What will replace Carbon Fiber ?

What do you think will be the next lightweight phenomena in materials used to build race cars and or exotics ?

 

Graphene.

 

unobtanium

 

nanotubes?

 

Hemp. Can you imagine if the car catches fire? HaHa.

 

Google says CentrAl, which stands for Central Reinforced Aluminum.

 

Amazing stuff.

 

Biomaterials e.g. Polymer Synthesis via Additive Manufacturing

 

blue smoke

Aerogel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Yeah, the newer stuff is pretty cool...

NASA researchers replace silica with polymers to create more flexible aerogels

 

Probably this:

Saturday Night Live - Adobe - Video - NBC.com

 

Graphene is still a laboratory material. Many years before it sees commercial applications-especially for motor racing.

Issue is now not what new material there is but more how to use-economically and quickly current hi tech materials.

Thermoset carbon fiber systems suffer from poor manufacturability. Too much hand work, Too much time required to make anything. The vacuum bagged, autoclaved cured layup of prepreg carbon plies and honeycomb is way to slow and expensive for any real high volume usage.

Big breakthru will be when a way of using carbon fiber in a high volume way is discovered. Right now everything we do is still too slow and expensive.

 

Carbotanium, a combination of carbon fiber and titanium - makes it really strong and lightweight.

 

Hmm. That announcement was 2012, but Aspen Aerogels (of Massachusetts?) is already producing "aerogel blankets" for insulation, and went IPO in 2011 ...
... with a Part III subsidy.

The Internet, where questions lead to ... more questions.

 

Lambo is working w Boeing I think on next gen CF to make it cheaper & easier to build

Pagani has carbotanium which is CF w titanium threads in it

One of the most awesome techs however apart from nanotubes are aerogels which are used in spacecraft. Its mostly made of air & is a gel but extremely light. Maybe it could be used in racing seats, helmets, etc

 

So from what I'm reading, CF has yet to peak in it's mass production capabilities as well as mixing things like titanium into the weave... Didn't know that was possible... So it can be made even stronger while still maintaining low weight.

 

CF has a long future

BMW to collaborate with Boeing on carbon fiber | Reuters

BMW to collaborate with Boeing on carbon fiber


FRANKFURT | Wed Dec 12, 2012
(Reuters) - German carmaker BMW (BMWG.DE) and U.S. aircraft maker Boeing (BA.N) are to exchange information about making carbon fiber, an emerging battleground among auto and plane makers.

BMW said on Wednesday the two companies aimed to advance research for carbon fiber recycling and know-how about manufacturing and automation.

The deal intensifies competition between BMW and rival Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE), which already has a collaboration deal with Boeing through its Italian sportscar unit Lamborghini.

Last year, BMW moved to extend its influence over carbon fiber manufacturer SGL Carbon (SGCG.DE) after VW accumulated a stake in the company. BMW and SGL jointly built a new carbon fiber plant in Moses Lake, Washington.

Carbon fiber is 30 percent lighter than aluminum and 50 percent lighter than steel, a crucial advantage to help cut vehicle weight and carbon dioxide emissions.

Boeing's 787 Dreamliner is 50 percent made of carbon fiber material, and BMW plans to start selling vehicles with a carbon passenger cell late next year.

 

I laughed hysterically when that "ad" came out.

 

Carbon Carbon....

 

What exactly is that? I believe one of the next lightweight materials is the Carbontanium. It's the material Pagani used for the Cinque edition and for the Huayra.

 

Carbotanium is not some new wonder material. It's overall stiffness is less than standard carbon. (Ti has a modulus 1/2 of plain old steel.) The strength characterictics should also be less than plain carbon. The UTS of Ti is around steel. But as used in a carbon weave it could wind up being a stronger material than a basic quasi-isotropic T300 series 2X2 twill weave carbon within an epoxy resin matrix.

There may be some benefits in terms of crash/energy absorbtion, etc. But I would need to see what the interlaminar shear characteristics of the cured weave is like before saying so.

As no one in racing or in the aerospace industry is jumping on the wagon to use this stuff makes me think that the stuff has certain good properties but is not the next wonder material.

Issue is mfg of carbon structures at an economic cost. That is the next hurdle.

 

Pffffft... Transparent Aluminium. Duh!

 

A whale of a material . . .

 

Never new that existed... That's so cool... A transparent alloy! That's ironman stuff!

 

And, in this week's news... Tissue-Equivalent Plastic

NASA Lunar Orbiter Discovers Materials that Halt Hazardous Space Radiation: Mars Mission on Track