JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #119 - Supplement lnnovation report - 22

JEC WORLD 2018

Automotive - Application

Composite lightweight automotive
suspension system
The Composite Lightweight Automotive
Suspension System (CLASS) project, which
was conceived in support of Ford's (or automotive OEMs') lightweight chassis development strategy for further reduction of vehicle
CO2 emissions, successfully delivered a new
tieblade-knuckle design, 35% lighter than the
multi-piece steel design it replaced. The new
design was tested in accordance with the series production component and system verification process with test results being used to
successfully correlate the results predicted in
CAE. The opportunity was taken to develop
an innovative design, which incorporates multiple composite materials (continuous carbon
fibre bi-axial and unidirectional epoxy pre-

pregs with discontinuous carbon fibre/vinyl
ester SMC) in combination with a steel insert.
The CAE analysis tools created specifically to
support the development of this innovative
design were used to optimize material usage
(composite and steel) in one step, based on
component strength, stiffness and durability.
The compliance with these requirements was
verified and later correlated in testing. The development of a production process capable of
manufacturing a multi-material component in
a single moulding cycle required innovative
process and mould design solutions to ensure
consistent part quality and to prevent mould
damage. Extensive in-mould instrumentation
was used to generate critical parametric data

Finalist: Ford Werke GmbH (Germany)
Partners: Gestamp (UK), GRM
Consulting (UK), University of Warwick
(UK)

that was fed into the multi-loop post-processing analysis necessary to optimize the moulding cycle time.

Lightweight seat back frame for SUV second row
This innovation concerns the development
of the world's first SUV seat frame using a
new rib and channel hybrid design using
composite materials to secure both strength
and stiffness. The channel structure makes
it possible to keep the fibre orientation as
designed during the compression moulding
process. A new grade of GMT material and
CFRTPC is used. The new GMT has a 200%
higher tensile strength than the former classical Hanwha GMT product. The CFRTPC

is a PP-based continuous fibre-reinforced
thermoplastic composite that shows over
600MPa of tensile strength in unidirectional
tests. The frame is 20% lighter than steel, offering high fuel efficiency, an improved work
environment for the assembly line (easy to
handle), short cycle times with less sub-parts
(number of sub-parts reduced by 22% due
to the integrated design) and an eco-friendly
technology using a corrosion-resistant, recyclable PP-based thermoplastic material.

Finalist: Hanwha Advanced Materials
(Korea (South))

Development and manufacturing of a full-CFRP car body
Kangde Composites developed a functional prototype for Chongqing Kuaixing's
pure electric hypercar, and also developed
and manufactured a full-CFRP car body
structure intended for mass production.
The main structure is composed of 34
CFRP parts using high-performance T700
carbon fibre as a reinforcement material.
The company's NCF, fabric, prepreg and
other products were selected for this project according to the variety of shapes and
load requirements. In the prototype phase,
the parts were manufactured with VARI
and prepreg moulding processes.
The main structural components were assembled with the Dow 2850L high-perfor-

mance, high-toughness adhesive.
In the R&D phase, due to the precise
structural design and manufacturing process control, including the development
and quality control of the precision mould
and fixtures, Kangde Composites achieved
high dimensional accuracy and stability of
the CFRP parts (adhesive layer thickness
≤ 2mm). The metal attachments and the
concentrated load areas were connected
by rivet nut sets, allowing for high assembly precision at the installation points.
Compared to the conventional body
weight of 200~300kg, the total weight of
the prototype is 100kg, and the carbon fibre main structure is only 75kg.

jec composites magazine / N° 119 supplement - Innovation Report

Finalist: Kangde Composites Co.
(China)
Partners: KDX-Roding Europe
Automobile (Germany), Faststar New
Energy Automobile (China)

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #119 - Supplement lnnovation report