introduce toughening agents to
the part via the liquid resin. Further,
because the process so closely follows
standard autoclave processing steps us-
ing previously qualified materials, there
is less risk and a much higher comfort
level for the customer. Although the pro-
cess lends itself somewhat better to pla-
nar-type parts, Milovich says the SARAP
cabin roof demonstrates that very large-
scale, complex parts are well within
its scope.
Net-shape, grid-stiffened part
“Our focus is on net-shape parts,” says
Milovich. “We’re looking for ways to in-
tegrate multiple parts, for less assembly
labor, lower costs and lighter weight.”
That philosophy drove the development
of SQRTM for the SARAP program,
Integrated upper skin
This top view of the finished roof shows the
integral upper skin as well as the opening
and integral supports for the rotor trans-
mission. With rough dimensions of 9.5
ft by 6.2 ft by 1 ft (2.9m by 1.9m by
0.3m), the roof is combined with
other fuselage components
(see photo on p. 48). The
roof section models a
prospective method
for reducing the
fuselage part
count and
weight.
SEPTEMBER 2010 | 45
INSIDE MANUFACTURING

Step 1
Layup of the complex roof part, shown here in the early stages,
involved placement of a combination of debulked prepreg materials
and dry preforms (described in step 3) on the lower mold half.
Step 4
The layup has been completed, multiple tool inserts installed, and
the mold closed. At this point, injection take place, using the same
resin as that incorporated into the the prepregs, to maintain steady
hydrostatic pressure within the mold.
Same-Qualified Resin Transfer Molding (SQRTM)
Processing - Cycle is Shorter Than Autoclave Cure

400
SQRTM

CURE AUTOCLAVE
350

2 oF/min 2 oF/min
300 5 oF/min
TEMPERATURE (Deg F)

250 5 oF/min

1 oF/min
200
SQRTM INJECTION

150
PART REMOVAL
5 oF/min
100
120 minutes

30 60 90 120 150 180 210 240 270 300 330 360 390
TIME (minutes)

RADIUS ENGINEERING, INC. PROPRIETARY 9

Step 2
The roof skin’s prepreg layup is in place, and the network of tooling
inserts that will form the faces of the roof section’s beams and
perpendicular frames are in position.
Step 5
After injection, cure begins. As this chart demonstrates, SQRTM
enables faster processing, because the greater thermal conductivity
of the press and tool permit faster heating and cool down. RTM
cure can be two hours shorter than an autoclave cycle.

All are Source: Radius Engineering

Step 3
This closeup shows the “pi” preforms used at the intersections of
vertical and horizontal elements. Everywhere a vertical stiffener web
Step 6
meets a beam flange or the part skin, the two legs of the pi preform
form a slot that accepts the web while the perpendicular preform A cured roof part is shown as it is lifted from the tooling base. Visible
element lays flat against the horizontal flange or skin. The preforms to the left of the tool is the heated platen press with upper and lower
functioned to fill the radii between web and caps or flanges for each bolsters of welded steel, ground flat to high tolerance, that heat and
of the part’s numerous beams and frames. clamp the tool.

46 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
which focused on finding innovative ways
to reduce structural weight and fastener
count and increase damage tolerance in
rotorcraft parts. In addition to Radius,
the SARAP team included Automated
Dynamics (Schenectady, N.Y.) and GKN
Aerospace Services Alabama (Tallassee,
Ala.). Automated Dynamics fabricated a
thermoplastic composite lower fuselage
component, and GKN built the fuselage
frames, side skins and aft bulkhead, and
assembled the final SARAP Technology
Validation Article.
Proof-of-concept trials for the cabin
roof began in 2006, and full-scale tool
design was undertaken in 2007. Radius
was responsible for developing the roof’s
manufacturing process, based on the
design and finite element analysis (FEA)
modeling provided by Sikorsky.
According to Milovich, the roof proto-
type was one of the most complex net-
shape unitized structures undertaken to
date. With rough dimensions of 9.5 ft by
6.2 ft by 1 ft (2.9m by 1.9m by 0.3m) and
a weight of approximately 250 lb/120 kg,
the “grid-stiffened” part integrates four
thick longitudinal beams and several
lighter perpendicular frames, an integral
upper skin with stiffeners and integral
supports for the rotor transmission, all
in a single cocured component. Clearly,
design of the tool, performed in-house
by Radius, was critical and ultimately
“very complex,” Milovich admits.
The 10.8-ft by 7.5-ft by 1.5-ft (3.3m
by 2.3m by 0.5m) aluminum tool, fabri-
cated by a proprietary tooling supplier,
consisted of two large outer tool halves
that form the inner and outer surfaces of
the cabin roof. Milovich notes that hard-
anodized aluminum is typical for most
of the company’s large SQRTM projects
because it is reasonably priced, lighter
than steel, takes less energy to heat and
is significantly easier to handle.
More than 250 separate tooling de-
tails, either mandrels or inserts, were
machined and fit together to form all
of the interior faces of the part. The fit
tolerances are less than ±0.005 inch
(±0.125 mm).
“Our approach was to create a single,
multipart tool with lots of removable
inserts,” states Milovich. “Each insert
is registered to the large outer tools to
ensure exact dimensions.” Although the
tool was clearly intricate and expensive,
it eliminated the multiple tools that
otherwise would have been required

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 47
 INSIDE MANUFACTURING

for separate parts, had Sikorsky elected

to go with a multipart solution that re-
quires secondary postcure assembly. “It
is complicated to make,” Milovich ad-
mits, “but in the end it creates a single
part, with no assembly tooling required
and no labor required for fastening mul-
tiple parts together.”
To fabricate the roof article, prepreg
was first cut to shape to form the major-
ity of the part. The prepreg used in the
roof article was Cytec 5250-4 from Cytec
Engineered Materials Inc. (Tempe, Ariz.),
which was selected due to its inher-
ent chemical compatibility with Cytec’s
5250-4 liquid RTM resin.
Pregreg/injection resin matchup was
an important consideration for the
Source: Radius Engineering

SARAP roof article because the typical

SQRTM process was altered somewhat
to include the infusion of some dry tex-
tile materials, discussed below, in com-
bination with the prepreg. The use of the
same base resin system eliminated con-
Complete fuselage section holds promise for future rotorcraft cerns about intermingling resins and the
A completed SARAP fuselage prototype, on exhibit at a helicopter industry trade event. The potential changes in mechanical proper-
SQRTM-fabricated roof component is visible as part of the assembly, which also includes other ties that might result, notes Sikorsky’s
innovative composite designs. Sikorsky is reportedly considering the SQRTM technology for Tom Carstensen, chief of Airframe Devel-
future helicopter manufacturing programs. opment Programs.

