I + D / Textiles inteligentes y soluciones TIC
Year: January 2021 – June 2022
MOTIVATION
In recent years, there has been an increase in the demand for composite materials. In many sectors such as aerospace and marine architecture, they play an important role because of the weight savings they allow over conventional components. Composites are much lighter than any other material while being stronger.
Manufacturing composites is problematic, as the processing time, material cost and material waste is very high, so one of the main objectives of LIGHTCOMP 2021 will be to address these issues by combining TFP embroidery technology with less labour-intensive composite manufacturing technologies.
On the other hand, resins and synthetic fibre such as carbon or glass fibre, are not sustainable and are difficult to recycle, so natural fibres and less polluting composite manufacturing processes will be sought.
OBJECTIVES
The main objective of the LIGHTCOMP 2021 project is to develop strong, lightweight multifunctional composites using Tailored Fibre Placement (TFP) technology for the furniture, sports and marine sectors.
Technical objectives:
- To develop functional composites incorporating heatable and/or luminous elements.
- Develop composites with integrated commercial or embroidered sensors, such as pressure and presence sensors.
- Develop sustainable solutions by replacing synthetic fibres with natural fibres.
- Reduce the use of resins by thermoforming to obtain recyclable composites.
- Design and develop lightweight, high performance structural composites.
- Study the mechanical properties and resistance to specific environmental conditions.
EXPECTED RESULTS
- Lightweight structural parts with special functionalities capable of supporting loads of all kinds.
- Natural fibre lightweight components for the shipbuilding industry with built-in sensors.
- Furniture components with heating function and presence sensors.
- Reusable carbon components using thermoplastic matrices.
- Sustainable composites for aesthetic elements with low mechanical requirements, but with special properties such as acoustic shielding.
This project is funded by the Conselleria d’Economia Sostenible, Sectors Productius, Comerç i Treball de la Generalitat Valenciana, through IVACE, and is co funded by ERDF (European Regional Development Fund) from the European Commission within the framework of the Operational Programme ERDF for the Comunitat Valenciana 2021-2027.
Additional Information
- Grant number: IMDEEA/2021/44
- Amount: 228.830,24 €
- Year: 2021-2022
- Status: In progress
- Entity: IVACE
