Composites

Briefs: Energy

Design of New Piezoelectric Composites Using Nanocellulose

Using cellulose crystals as building blocks for the design and development of new low-density functional polymer composites.

Briefs: Test & Measurement

Bioenvironmental Engineering Guide for Composite Materials

Develop a comprehensive baseline for identifying, evaluating, and controlling occupational and environmental hazards associated with composite fibers.

Briefs: Energy

Fast Reacting Nano-Composite Energetic Materials: Synthesis and Combustion Characterization

The advent of nanoparticle fuels enables new kinds of reactions, and new kinds of applications.

Briefs: Materials

Progress on Zirconia-Polyurea Matrix Hybrid Composites

Incorporating zirconia particles into polyurea elastomers to form hybrid composites and designing them into state-of-the-art body armor has the potential to achieve lightweight ballistic efficiency.

INSIDER: Aerospace

Hybrid Nanomaterials Hold Promise for Improved Ceramic Composites

Researchers at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base are seeking to patent a novel process for manufacturing a type of material called preceramic polymer-grafted nanoparticles,...

Application Briefs: Software

Rear Fuselage Packer

To date, the rear fuselage packers have been used in the production of over 500 aircraft.

Articles: Nanotechnology

New Diamond Super-Material Enhances Aircraft Survivability

A diamond composite is the ultimate optics and semiconducting super-material.

Articles: Aerospace

Vanadium: A Green Metal Critical to Aerospace and Clean Energy

From jet engine components to high-speed airframes, vanadium alloys are deployed in virtually every jet aircraft flying today,

INSIDER: Defense

Multifunctional Nanofiber Protects Against Explosions

Since World War I, the vast majority of American combat casualties has come not from gunshot wounds but from explosions. Today, most soldiers wear a heavy, bullet-proof vest to...

INSIDER: Defense

Nanoscale Experiments Create Optimism for Stronger, Lighter Soldier Armor

Soldier armor, such as bulletproof vests and helmets, depends upon high-performance ballistic fibers for its strength and effectiveness. Army researchers are...

Articles: Manufacturing & Prototyping

Scaling Low-Cost Carbon Fiber Production with Oxidation Technology

Few materials used in manufacturing today are as versatile and desirable in performance applications as carbon fiber.

INSIDER: Materials

NASA Develops Unique Materials for Next Generation Aircraft

As NASA looks to the future of flight, the agency is investing in technologies aimed at changing the aviation industry as we know it. These developments vary from basic...

INSIDER: Materials

Researchers Develop Innovative Tools to Accelerate Composites Certification

In partnership with industry, a team of Air Force Research Laboratory/Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS) personnel are developing the capability to...

Briefs: Materials

Evaluation of the Effects of Hydrogen Peroxide on Common Aircraft Electrical Materials

A study aims to find a suitable decontaminant that can be used successfully in complex transportation vehicles with no negative impact on sensitive electronic equipment.

Briefs: Energy

Energy Harvesting for Soft-Matter Machines and Electronics

A new class of soft multifunctional materials could be used to convert mechanical deformation from vibrations and stretching into electrical energy.

INSIDER: Aerospace

Dowty Propellers Opens New Headquarters and Production Facility

Dowty Propellers recently opened a new facility in Brockworth, England to provide a modern operation for the company's development, manufacture and support of...

INSIDER: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Making Airplane Parts Without the Massive Infrastructure

A modern airplane’s fuselage is made from multiple sheets of different composite materials that must be wheeled into warehouse-sized ovens where the layers fuse together to form...

Briefs: Aerospace

Molecular Engineering for Mechanically Resilient and Stretchable Electronic Polymers and Composites

The ability to predict the mechanical properties of organic semiconductors is of critical importance for roll-to-roll production and...

Briefs: Energy

Electrodeposition of Metal Matrix Composites and Materials Characterization for Thin-Film Solar Cells

Metal matrix composites can electrically bridge the cracks that appear in semiconductor substrates and the composite grid lines.

Briefs: Defense

Sensing Applied Load and Damage Effects in Composites with Nondestructive Techniques

Determine the effects of applied load on a composite structure.

Application Briefs: Defense

Metal-Plated, High-Temperature Plastics

Imagine a material that lightens fuel loads and cuts costs every time a rocket blasts off from the launch pad.

Briefs: Aerospace

Technology Impact Forecasting for Multi-Functional Composites

Composites offer a possible solution to the conflicting design goals of making new aircraft lighter, stronger, faster, and more environmentally sustainable.

INSIDER: Aerospace

“Circulatory” Air Conditioning Could Keep Planes Cooler

The complex network of veins that keeps us cool during the heat of summer has inspired engineers to create novel thermal management systems. A new computer program could be key...

INSIDER: Aerospace

Composite Metal Foam Outperforms Aluminum for Aircraft Wings

The leading edges of aircraft wings have to meet a very demanding set of characteristics. New research shows that a combination of steel composite metal foam (CMF) and epoxy...

Briefs: Materials

Thermal Conductivities of Some Polymers and Composites

Thermoset polymers are good electrical insulators that are used in applications ranging from electronics to composite armor. They are rather poor thermal conductors, however.

Articles: Mechanical & Fluid Systems

Preventing Ice Buildup on Electric Aircraft

Afaq Ahmed Abbasi of Northwestern Polytechnical University explains his innovative approach.

Articles: Test & Measurement

Getting the Most Out of Industrial CT Scanning

Quality assurance and flight certification of critical aerospace parts and assemblies have reached new levels of sophistication in recent years. Leading aerospace and defense manufacturers...

INSIDER: Materials

US and Japanese Scientists Conduct Joint Composites Study

Dr. Keisuke Umezawa of the Air Systems Research Center in the Japanese Ministry of Defense (JMoD) recently joined the Air Force Research Laboratory on an engineers and scientists...

INSIDER: Aerospace

AFRL, Universities Partner on 3D-Printed Composites

Joining forces with various universities, the Air Force Research Lab has demonstrated additively manufactured epoxy/carbon fiber composites used in many structural parts on aircraft and...