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48 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
 The kitted unidirectional carbon/ep- viated, says Milovich, by demolding the “It’s becoming accepted and will lead the
oxy tape and woven fabric prepreg was part while the tool was still hot, at about way for other applications for integrating
debulked separately outside the tool to 70°F (21°C) below the cure temperature. multiple parts into a single assembly,
remove any entrapped air or local areas saving considerable resources,” con-
of resin concentration — a step normally From prototypes to programs cludes Milovich.
specified for the material. The cut plies To date, three roof assemblies have been Editor’s note: The Survivable Affordable Repair-
were layed on a heated flat caul plate or produced successfully with SQRTM. able Airframe Program (SARAP) was partially
table, bagged and placed under vacuum, All surfaces on the parts show tight di- funded by the Aviation Applied Technology Di-
according to the material specifications. mensional control, within ±0.005 inch rectorate (AATD) and Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.
An 11-ply prepreg stack was debulked in (±0.125 mm), thanks to the tight toler- under Technology Investment Agreement No.
about one hour after reaching a maxi- ances of the matched tooling. Only mi- DAAH10-03-2-0003. Use of this information
mum temperature based on the level nor trimming of the edges and the ends does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Govern-
of debulk required. Then the debulked of the beams was required after cure. As ment or Department of the Army.
layup plies, or “books,” were transferred a result, Sikorsky is considering the tech-
to the tool and layup commenced, a pro- nology for future upgrades to the U.S.
cess that took two technicians nearly two Army’s UH-60 helicopter platform and LEARN MORE
weeks to complete. plans to evaluate the technology in other @
www.compositesworld.com
In the layup, the prepreg formed the programs as well.
webs and flanges of the part. These were Sikorsky is not the only aerospace
Read this article online at http://short.
joined by woven three-dimensional dry OEM interested in SQRTM. The Boeing
compositesworld.com/LtO6vh00.
“pi” preforms, so named for their resem- Co. (Seattle, Wash.) recently released a
blance to the Greek letter π (see “Learn process specification to cover the Pi preform technology was developed
More,” this page). These were manufac- SQRTM process, using BMS-8-276 by Lockheed Martin (Ft. Worth, Texas)
and demonstrated under the Composites
tured by Bally Ribbon Mills (Bally, Pa.) toughened prepreg in a closed molding
Affordability Initiative (CAI) program funded by
and Albany Engineered Composites process. Radius reports that Boeing and the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy. See “Market
(Rochester, N.H.). Everywhere a vertical at least one of its Tier 1 suppliers have Trends: The Composites Affordability Initiative,
stiffener web met a beam flange or the tested panels, subelements and full- Part I,” HPC March 2007 (p. 9) or visit http://
part skin, the two legs of the pi preform scale parts made via SQRTM and found short.compositesworld.com/rck4hBDu.
formed a slot that accepted the web while equivalence to autoclave processing.
the perpendicular preform element lay
flat against the horizontal flange or skin.
The preforms functioned to fill the radii
between the web and caps or flanges for
each of the part’s numerous beams and
frames, providing needed stiffness and
strength.
As the tool was assembled, the pre-
cisely machined tooling inserts and de-
tails compressed and consolidated each
of these preform details, creating “net
beveled edges,” says Milovich. At three-
way intersections, the preforms were
hand cut prior to insertion into the tool
to form mitered joints. “We have devel-
oped methods to miter the preformed
intersections to create clean and func-
tional joints. The big benefit is that the
need for edge dressing is eliminated and
subsequent part machining is greatly re-
duced after cure.”
After instrumentation was attached
and a vacuum was drawn on the tool,
the press was heated at the autoclave-
specified ramp rate, and the resin was
injected during a dwell in the ramp pro-
cess. Injection took about 45 minutes,
and cure was accomplished in approxi-
mately four hours. Any concerns about
coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE)
issues with the aluminum tool were alle-

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 49
 Business Development Conference:
More than 20 market and technical presentations by industry leaders
Conference Co-Chairs:
Tom Haulik | Carbon Fiber Sales Manager, Hexcel
Tom Lemire | Western Regional Manager, Toho Tenax America

Pre-conference Seminars / December 7th:

“Automotive CFRP Challenges & Opportunities”
Moderated by Peggy Malnati | Malnati and Associates
With key contributions by: Gary Lownsdale | Engineering
Manager & R&D Director, Plasan Carbon Composites
Mike Shinedling | Viper Program Manager, Chrysler Group LLC
With others to be determined
“2010 Global Market for Carbon Fiber
Composites: Recovering Markets and
Advancing Supply Chains”
Anthony (Tony) Roberts | Industry Consultant
Christopher Red | Editor & VP of Market Research,
Composite Market Reports

IN ASSOCIATION WITH:

R E G I S T E R T O D AY a t c o m p o s i t e s w o r l d . c o m / c f
 CALENDAR

