Archived Automotive Sector News - 2010

Editors - please refer to the Notes to Editors for background information on Umeco plc and its operating divisions.

ACG’s Prepregs Investigated as a Storage Battery for Future Cars

ACG Exhibits Composite Solutions for Automotive Interiors Applications

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ACG Exhibits Composite Solutions for Automotive Interiors Applications at Automotive Interiors Expo - 1st June 2010

Advanced Composites Group Ltd. (ACG), part of Umeco Composites Structural Materials (UCSM), a Division of Umeco plc, will be exhibiting its automotive composites technology on Stand 5147 in Hall 5 at the Automotive Interiors EXPO, which takes place at the New Messe, Stuttgart, Germany between the 22nd and 24th June 2010.

Building on its motor racing and super car pedigree, ACG supplies a wide range of prepreg composite solutions that meet the growing demands of the automotive industry.

ACG’s representatives will be on hand to discuss and demonstrate the range of structural, body panel, high quality aesthetic finishes and tooling solutions exhibited on the stand. This will include:

• A door module for Delta Motorsport’s E-4 Coupe. Manufactured by KS Composites, this exhibit combines ACG’s BPS240 body panel for the outer shell with ACG’s DForm® Deformable Composite System, one of the company’s latest innovations, for the inner structural element of the door. DForm®, a long fibre advanced moulding system offering rapid processing and no compromise in structural performance, is targeted at the medium/high volume automotive market.

• A range of cosmetic and structural parts manufactured by Carbotech Composites GmbH in Salzburg and Akrapovic Manufacturing in Slovenia.

ACG’s prepreg systems use a range of high performance resins combined with woven, stitched and unidirectional fibre formats. To meet the exacting requirements of the automotive interiors industry, ACG has, with assistance from its fibre weavers, developed a Special Visual Quality (SVQ) fabric specification maximising the aesthetic impact of carbon fibre finishes.

From its prepreg manufacturing facilities in the UK, ACG services the automotive market by delivering custom formatted products manufactured to short lead times and delivered though a global network of dedicated sales and support agencies.

Image copyright ACG Ltd.

For further information, please contact:

Advanced Composites Group
Mike Millward
Telephone: +44 (0)1773 766200
E-mail: mmillward @ acg.co.uk

ACG’s Prepregs Investigated as a Storage Battery for Future Cars - 16th February 2010

Advanced Composites Group’s materials are being investigated for use as a power storage medium that could revolutionize car design and manufacturing.

Advanced Composites Group Ltd (ACG), part of the Composites Division of Umeco plc, is engaged in a €3.4 million project with scientists to develop a new composite material which could revolutionise car design and manufacturing.

Announced at the beginning of February 2010 by the Department of Aeronautics at Imperial College London, the project is aimed at developing cars which will be powered by their own bodywork. Researchers from Imperial College London and their European partners, including Volvo Car Corporation and ACG, are developing a prototype material which will be lightweight and strong enough to be used for car body parts and also discharge sufficient electrical energy to power a car. With assistance from ACG, they are also planning to investigate the most effective method for manufacturing the composite material at an industrial level.

Ultimately, they expect that this material could be used in hybrid petrol/electric vehicles to make them lighter, more compact and more energy efficient, enabling drivers to travel for longer distances before needing to recharge their cars.

For the first stage of the project, the scientists are planning to further develop ACG’s composite materials so that they can store more energy. The team will improve the material’s mechanical properties by growing carbon nanotubes on the surface of the carbon fibres. This should increase the surface area of the material, and also improve its capacity to store more energy.

The project co-ordinator, Dr Emile Greenhalgh, from the Department of Aeronautics at Imperial College London, says: “We are really excited about the potential of this new technology. We think the car of the future could be drawing power from its roof, its bonnet or even the door, thanks to our new composite material. Even the Sat Nav could be powered by its own casing. The future applications for this material don’t stop there – you might have a mobile phone that is as thin as a credit card because it no longer needs a bulky battery, or a laptop that can draw energy from its casing so it can run for a longer time without recharging. We’re at the first stage of this project and there is a long way to go, but we think our composite material shows real promise.”

The 3-year European Union funded project includes researchers from the Departments of Chemistry, Aeronautics and Chemical Engineering and Chemical Technology at Imperial College London. In addition to ACG, European academic and industrial partners include Swerea SICOMP, INASCO Hella, Chalmers, Nanocyl, Volvo Car Corporation, Bundesanstalt Fur Materialforschung undprufung, ETC Battery and Fuel Cells Sweden.

Advanced Composites Group
Quentin Fontana – R&D Project Leader
E mail: qfontana @ acg.co.uk
Tel: +44 (0)1773 766200

Notes to Editors

About Imperial College London - Consistently rated amongst the world's best universities, Imperial College London is a science-based institution with a reputation for excellence in teaching and research that attracts 14,000 students and 6,000 staff of the highest international quality.

Innovative research at the College explores the interface between science, medicine, engineering and business, delivering practical solutions that improve quality of life and the environment - underpinned by a dynamic enterprise culture.

Since its foundation in 1907, Imperial's contributions to society have included the discovery of penicillin, the development of holography and the foundations of fibre optics. This commitment to the application of research for the benefit of all continues today, with current focuses including interdisciplinary collaborations to improve health in the UK and globally, tackle climate change and develop clean and sustainable sources of energy.

Web site: www.imperial.ac.uk

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