Carbon Fiber Knowledge
The latest from the world of advanced composites and carbon fiber technology.
In autoclave composite manufacturing, the tool is the part. The mold surface defines the geometry of every carbon fiber laminate cured against it, and the way that mold expands and contracts through the cure cycle is written into the final dimensions of every part that touches it. A too
The classic tube-and-wing airframe has defined the look of commercial aviation for seven decades, but its aerodynamic and structural limits are now well mapped. The blended wing body — an aircraft where the fuselage and wing merge into a single lifting surface — attacks both limits at o
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles have spent two decades as a niche technology, held back less by the fuel cell stack than by storage: carrying enough hydrogen on board to deliver real range requires a tank that is simultaneously light, strong, and safe. The solution that has emerged is the T
The wind industry's cost crisis and its carbon fiber supply outlook are colliding on the same timeline. Turbine OEMs entered 2026 with blade prices under pressure, commodity input costs high, and several major players reporting negative margin quarters, while the large-tow carbon fiber
The commercial aircraft industry is entering a supply-constrained decade. After two years of production recovery, the airframers are pushing toward record output rates while simultaneously launching the next generation of narrow-body and wide-body aircraft programs. That combination — h
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/718, published in the Official Journal on 23 March 2026, marks the first time environmental sustainability requirements have become binding in public procurement of wind turbines. Adopted under Regulation (EU) 2024/1735 — the Net-Zero Industr
Toray Carbon Fibers Europe has announced the operational start-up of a new carbon fiber production facility at its Abidos plant in South-West France. The facility produces T300 and high-modulus (HM) carbon fibers and increases the plant's total annual capacity from 5,000 to 6,000 tonnes
Electric vehicle programs measure manufacturing viability in seconds of cycle time, not kilograms of mass saved. A battery enclosure is one of the largest single parts on an EV platform — a typical C-segment housing spans more than 1,400 millimeters in length and carries crash, crush, a
Wide-body aircraft fuselage barrels are the largest composite structures in commercial aviation, and they are built around a single piece of infrastructure: the autoclave. The Boeing 787 fuselage measures 5.77 meters in diameter, the Airbus A350 approximately 5.96 meters, and each barre