Next Generation of Automotive Crossmember by cOMlding Epoxy SMC with Fibre Steered Preforms (GACOM)

绿色移动性是零净值未来的关键。复合材料是提供具有终极性能的轻量级解决方案的关键推动因素。然而，考虑到当前的沉积和铺设解决方案迫使直/测地线连续的光纤路径，目前的制造技术成本高、固有的速度慢，并且在纤维取向分布方面受到限制。这些问题导致劳动密集型和长时间的制造工艺，生产率低，能源消耗增加，生产成本和环境足迹增加，阻碍了复合材料在汽车上的广泛应用。iCOMAT开发了快速丝束剪切(RTS)工艺，这是一种创新的复合材料自动化沉积工艺，可以沿弯曲路径(纤维导向)沉积广泛的复合材料胶带，而不会产生缺陷。RTS的转向能力在结构性能、重量、生产成本和环境足迹方面提供了巨大的好处。GACOM是一个为期24个月的合作项目，旨在为汽车应用中使用的混合SMC/UD复合材料组件的制造提供最新的最先进技术。GACOM建立在骨骼/肌肉概念的基础上，该概念在Leafs-SBRI-10004512期间成功演示。骨架/骨肉概念包括使用低成本/低性能的板材复合模塑(SMC)“骨肉”材料，战略性地使用结构单向(UD)碳纤维带作为“骨架”进行加固。这得益于RTS前所未有的转向能力。GACOM将由iCOMAT牵头，Hangukold和KCarbon作为项目合作伙伴。HangukMold是制造商用车复合材料部件的世界领先专家，也是现代和起亚等原始设备制造商的现有一级供应商。KCarbon是一家专门从事材料特性和复合材料制造的韩国研究所。GACOM将利用骨骼/肌肉的概念来制造和验证SMC/UD混合动力前车横梁。GACOM的活动包括：*使用有限元(FE)结构模型进行零部件优化*制造全尺寸纤维导向混合SMC/UD前车横梁(下/上)*量化所开发技术的性能、轻量化和经济效益，并进一步开发业务案例GACOM将证明可以使用RTS制造高质量的汽车零部件，实现汽车复合材料制造的最新水平。这将导致创新的下一代横梁更接近结构最佳(更轻，性能相同)，使用更少的原材料，制造速度更快/更便宜，比目前的最先进水平。总体而言，GACOM的成功完成将极大地提升iCOMAT在汽车领域的地位，并使英国在先进的汽车复合材料部件制造中处于领先地位。

Green mobility is key for a Net-Zero future. Composites are a critical enabler to deliver lightweight solutions with ultimate performance. However, current manufacturing technologies are costly and inherently slow as well as limited in terms of fibre orientation distribution, given that current deposition and laying-up solutions force straight/geodesic continuous fibre-paths. These issues result in labour-intensive and prolonged manufacturing processes with low-productivity, increased energy consumption, production costs and environmental footprint, hindering wide adoption of composites in automotive.iCOMAT has developed the Rapid Tow Shearing (RTS) process, an innovative composites automated deposition process which deposits wide composite tapes along curved-paths (fibre-steering) without generating defects. RTS's steering capabilities offer tremendous benefits in terms structural performance, weight, production costs and environmental footprint.GACOM is a 24-month collaborative project aiming to deliver the new state-of-the-art in the manufacture of hybrid SMC/UD composite components used in automotive applications. GACOM builds on the skeleton/flesh concept which was successfully demonstrated during LeAFS-SBRI-10004512\. The skeleton/flesh concept includes the use of low-cost/low performance Sheet-Compound-Moulding (SMC) ''flesh'' material strategically reinforced with structural unidirectional (UD) carbon-fibre tapes acting as a ''skeleton''. This is enabled by RTS's unprecedented steering capabilities.GACOM will be led by iCOMAT with Hangukmold and KCarbon as project partners. Hangukmold is a world-leading expert in the manufacturing of commercial vehicle composite parts and is an existing Tier1 supplier of OEMs such as Hyundai and KIA among others. KCarbon is a South-Korean Research-Institute specialising in material characterisation and composites manufacture.GACOM will utilise the skeleton/flesh concept to manufacture and validate a hybrid SMC/UD front car crossmember. GACOM's activities include:* Component optimisation using Finite Element (FE) structural models* manufacture a full-­scale fibre-steered hybrid SMC/UD front car crossmember (lower/upper)* quantify the performance, light-weighting and economic benefits of the developed technology and further develop the business caseGACOM will demonstrate that high­-quality automotive components can be manufactured using RTS, delivering the new state­-of­-the-­art in automotive composites manufacture. This will result in innovative next generation crossmembers that are closer to the structural-optimum (lighter with same performance), use less raw material, and are manufactured faster/cheaper than the current state­-of-­the-­art.Overall, successful completion of GACOM will drastically boost iCOMAT's presence in automotive and place the UK at the driver's seat of advanced manufacturing of automotive composite components.