The Future of Aerospace and Automotive Manufacturing

Carbon fiber happens to be one of the most interesting materials that are used as a key ingredient for fiber-reinforced composites and plastics. Carbon fibers are almost five times stronger than steel and almost three times lighter and two times stiff and robust. It makes it an interesting case for developers who wish to produce high performance vehicles. A recent research from Frost & Sullivan outlined carbon fiber in a manner that makes it a perfect fit for aerospace and automotive manufacturers who wish to bring out a better brigade of stronger vehicles. It is one of the basic requirements for auto emissions norms that need to be fulfilled by 2025.

So what’s keeping companies back from holding it? Manufacturing of carbon fibers needs a specific polymer precursor substance that can have a heavy effect over carbon fiber quality that is obtained in the end. The precursor material is a costlier one, the mechanical and chemical process of converting these into carbon is a very time consuming one and mostly the final quantities are quite low. Frost & Sullivan noted down all these additional developments that were needed to find a healthy alternative to this substance. They outlined the possibility of using hybrid fibers that are made with carbon and glass for efficient creation of materials.

The senior research analyst from Frost & Sullivan, Aniruddha Roy, says, “Manufacturers can slash production times and costs by deploying production technologies like plasma oxidation that reduces the oxidation time and energy by 65 percent.”Low-cost fibers can be a reality in the next 10 to 12 years, once the industry is able to adopt methods that facilitate low-cost, large-scale production processes. Additionally, recycling carbon fibers will boost adoption across industries in the medium to long term.”