CALENDAR
Sept. 13-24, 2010 Textile Reinforced Composites
Aachen/Leuven, Germany | http://www.rwth-academy.com/
veranstaltung/materials-management-and-geo-resources/1032 Solutions
Sept. 14-15, 2010 Composites Europe 2010 for Controlling
Essen, Germany | www.composites-europe.com/en-gb.index.cfm Process
Sept. 15-16, 2010 The Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) Temperatures
Automotive Composites Conference and Exhibition (ACCE) Temperatures range
Troy, Mich. | www.speautomotive.com/comp.htm from 5° to 650° F
(-15° to 343° C)
Sept. 15-17, 2010 China International Composites Expo 2010
Beijing, China | www.chinacompositesexpo.com
Sept. 20-22, 2010 SpeedNews 11th Annual Aviation Industry Suppliers Conference
Toulouse, France | http://www.speednews.com/
ConferenceInfo.aspx?conferenceID=21
Sept. 20-23, 2010 25th Annual American Society for Composites Technical Conference
Dayton, Ohio | http://asc2010.udayton.edu/
Sept. 23-24, 2010 High-Performance Resins 2010
Schaumburg, Ill. | www.compositesworld.com/conferences/high-
performance-resins-2010
water and oil temperature
Sept. 28-30, 2010 IBEX 2010 control systems
Louisville, Ky. | www.ibexshow.com
Oct. 6-7, 2010 The Int’l Symposium on Composites Manufacturing (ISCM)
Marknesse, The Netherlands | http://iscm.nlr.nl
Oct. 11-14, 2010 SAMPE Fall Technical Conference 2010
Salt Lake City, Utah | www.sampe.org/events/
2010SaltLakeCityUtah.aspx
Oct. 12-13, 2010 Tooling for Composites
portable chiller and
Salt Lake City, Utah | http://www.sme.org/cgi-bin/ heating/cooling systems
get-event.pl?--001974-000007-home--SME-
Oct. 12-14, 2010 JEC Composites Show Asia
Singapore | www.jeccomposites.com
Oct. 20-21, 2010 Manufacturing Innovations – Aerospace/Defense
Orlando, Fla. | www.sme.org/cgi-bin/get-event.pl?--
001949-000007-home--SME-
Nov. 9-10, 2010 High-Performance Fibers 2010
Charleston, S.C. | www.compositesworld.com/ centralized cooling systems,
conferences/high-performance-fibers-2010 pump tanks and control panels
Nov. 10-12, 2010 SAMPE China 2010
Shanghai, China | www.sampe.org/events/SAMPECHINA2010(E).pdf
Dec. 7-9, 2010 Carbon Fiber 2010
La Jolla, Calif. | www.compositesworld.com/conferences/
carbon-fiber-2010
SM
Dec. 27-30, 2010 2nd Int’l Conference on Composites
Kish Island, Iran | http://ccfa.iust.ac.ir
Feb. 2-4, 2011 COMPOSITES 2011
Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. | www.acmashow.org
March 1-3, 2011 4th International Composite-Expo 2011
Moscow, Russia | www.mirexpo.ru/eng/exhibitions/composite11.shtml
March 29-31, 2011 JEC Composites Show 2011 Phone: 716-876-9951
Paris, France | www.jeccomposites.com www.mokon.com

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 51
APPLICATIONS
APPLICATIONS
Deepsea submersible incorporates composite pressure capsule
Prior to his untimely death in 2007,
record-setting aviator and adventurer
Steve Fossett — the first balloonist to fly
nonstop around the world — was prepar-
ing to make a solo journey to the bottom
of the Challenger Deep in the Pacific
Ocean’s Mariana Trench, the deep-
est point in the undersea world.
He aimed to exceed a 36,000
ft/19,500m dive made in 1960
in the same location by Jacques
Piccard and U.S. Navy lieutenant
Don Walsh in the bathyscaphe Tri-
este. His self-financed, one-person
winged submersible vessel, the
DeepFlight Challenger, was designed
by Hawkes Ocean Technologies
(HOT, San Francisco, Calif.).
HOT subcontractor Spen-
cer Composites Corp. (Sacra-
mento, Calif.) was given the task
of designing and fabricating the
52 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
DeepFlight Challenger’s inner carbon/epoxy
composite pressure capsule. A filament-
wound cylinder, the capsule has a thick
glass viewing dome on one end and a tita-
nium foot dome on the other. The domes
would be attached to the composite
laminate via bonded titanium rings. The
tube wall thickness had to be sufficient to
resist a biaxial stress field exerted by the
deep ocean pressure of approximately
16,000 psi/1,100 bar, with a 1.5 factor of
safety. According to Spencer Composites’
principal Brian Spencer, all other
design factors, which included
water ingress, temperature per-
formance and ability to withstand
handling loads in and out of the
water, were insignificant compared
to the external pressure load.
“A vessel for containing inter-
nal pressure, such as a hydrogen
storage tank, puts carbon fiber
Source: Spencer Composites
in tension, which is the preferred
loading state to achieve maximum
composite performance. A pres-
sure vessel for external pressure is
more demanding because the com-
posite strength in compression is
 APPLICATIONS

