FEATURE

Composite
developments
drive auto industry
forward
Developments in affordable lightweight composite materials that can
be used in mass production processes were to the fore at JEC Europe
recently. Reinforced Plastics reports on some of these and other
developments at a number of companies.

ow Automotive has launched

VORAFORCE 5300 ultra-fast epoxy
resin for structural composite parts
in mass production. The new resin oers
90-second cycle times, which support faster,
more aordable light weighting and potential for parts consolidation. This makes RTMproduced carbon bre composites suitable
for mass production, says the company.

and assembly operation costs. This can

make composites an economically attractive
solution over traditional metal alternatives.

VORAFORCE 5300 is classied as non-toxic

according REACH 2015 and the VDA-278
test shows volatile emissions are close

Dow Automotive adds that VORAFORCE

5300 extends RTM process capability via an
extremely low viscosity for fast injection,
with good wetting of the bre pre-form.
Further, the formulation is equipped with an
internal release mould package, minimising
external mould release costs.
The benets of VORAFORCE 5300 are
claimed to extend beyond ultra-fast cycle
times. Besides the materials competitive mechanical properties, it allows for
substantial parts consolidation. Customers
can integrate many dierent parts into one
production step, saving extra production

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Materials from Dow Automotive are used in the mass production of structural composite parts for automotives.

0034-3617/14 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

FEATURE

In combination with epoxy sheet moulding

compound (SMC) systems, Owens Corning
says that the new ME1510 glass reinforcement enables improved mechanical properties. ME1510 features superior strength
and exural modulus, fast impregnation
and good process characteristics in SMC,
allowing up to 63% glass bre content.
VORAFORCE HP RTM epoxy carbon fibre seat part front (left) and in the car (right).

BETAFORCE structural adhesives that have been optimised for BMW i3 production.
(Photo credit: Patrick Poendl/Shutterstock.com)

to zero, an important factor for applications adjacent to the vehicle passenger

compartment.
These key benets fast cycle times and
part consolidation potential contribute
to make composite solutions a true lightweight technology t for mass production
of hundreds of thousands of parts per year
from a single RTM press, explains Dow
Automotive.
Further lightweighting developments from
Dow Automotive include BETAFORCE structural adhesives that have been optimised for
BMW i3 production. The adhesives enable a
complete carbon bre body-in-white.
While composites are gaining traction in
automotive production due to their weightsaving potential, they remain dicult to

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join. Adhesives oer a reliable alternative to

traditional mechanical and thermal processes, which cannot be applied to these
lightweight materials. Dow Automotive adds
that these bonding solutions such as BETAFORCE enable a continuous bond line and
cohesive joining of surfaces.
Recent formulations of this adhesive oer
a cycle time of around one minute and are
currently being used for mass series production. Open times can be adjusted to accommodate specic mounting requirements in
the plant, such as a quicker curing time by
infrared treatment. Further, the initial adhesion requires no additional xing tools.
Owens Corning has introduced a new
multi-end roving designed for epoxy sheet
moulding compound (SMC) systems in
automotive applications.

Owens Corning adds that taking weight

out of cars is required to enable meeting
CO2 emission regulations and fuel economy
standards. In combination with the epoxy
resin system, the ME1510 solution is claimed
to provide the opportunity for signicant
part weight reduction compared to steel.
Furthermore, the SMC process technology
provides the right balance between
moulding cycle times, design freedom
(allowing for function integration), and high
mechanical properties, adds the company.
The automotive market is expected to
grow to 100 million new vehicles per
year by 2020. With increased regulatory
constraints in Europe, North America, and
Asia, matching CO2 emission regulations and
fuel economy standards are key drivers for
weight reduction initiatives. A 200-300 kg
weight reduction will be required to meet
the CO2 emission targets set for Europe in
2020, i.e., 95g CO2/km.
Along with engine and transmission improvements, Owens Corning adds that the replacement of traditional materials with lightweight
and durable composite materials represents
one of the most signicant opportunities for
vehicle light weighting. Composites allow
for enhanced function integration compared
to metal and will lead to further weight
reduction opportunities in the medium to
long term, in structural applications such as
oor systems, pillars, roof and door modules,
bumper beams, and seat structures.
Arkema has launched its rst range of
liquid thermoplastic resins, Elium, which is
transformed using the same processes as
composite thermosets. The resins are lightweight, cost-eective and recyclable.
Arkema adds that Elium resins polymerise
quickly and can be used to design structural

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FEATURE

Parts made from Elium can be assembled

by welding and/or gluing.
Parts made from Elium are also claimed to
cost less to manufacture than other thermoplastic technologies. Arkema says that
Elium technology reduces the cost of long
staple thermoplastic composite parts. Three
compelling factors contribute to its cost-effective advantage: the resins are easy-to-use
in conventional thermoset resin processes, it
transforms at room temperature and it does
not contain any fabricated products like
organo-sheets.

