TenCate Advanced Composites, a leading global developer and manufacturer of advanced composite materials, highlighted the company’s latest developments in composite material technologies for aerospace and high performance industrial markets during JEC World 2018.
TenCate’s Expert Services team were in Paris to highlight how innovations across the company’s comprehensive range of thermoset and TenCate Cetex thermoplastic-based composite material technologies support all stages of the composite manufacturing process, from engineering design to end-of-life recycling.
Key projects at TenCate include the development of a recycled “˜flow layer’ concept that integrates recycled thermoplastic composite materials back into the supply chain. Combining the design freedom of BMCs with the mechanical properties of reinforced thermoplastic laminates, the flow layer concept uses excess material derived at both component point of manufacture and end-of-life, achieving a near 100 per cent buy-to-fly ratio.
As a key supplier to the aerospace market, TenCate Cetex thermoplastic composites have been further optimised for Automated Fibre Placement (AFP) processing methods. High performance systems, such as TenCate Cetex TC1320 PEKK unidirectional tapes, have been used in the latest development from the TAPAS 2 (Thermoplastic Affordable Primary Aircraft Structures) project, a thermoplastic upper spar for an aircraft engine pylon. This demonstrates the progression of continuous fibre reinforced material technologies and formats into new territories.
Additionally, the versatility of TenCate AmberTool HX series of composite tooling prepregs were also highlighted by the display of a novel cure capable AFP mandrel technology demonstrator. Developed as part of a recent NATEP project, designed by Composites Tooling & Engineering Solutions and built by Retrac Composites [see Soapbox, page 58 in the issue] the technology demonstrator was made from AmberTool HX42 due to its low CTE properties and high degree of machinability to achieve a highly accurate tool. Co-curing the tool with TenCate Advanced Composites.