Source: Spencer Composites

much less than in tension.” Fiber volume,
voids and delaminations become much
more important, he adds, because these
characteristics significantly impact the
composite’s compressive strength and
buckling resistance.
Using the finite element software code
COSMOS/M from Structural Research
and Analysis Corp. (Santa Monica, Calif.),
Spencer developed and optimized a lami-
nate that uses only hoop and axial plies,
in a ratio of about two hoops for every
axial, using a repeated sequence that
reduces strain variation through the lam-
inate wall. “To reduce the strain variation
and allow a higher overall applied load,
we varied the hoop modulus through the
wall thickness,” he explains. “The inner
laminate has higher hoop stiffness than
the outer laminate.” To ensure that the
capsule would withstand full ocean pres-
sure, the hoop compressive strain capa-
bility was targeted at 0.45 percent.
Spencer built a number of half-scale
tubes to test several designs, including
different hoop-to-axial fiber ratios, varia-
tions of fiber type and fibers of different
moduli in the laminate. Tests were con-
ducted at Pennsylvania State University’s
(State College, Pa.) test laboratory, one
of a handful in the U.S. able to generate
the necessary compressive stress loads.
Results were compared to the finite ele-
ment model and anticipated failure
modes. Spencer reports that the subscale
samples withstood a maximum fiber com-
pressive stress of more than 125 ksi/1,250
MPa and exhibited compressive strain
capability that exceeded 0.48 percent.
The full-scale capsule was fabricated
using a Spencer Composites-designed
4-axis CNC machine adapted for fila-
ment winding. The machine layed down
a 2-inch/50-mm wide band of carbon
fiber supplied by Grafil Inc. (Sacramento,
Calif.). The toughened epoxy resin matrix
was custom formulated by Spencer. The
resulting oven-cured laminate, 5.15
inches/130 mm thick, has a fiber volume
of 67 percent and “essentially zero voids,”
claims the company. The finished capsule
was delivered to HOT shortly before Fos-
sett’s 2007 airplane accident.
The capsule is oriented at an angle
within the 17.67 ft/5.4m long, 13 ft/4m
wide, 5.5 ft/1.7m high submersible craft
(see renderings above). The total weight
is 4,730 lb/2,150 kg.
Currently owned by the Fossett estate,
DeepFlight Challenger is capable of diving to
deeper than 36,000 ft and returning to the
surface in about five hours, claims HOT
founder Graham Hawkes.

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SEPTEMBER 2010 | 53
NEW PRODUCTS

NEW PRODUCTS
Filament winding pattern generation software
Seifert and Skinner & Assoc. Inc. (Salt Lake City, Utah and Brussels, Bel-
gium) has introduced ComposicaD software, designed to generate winding
patterns for filament winding machines. The program reportedly enables the
part programmer to build the desired laminate table — the different layers of
circumferential, helical and transition winding — for each type of part (pipes
and tubes, tanks and vessels, pipe tees and elbows and spars and other geo-
metric shapes). It then enables production of each part type in a range of sizes
by varying the part length and/or diameter. The software produces symmetric
laminates, produces a “time optimal trajectory,” controls the fiber speed and
acceleration, automatically generates minimum length transitions and more.
The software also maintains a database of commonly used fiber band setups
that includes bandwidth, band thickness, band density, maximum slip potential,
cost and other parameters. These parameters are used to calculate laminate
weights, length of fiber consumed, and costs, as well as the winding time, not
only on a total-part basis but also for the individual lamina. ComposicaD produc-
es machine output for up to six axes of motion (spindle, carriage, cross carriage,
rotating eye, yaw axis and perpendicular axis) and automatically calculates the machine. The system produces output for all types of CNC winding machines
thickness buildup and adjusts the winding contour. Winding speeds are con- and has the capability to control other variables associated with the winding
trolled by the machine accelerations and velocities, including the fiber speed, process, such as fiber tension, resin bath temperature and mandrel pressure.
and can be varied up to the limits, which are specific to the particular winding www.composicad.com

Robotic trimming/machining center Hybrid composite for lightweight armor

KMT Robotic Solutions (Auburn Hills, Mich.) has developed RoboTrim DRT-
802 for the machining and trimming of composite parts up to 8 ft by 8 ft by
3 ft (2.4m by 2.4m by 0.9m). The DRT (dual rotating table) system uses a
rotating table mounted to each side of a two-position indexing wall. A part-
holding fixture mounted on each rotating table enables the system operator
to load or unload parts on one side of the wall while the robot is trimming on
the other side. In its standard configuration, the system comes with a single
KMT AccuTrim R-110 robot and two servo-controlled rotating tables capable of
coordinated motion with the robot. For customers who need increased system
throughput, a dual robot configuration is available. www.kmtrobotic.com
LCOA Composites (Lake Forest, Calif.) has expanded its product line with a
new ballistic hybrid NIJ Level IIIA composite for ballistic shields, body armor,
automotive armor and any application where lightweight Level IIIA protection
is required. The solution weighs less than 1 lb/ft2 and is reportedly priced less
than a standard woven aramid fiber solution weighing 1.5 lb/ft2. The manufac-
turer reports that this hybrid material is priced at approximately 20 percent less
than a UHMWP and 5 percent less than a woven aramid product.
www.lcoacomposites.com

Release film, pressure-sensitive tape

Airtech International (Huntington Beach, Calif.) recently introduced Wrightlon
3700, a release film designed for low-cost applications. The film properties
are said to include elongation to 550 percent with a tensile strength of 7,000
psi/48.26 MPa. Designed to release from epoxy, polyester and vinyl ester resin
systems, the film also is available in P16 perforation style for infusion applica-
tions. Also new is Teflease MG2E Yellow pressure-sensitive tape, an extruded
polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) film coated with silicone adhesive. It will release
from most resin systems and is designed for use on tooling blocks and any
other application in which high elongation and release is necessary. It report-
edly conforms to critical contours and mold surfaces while offering multiple
releases. www.airtechonline.com