SC 110 is a new cosmetic grade prepreg from Gurit.

parts as well as aesthetic elements in a

number of automotive applications, as well
as other industries.
According to Arkema, Elium resins are
multifunctional, lightweight, easy-to-use in
manufacturing and oer high-performance.
They are based on conventional technologies and processes that processors are
already using.
The company claims that composite parts
made from Elium are 30-50% lighter than
the same parts made from steel, but oer
the same resistance. When combined with
Arkema Luperox peroxide initiators, Elium
can be moulded into complex design forms
for composite parts and blends well with
glass or carbon bres. It is also compatible with conventional thermosetting resin
transformation technologies (Resin Transfer
Moulding, Infusion and Flex-moulding),
which cuts down the costs of transformers.
Elium is designed for high-performance
parts that are recyclable and easy to thermoform, says Arkema. Unlike unsaturated
polyesters, Elium resins do not contain
styrene. And because of their thermoplastic
properties, they can be used to design
composite parts that are easily thermoformed and recyclable with comparable
mechanical performance to epoxy parts.

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Gurit has developed new prepreg materials

that are widely used in automotive applications and in some other demanding and
high-temperature applications. Gurit says
that this new range of prepregs provides
manufacturers with composite materials
designed for a variety of applications, both
structural and cosmetic.
SC 110 cosmetic carbon prepreg oers ultra
high clarity, making it ideal for cosmetic
components with no whitewash or spots.
SC 110 cosmetic carbon prepreg utilises a
high clarity, versatile, hot-melt epoxy resin
formulation. Gurit says that the formulation
ensures that no white-wash or white spots
are evident in the cured resin. It is ideal for
manufacturing high visual quality components using autoclave and press processing.
On average a 20% increase of yield of
nished parts can be achieved due to the
elimination of whitewash. It can be cured
at temperatures as low as 80C, or it can be
used for faster moulding of components at
120C. This is achieved with a good out-life
of up to three weeks at 21C. It is a toughened system, and oers good mechanical
properties on a wide variety of reinforcing
fabrics and bres. This new carbon bre
prepreg can be used to produce components such as bonnets or grills but also
more complex shapes with tight curvature.
SE 200 structural carbon epoxy prepreg is
a high strength structural carbon prepreg
based on a toughened epoxy system. It has a
exible cure envelope range of 135-200C. SE
200 has been developed to enable rapid part

manufacture through a number of composite

processing methods. The minimum cure
temperature is 135C from which SE 200
develops Tg and strength properties at a
level associated with high temperature 195C
curing systems. Higher temperature cures in
excess of 180C will achieve the best dry and
wet thermal performance, adds the company.
Using the appropriate press moulding technology it is possible to achieve a 15 minutes
hot-in/hot-out cure at 195C, making SE
200 suitable for the economic production
of automotive parts. According to Gurit, SE
200 structural carbon epoxy prepreg can be
used in the making of parts such as structural lower tubs, bulkheads, front and rear
scuttles, exhaust tunnels and other structural components.
SE 300 high Tg prepreg is claimed to be
an ideal material for high temperature
composite applications, as it combines the
ease of processing and handling convenience of epoxy resins, high temperature
stability of polyimides, and ame/re resistance of phenolics. A 120C cure for 75
minutes combined with a post-cure, enables
SE 300 to generate a Tg in excess of 300C,
making SE 300 ideal for applications in
composite structures, which are exposed to
very high temperatures for short durations.
Reichhold has introduced ADVALITE vinyl
hybrid hot melt prepreg resins, which are
monomer-free and testing conrms VOCfree in the cured state.
According to the company, ADVALITE vinyl
hybrid hot melt prepreg resins exhibit good
mechanical properties and temperature
resistance up to 170C. These resins are
cured using standard free radical inhibitors
and initiators. Reichhold says that this allows
signicant processing advantages when
compared to epoxy resins. Prepreg composites produced using ADVALITE can be
stored at room temperature for 12 months
and can be snap cured at 120-150C.
The rst commercial application of
ADVALITE was in prepreg supplied by
Cytec Industries for application in the electric vehicle-battery enclosure on the 2014
General Motors Co. Chevrolet Spark EV. The

