DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT


require a lot of cabling that is often left hanging around the cabin, whereas this could be built into a tailored composite structure and integrated into the monocoque. Critically for survival in an attack, materials can also be designed with specific failure modes so that they are designed to break up on impact, much like surfaces outside the survival cells of modern racing cars. The ability to tailor materials to allow particular levels of flexibility will also ensure, with careful design, that structures are more tolerant of damage and there is also a comfort factor due to the fact that carbon and Kevlar absorb sound substantially more than their metallic counterparts. A further potential benefit using a concept developed


by Alpha Composites, is to embed circuitry into a composite structure. While the company cannot discuss the manufacturing process, the concept is already in production for high security applications. This involves a briefcase with a circuit embedded throughout the shell which if broken, will automatically shred any documents inside. Such a concept (applied to both circuitry and cabling) could potentially be modular, so that components can be easily replaced and retain their functionality. With a little bit of lateral thinking, there are also many other opportunities for metal replacement, which may be as simple as replacing the heavy toolboxes and their contents carried by support vehicles.


Novel materials


While the MoD will typically place the onus on the manufacturers to come up with the innovations required, much of the technology trickles down from research institutions such as the Composite Systems Innovation Centre (CSIC) at Sheffield University, established by Professors Frank Jones and Costas Soutis. The centre joins around 30 researchers from its Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Material departments. Its main areas of development are composites and hybrids for improved ballistic and blast resistance, self-healing materials, biopolymer composites, recycled polymers in composites for structural applications, and advanced technologies for high- temperature composites. Naturally, as part of Sheffield University, CSIC also has a strong partnership with the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre with Boeing. As a member of Team MAST, an MoD research consortium


administered by QinetiQ, some of the university’s projects have been directly funded through these channels and it works closely with the major defence contractors and manufacturers. As far as technologies for future protective vehicles are concerned, there are currently two key areas of research being carried out – composite/metal hybrids and self-repairing structures. CSIC manager Dr Alma Hodzic explains her department’s


research into hybrid materials: “The first challenge is to identify two suitable materials in a way that neither would be compromised in a hybrid structure. Carbon fibre composites, which have no parallel among lightweight structures in terms of stiffness and strength, possess lower ballistic resistance compared to their metallic counterparts, so hybridisation is required to improve that aspect without seriously compromising lightweight performance and other structural properties. “A new system that we are designing involves composite


scientists and metallurgists from The University of Sheffield and Imperial College. The initial trials have shown that a small addition of a particular light metallic alloy, developed at Imperial


28 | Composites in Manufacturing | Autumn 2010


The main objective for the MoD’s next generation of armoured vehicles is to develop a 30 tonne tank


Concept images from the MoD, demonstrating what a Future Protected Vehicle might look like


The short gap crossing


designed and developed by Alpha Composites


© MoD/Crown Copyright (from www.defenceimages.mod.uk)


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