54 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
 NEW PRODUCTS

Nano-enhanced matrix resin Polyester prepreg for radomes

for CF wind blade spars New from Lewcott Corp. (Millbury, Mass.) is FM5LF, a polyester prepreg sys-
3M’s (St. Paul, Minn.) resurgence in the composite market was recently tem for tubular radome applications. It is said to offer structural toughness in
underscored by the release of 3M Matrix Resin 3381, a high-performance, finished parts as well as handling characteristics during layup that facilitate
nanoparticle-enhanced epoxy designed for use in carbon-fiber composites. high-volume component production. The company says the new prepreg joins
Compatible with prepreg processes, the resin, according to the company, has a a stable of products that can be tailored, in terms of manufacturing and dielec-
unique chemistry that, in combination with a proprietary nano-granule additive, tric performance, to benefit laminators, molders and end-users in a variety of
makes it possible for 3M formulators to avoid the traditional tradeoff between radome and antenna applications. Tailored formulations that incorporate epoxy
toughness/flexibility and stiffness/hardness; instead, the resin improves perfor- or polyester resin systems include general-purpose prepregs for solid lami-
mance properties on both ends of the scale. Although slightly more dense than nates, self-adhesive prepregs for cored laminates, autoclavable and/or oven-
standard epoxies (1.48 g/cm2 vs. 1.25 g/cm2 in ASTM D792 testing), the resin curable prepregs and wrapable tapes for tubular radomes. The cure tempera-
reduces linear shrinkage (0.58 percent vs. 1 percent for standard epoxy), yet it tures range from 150°F to 250°F (66°C to 121°C). www.lewcott.com
increases fracture toughness by almost 50 percent with a Barcol hardness of
67, compared to 59 for standard epoxy. Moreover, the filler helps reduce the
coefficient of thermal expansion (44.6 μm/m per °C vs. 59.5 μm/m per °C for
standard epoxy). First applied in carbon composite fishing rods because of its
effect on rod compression strength (rod owners report unprecedented flexural
strength and resistance to breakage), the resin is set for commercialization
in construction of carbon fiber-reinforced spar caps for wind turbine blades.
Because spars on long wind blades necessarily involve thick laminates, the
resin also provides the added benefit of reducing exotherm during cure by up
to 40 percent. The resin cures at temperatures from 250°F to 300°F (121°C
to 149°C), depending on the service requirements. The recommended cure
cycle involves a vacuum at a minimum of 22 inches/Hg (85 psi/5.86 bar), a
ramp to 260°F/127°C at 10°F (±5°F) per minute, followed by a two-hour hold
at 260°F. www.3m.com

North Coast Tool & Mold Corp.

Mold design and manufacturing
North Coast Composites Inc.
RTM process development and
serial part manufacturing

The Companies of North Coast

COMMITTED TO ADVANCING THE COMPOSITE INDUSTRY
www.nctm.com www.northcoastcomposites.com
Phone (216) 398-8550