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FEATURE

ADVALITE resin served as the base resin for

Cytecs high volume MTM23 prepreg that is
used on the Spark. The MTM23 had been
adapted and mechanically characterised for
high volume press mould processing, with
good mechanical performance, controlled
ow, excellent handling and self-release
capability. Cytec and Reichhold say that they
worked collaboratively through the prototype
and production implementation phases
of the Spark battery tray and continue to
develop further enhancements to the vinyl
hybrid technology.
Prepregs produced using the ADVALITE
technology can either be adhesive lmed
or directed coated to the reinforcements.
The free radical cure mechanism allows for
extended room temperature storage while
delivering snap cures at elevated temperatures. Reichhold says that when compared
to epoxy resins ADVALITEs rapid rate of
cure permits signicantly reduced production cycle times. Additionally, in automotive
headspace testing the cured laminate was
demonstrated to be VOC-free.
Automotive developments from Zoltek
include a carbon bre roof panel with a
premium and paintable surface manufactured via a new process called Surface
RTM. This process is the result of a yearlong industry partnership using the latest
KraussMaei RTM technology, Henkel PU
chemistry, Chomarat C-Ply fabrics, Ruhl
PU coatings, and Zolteks specially-sized
Panex 35 50K carbon bre. The partnership
resulted in a carbon bre roof panel for
the Roding Roadster that is ready to paint
directly out of the mould and suitable for
structural and semi-structural parts. Surface
RTM eliminates the primer and sand process
to hide print-through, which has the potential to signicantly reduce nal part costs.
Zoltek Automotive has also worked on
carbon SMC moulded parts in collaboration
with Magna Exteriors using Zolteks Panex
35 carbon bre. Zoltek and Magna have
worked to develop a low-cost carbon SMC
product, which is now sold under Magnas
EpicBlend SMC product line. Designed
to mould and ow in a traditional SMC
compression process, this carbon SMC

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A selection of products from FRT Tapes.

product provides automotive parts with

lightweight, high mechanical properties, and
high heat resistance.
Additionally, Zoltek Automotive has made
signicant progress developing a prepreg
material suitable for class-A automotive
body panels. The fast-cure automotive-grade
prepreg is capable of producing premium and
paintable class-A automotive body panels.
FRT Tapes has developed a high pressure
impregnation system, which the company
believes will be particularly important to
the automotive industry. The system is
claimed to allow a very high bre content
in produced sheets and tapes.
According to FRT Tapes, various tests have
shown that its product has twice the strength
of regular steel and 75% of the strength of
high strength steels. In addition, its rigidity and
strength is three times that of the commonlyused long bre thermoplastics. In the production of high volumes, glass-lled polypropylene
and glass-lled polyamide are used.

Momentive Specialty Chemicals has further

developed its two-minute cure technology
for the mass production of composite
automotive components. The company has
partnered with the Technical Center for the
Mechanical Industry (CETIM) in France. The
collaboration has produced a new automotive crash-box concept that reduces vehicle
weight, provides the same or better energy
absorption, and can be mass produced at a
competitive price.
The organisations have taken Momentives
two-minute cure technology featuring
EPIKOTE 05475/EPIKURE 05500 curing
agent, and Heloxy additive 112, and
developed a cost competitive composite
crash-box concept that can meet a 1,000
parts per day production rate.

Further information
Dow Automotive; www.dowautomotive.com
Owens Corning; www.owenscorning.com
Arkema; www.elium.composites.com
Gurit; www.gurit.com

FRT Tapes adds that in order to meet future

European emission targets, the company set
out to develop a product that was made
from sustainable materials, inexpensive,
light, easy-to-recycle and suited for mass
production.

Reichhold; www.reichhold.com
Zoltek; www.zoltek.com
FRT Tapes; www.frttapes.com
Momentive Specialty Chemicals;
www.momentive.com

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