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C o m p o s i t e s

SEPTEMBER 2010 | 55
NEW PRODUCTS
Out-of-autoclave carbon fiber prepreg
2
Amber Composites’ (Nottingham, U.K.) Multipreg E520-SP, a 245 g/m “dif-
ferentially coated,” out-of-autoclave, modified 3K carbon fiber/epoxy prepreg
system, is designed for use as visible surface plies when a cosmetic surface
must be produced on relatively thin parts during a vacuum-bag oven cure. (A
companion E520 prepreg, a fully impregnated 245 g/m2 3K carbon system, is
recommended for use as backup plies.) The surface prepreg’s drape and tack
are said to ease layup, and in-process parts reportedly require no intermedi-
ate debulks prior to cure. The cure times range from 12 hours at 70°C/158°F
to as little as 30 minutes at 120°C/248°F. The company also reports that it
has increased its unidirectional prepreg manufacturing capabilities with the
addition of a dedicated unidirectional manufacturing line. As a result, its resin
formulations are now available in prepregs with a wide range of woven, multi-
axial and unidirectional formats. The new unidirectional systems are designed
to complement Amber’s range of woven systems and are available in a range
of fibers and resin systems. www.ambercomposites.com
Liquid mold-sealing system
Henkel Corp. (Rocky Hill, Conn.) has introduced Frekote Aqualine RS-100T, a
water-based sealer designed to seal microporosity in steel and chrome-plated
molds. The clear liquid provides a base coat and significantly increases mold
release effectiveness. Formulated for high thermal stability, the sealer report-
edly withstands temperatures as high as 698°F/370°C. The product can be
applied to mold surfaces at temperatures between 199°F and 401°F (93°C
and 205°C), and it cures in 15 to 20 minutes. www.henkelna.com
Precision Quincy / 1625 West Lake Shore Dr. / Woodstock, IL
Made in USA / 800.338.0079 / www.precisionquincy.com
56 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
Noncontact laser inspection system
Dantec Dynamics Inc.’s (Ramsey, N.J.) compact, portable Q-800 Laser
Shearography System reportedly can detect composites defects — delamina-
tions, disbonds, kissing bonds, wrinkling/waving, impact damage and more —
with no surface preparation. The turnkey noncontact/full-field optical system is
run from a laptop PC using new ISTRA 4D software. The interferometric tech-
nique measures microscopic surface deformations caused by internal flaws
as a small load is applied to the object via thermal, pressure, vibration or me-
chanical excitation. The system’s miniaturized sensor (tripod-mounted or fixed
to an automated robotic arm) is integrated with a high-resolution CCD camera
and variable, computer-controlled shear optics. Illumination is provided by an
integrated diode laser array. The system can display results in real time, and
images can be processed for export and reporting. Inspection times are typi-
cally 10 to 30 seconds, and the coverage ranges from a few square millimeters
up to several square meters in one pass. www.dantecdynamics.com
FEM, FEA machining software
Cutting tool supplier Dormer Tools Ltd. (Sheffield, U.K.) cooperated with Third
Wave Systems (Minneapolis, Minn.) to develop AdvantEdge, a finite element
modeling (FEM) and finite element analysis (FEA) software package to simulate
machining requirements. Reported benefits of the software include increased
tool life, predicted shape, shortened product-design cycles and reduced costs.
The FEM/FEA suite is designed to reduce the number of test tools required.
This, in turn, reduces costs and speeds up the simulation process significantly.
www.dormertools.com; www.thirdwavesys.com
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Amamco Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
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American GFM Corp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 425°F ■ Withstands severe thermal
ASC Process Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 and mechanical shock and vibration
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De-Comp Composites Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Diab International AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Evonik Foams Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
General Plastics Mfg. Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Back Cover
HITCO Carbon Composites Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
ICE Independent Machine Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
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Material Testing Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Matrix Composites Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
McClean Anderson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
McLube . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 KIT CUTTING
Mokon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
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COMPOSITE SUPPLY SERVICES
Owens Corning Composite Materials LLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Laser and Knife Cutting Systems
Park Advanced Composite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 8 Cutting Rooms
Precision Quincy Corp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Environmentally Controlled Processing
Pro-Set Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 9500 cu. ft. Freezer Storage
Ross, Charles & Son Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
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TE Wire & Cable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
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TenCate Advanced Composites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Torr Technologies Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
TR Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
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Wabash MPI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
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Web Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
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Wyoming Test Fixtures Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 802-223-4055
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SEPTEMBER 2010 | 57
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| 55 99
FOCUS ON DESIGN
F1-INSPIRED MONOCELL:
Resin transfer molding makes CFRP passenger cell mass-producible
W
ell known for its winning For-
mula 1 racing cars, McLaren
Racing Ltd. (Woking, Surrey,
U.K.) was the first race car
builder to use carbon fiber-re-
inforced polymer (CFRP) in Formula 1
cars, a strategy subsequently adopted
by all F1 teams. In fact, the company
can claim to be the only auto manu-
facturer that has never used anything
McLAREN MP4-12C CFRP
PASSENGER MONOCELL
CFRP floor eliminates risk of
corrosion, extending vehicle life
Tub forms primary chassis
structure/passenger safety
cell, carrying road, seat-belt
and crash loads
FRONT ¾-VIEW
Comolded aluminum inserts
facilitate attachment of extruded
aluminum crush structures
DESIGN RESULTS
• One-piece carbon-composite
passenger cell optimizes overall
vehicle stiffness.
60 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
else for its cars’ primary structures.
McLaren’s pioneering concept of a
strong carbon fiber-reinforced driver’s
cell, protected by other energy-absorb-
ing structures, has led to a massive im-
provement in motor racing driver safety
over the past two decades.
McLaren Racing’s sister division,
McLaren Automotive Ltd., has taken
steps to transfer the cell technology to
Hollow side section
created with
removable mandrel
¾-VIEW FROM
RIGHT REAR
Special coating and resin layer
prevent galvanic corrosion at all
comolded metal/CRFP interfaces
• RTM process cuts labor by 90
percent and enables unit
production of 4,000 per year.
the MP4-12C, the first of a new family
of exotic road cars. Although the latter
are made by a separate division, the
racing and production car manufactur-
ing plants are both housed in the same
building, the McLaren Technology
Centre, facilitating an inevitable cross-
fertilization of ideas. The MP4-12C will
be manufactured in volumes of 4,000
per year — a very large number for a
RTM enables molding of
geometrically complex
one-piece structure
Comolded aluminum
mounts for front crush
structures
Attachment points for
aluminum rear subframe
(see photo, p. 62)
Wide, hollow side sills
stiffen the tub, minimize
weight and ease passenger
ingress/egress
• MonoCell meets all requirements for
crashworthiness, stiffness, repair cost
reduction, corrosion prevention and
passenger ease of access.
RACING SAFETY FOR THE ROAD
for new-model supercar.
supercar. This necessitated the design of
composite structures suited to volume
production. As a result, McLaren recon-
sidered the aerospace approach — auto-
claved prepreg — historically used by its
racing division and many competitors.
Relying on experience
Claudio Santoni, McLaren Automo-
tive’s function group manager for Body
Structure, has been responsible for or-
chestrating this shift in the structural
architecture of the new sports car and
for making volume production a reality.
His background is in the Italian automo-
tive composite industry where, as the
head of Composites Structures Develop-
ment at ATR Group (Colonnella, Italy),
he directed the development of ATR’s
pioneering approach to a prototype all-
carbon composite road car chassis (see
“Learn More.” p. 62).
Although Santoni’s history and the
fact that McLaren has carbon compos-
ites in its DNA might testify otherwise,
Santoni has a very pragmatic view of ma-
terial selection. Under Santoni, McLaren
Automotive uses composites only where
they bring major benefits and prove to
be cost-effective. Santoni still uses met-
al in many areas where other automotive
companies have started to use CFRP. For
example, the rear structure, which carries
the rear suspension, engine and gear-
box, is a spaceframe made from welded
aluminum extrusions. Cost and early
uncertainty about engine operating tem-
peratures drove this decision. Similarly,
the front energy-absorbing tubes are alu-
minum extrusions that can be replaced
inexpensively after a minor impact. And
unlike the Aston Martin DBS (see “Learn
More”), which makes use of Gurit’s (New-
port, Isle of Wight, U.K.) CBS composite
panels, most of McLaren’s body panels
are aluminum or sheet molding com-
pound (SMC). In particular, the rear quar-
ters and the doors, which have a complex
double curvature, are manufactured by
Sotira (Change, France) from glass fiber-
reinforced SMC.
One-piece passenger
cell for new supercar
McLaren Automotive
Ltd. (Woking, Surrey,
U.K.), has transferred
its winning F1 carbon
composite race car
chassis technology to the
MP4-12C, the first of a
McLaren’s new family of
exotic road cars.
When it came to the passenger cell,
however, CFRP was clearly needed to
take the high loads from the varied de-
sign requirements. In keeping with the
principle of a strong composite driver’s
cell developed in McLaren’s racing cars,
the new road car has a monolithic CFRP
cell structure known officially as a Mono-
Cell, but nicknamed the “tub.”
Protecting the investment
The tub forms the main structure of the
car. It takes most of the road loads via a
subframe at the front, but it also handles
the seat belt loads and, ultimately, the
crash loads. The main mechanisms for
passenger protection are the previously
noted aluminum front and rear crush
structures, which crumple to absorb im-
pact energy, leaving the tub undamaged to
protect the occupants, even during severe
impacts. The success of this design fea-
BY BOB GRIFFITHS
ILLUSTRATION / KARL REQUE
Source: McLaren Automotvie
ture has been demonstrated in the crash
test program. A single tub has been used
in no less than three high-speed impacts,
without sustaining significant damage.
The one-piece structure incorporates
several hollow sections. Some smaller
voids are filled with Rohacell foam from
EVONIK Röhm GmbH (Darmstadt, Ger-
many), but the biggest sections are left
hollow with removable mandrels. The to-
tal volume of these cavities is a massive
120 liters/33 gal (US), keeping tub weight
to a mere 176 lb/80 kg.
Although the tub’s immediately appar-
ent function is to carry the main operat-
ing loads between the front and rear of
the car and protect the passengers, San-
toni developed other criteria for its de-
sign, including the less obvious require-
ments of corrosion prevention, overall
structural stiffness and ease of access to
the passenger compartment.
SEPTEMBER 2010 | 61

FOCUS ON DESIGN
Corrosion has been a problem in some
expensive cars that are made in small
numbers, especially when there is a rea-
sonable customer expectation that the ex-
pensive new car will survive long enough
to become a classic car. McLaren’s use of
a composite tub avoids corrosion in the
floor and hollow structural sections where
metals are most likely to fail.
The hollow sills along the tub sides en-
hance the stiffness of the tub and, there-
fore, the car’s overall structure. The sills’
unusual width overcomes one problem
common to most supercars, that of get-
ting in and out of a low passenger com-
partment over a high sill. In the MP4-12C,
exiting passengers can sit on the sills as
they slide out of the seats.
Although the tub is well protected by
crush structures, most areas of the tub
are repairable, if necessary. But the de-
sign philosophy is that in most moder-
ate frontal accidents, the damage will be
limited to the extruded aluminum energy
absorbers, the body panels and, possibly,
the subframe.
In any case, tub maintenance is ex-
pected to be minimal. “The service inter-
vals of modern carbon fiber aircraft have
doubled those achieved by aluminium
designs,” Santoni points out, noting that
this is “a testament to the superior lon-
gevity of a carbon-based structure com-
pared to aluminium.”
In line with the company’s policy that
carbon fibers are in the vehicle to do a
job, not perform cosmetic or marketing
functions, McLaren designers resisted
the temptation to have CFRP in the
MonoCell visible to the customer. The
interior of the tub is covered almost en-
tirely with good-quality carpet.
LEARN MORE
@
www.compositesworld.com
Read this article online at http://short.
compositesworld.com/wobzzFEv.
Read more about the Aston Martin DBS
in HPC’s sister magazine, Composites
Technology: “Gurit CBS for the Aston Martin
DBS,” CT February 2010 (p. 24) or visit http://
short.compositesworld.com/DvXgteYR.
Read about ATR Group’s use of carbon
fiber in a chassis prototype, under Claudio
Santoni’s leadership, in “Innovative composite
design may replace aluminum chassis,” CT
February 2006 (p. 44) or visit http://short.
compositesworld.com/PqUwwLwG.
62 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
Beauty that gets under the skin
The MP4-12C and its rolling chassis, side by side. The “tub” is the chassis centerpiece. Out
front are the steering/suspension assembly and extruded aluminum crush structures. The
trailing structure is an aluminum space frame for the rear suspension, engine and gearbox.
Minting the MonoCell
The greatest challenge was molding the
large, complex tub in one piece. The easy
design decision would have been to re-
peat the successful solution used on a
previous program, the Mercedes-Benz
SLR McLaren Roadster. For the SLR’s tub,
an out-of-autoclave prepreg system from
Advanced Composites Group Ltd. (ACG,
Heanor, Derbyshire, U.K.) was hand layed
and cured in an oven. However, only 500
SLRs are produced per annum, a quantity
practical for prepreg layup and autoclave
processing. Given the need to reduce
cost on the MP4-12C and build eight
times as many cars each year, McLaren
elected to manufacture the MonoCell via
resin transfer molding (RTM), using tex-
tile preforms. Why abandon a successful,
low-risk method in favor of developing
one that pushes the boundaries of RTM
in both size and complexity? Santoni ex-
plains that the manufacturing hours for
the new tub were reduced by a factor of 10
compared to those of the prepreg part. Of
that time, about half is consumed in mak-
ing the preform. The remainder is allotted
to resin injection, inspection and machin-
ing operations.
During the RTM process, aluminum
components are comolded with the tub
at positions of high load input (see draw-
ing on p. 60). To prevent galvanic corro-
sion at the interface between carbon fiber
materials and aluminum components,
the aluminum inserts are prepared with
special primers, and the infusion process
ensures that there is a thin layer of pure
resin between the carbon fibers and the
metal parts. Extensive salt spray testing
has shown no sign of corrosion.
The RTM resin system is supplied
by Huntsman Advanced Materials (The
Source: McLaren Automotvie
Woodlands, Texas). Preforms are made
from high-strength carbon fibers manu-
factured by Toray Industries (Tokyo, Ja-
pan). The preforms are made in two for-
mats — noncrimp fabric (NCF) and woven
unidirectional (UD) tape — with a small
amount of cross-stitching to hold the
assembled reinforcements together. For
now, preforms will be assembled by hand
from automatically cut layers of NCF and
UD material, but McLaren is looking at
automating the preform assembly to re-
duce cost and increase consistency.
Notably, these fiber forms are pur-
chased against a performance specifi-
cation, without a nominated supplier.
Three material suppliers, thus far, have
demonstrated that they can meet the
McLaren specification.
Outsourcing mass manufacturing
The RTM process and the tooling were
developed by McLaren engineers. They
have, to date, produced more than 100
tubs, used for structural and crash test-
ing and prototype cars. Production tubs,
however, will be molded by Carbo Tech
Industries GmbH (Salzburg, Austria).
Carbo Tech has installed an automated
system that will transfer the mold, with
preform in place, to a press for injec-
tion and cure. The press can handle two
molds simultaneously.
Finished tubs will be incorporated into
the car at the McLaren Technology Centre
assembly line in a facility currently under
construction. Production will begin early
in 2011, and the cars will be available in
spring of that year.
Editor’s note: McLaren’s Claudio Santoni
will deliver a keynote address at the 2010 SPE
Automotive Composites Conference & Exhibition
(ACCE) in Troy, Mich., Sept. 15-16.
 REGISTER
TODAY!

Gather new ideas to develop winning technical

solutions to your composites resin processing!
CONFERENCE CO-CHAIRMEN:
DAVID LEACH / GLOBAL PRODUCT MANAGER / HENKEL AEROSPACE
DR. ALI YOUSEFPOUR / GROUP LEADER - FABRICATION AND JOINING OF COMPOSITE PRODUCTS /
AEROSPACE MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY CENTER / NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA

PRE-CONFERENCE SEMINAR SEPTEMBER 23RD:

“Introduction to High-Temperature Resins and Polymer-Derived Ceramics”
CARL ZWEBEN, PH.D. / COMPOSITES CONSULTANT
ALEXANDER LUKACS, PH.D. / CONSULTANT AND KION DEFENSE TECHNOLOGIES

IN ASSOCIATION WITH:

R E G I S T E R T O D AY AT C O M P O S I T E S W O R L D . C O M / H P R
OUT OF THE MOLD
OUT OF THE
N othing gives you a better appreciation of general
aviation (GA) than actually flying — yes, I have been
quietly taking flight lessons from an excellent instructor at
Centennial Airport in Colorado (identifier: KAPA). I under-
took the mission at the behest of my pilot husband, who
wanted me to be able to fly our plane and land it in the case
of an unanticipated problem. And I am forced to confess
that our plane is not made of composites (sorry, couldn’t
convince him). But, my aviation education process, as well
as our flights to various airports, has driven home the re-
ality that general aviation is a very important segment of
our economy, and one in which composites plays a big
GA suffered because of the unnecessary
mischaracterization and even demonization
of private jet owners and users in 2009.
role. Consider these facts, supplied by the General Avia-
tion Manufacturers Assn. (GAMA), the National Business
Aviation Assn. (NBAA, www.noplanenogain.org) and other
business aviation proponents:
• GA contributes more than $150 billion to the U.S. econo-
my annually and employs more than 1.265 million people.
• GA now accounts for roughly one-fifth of the $100 billion
worldwide civil and military aircraft market.
• In the U.S., GA aircraft fly more than 26 million hours and
carry 166 million passengers annually.
• There are at least 4,000 GA airports with paved runways
open to the public in the U.S. alone. Commercial scheduled
airlines serve less than 500 of those.
But this industry suffered one of its toughest years ever
in 2009, according to GAMA — not only because of the
global economic downturn, but also because of the unnec-
essary mischaracterization and even demonization of pri-
vate jet owners and users. The negative public perception
of bizjets was, of course, prompted by the trips to Wash-
ington undertaken by Detroit’s auto execs seeking public
bailout money in late 2008, and the subsequent fallout
has been severe. Many company flight departments were
eliminated, new orders were canceled and older planes
were sold off. While market watchers today are cautiously
upbeat, citing FAA data showing increases in business jet
takeoff-and-landing activity in 2010 compared to 2009, the
industry still has a big hole out of which to climb.
I don’t want to give the impression that I’m a defender of
“fat cats” or wasteful practices. What I do want to point out
are the benefits of general and business aviation. Studies
have shown that the use of GA aircraft saves a lot of time.
On our own recent flight from Colorado to the upper Mid-
west, the trip of 900 nautical miles took about five hours
64 | HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES
in the air (it’s a piston aircraft). Our destination airport
supports commercial flights, but I would wager that, even
without jet power, we made the door-to-door trip faster
than our traveling counterparts on Frontier Airlines. For a
company, it means many hours saved, particularly for key
personnel in a situation such as a factory visit for a critical
machine repair or a client meeting. In addition, point-to-
point trips to smaller airports are often closer to the final
destination and afford privacy and the ability to discuss
proprietary or sensitive information with associates. Pri-
vate flight eliminates time-wasting baggage hassles, secu-
rity delays and any number of other potential commercial
airline snafus.
Private planes are productivity tools that companies
around the world have deemed key to their business strat-
egies. Warren Buffet, the Oracle of Omaha, defends busi-
ness jets (full disclosure: his company Berkshire Hathaway
does own NetJets, an enterprise that promotes fractional
jet ownership) and says that a company is “better off” us-
ing business aviation resources, even given the operation-
al costs. Myriad small businesses operate jet and piston
aircraft to carry passengers to less-traveled cities or towns
that commercial carriers see as unprofitable; or to ship
documents, freight or food to roadless destinations; or to
carry patients on medical ambulance flights. Then there
are the Civil Air Patrol’s search-and-rescue missions; and
humanitarian aid, like Angel Flight; and … I could go on,
but you get the picture.
Further, the GA sector breeds innovation. The Gulfstream
650 thermoplastic composite rudder is one recent example
(see HPC’s “2010 SAMPE Europe/JEC Paris Product Show-
case,” July 2010, p. 26, or visit http://short.compositesworld.
com/ew7ulVV1). Another is the ongoing research into elec-
trically powered aircraft and rotorcraft, aimed at eliminat-
ing aircraft carbon
emissions. Terrafu-
gia’s flying car and
ICON’s new sport-
plane (see p. 26) are
exemplary entrepre-
neurial efforts that
are expanding the
GA market. There are
many more. The facts
clearly demonstrate
that GA contributes
to a healthy global
economy. Those who
design, build and fly sa r a @ c omposit e sw or ld.com
GA aircraft deserve
Sara Black is HPC’s technical editor and
respect, apprecia-
has served on the HPC staff for 11 years.
tion and support.
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