COMPOSITES
SECTION TITLE
evaluate which parts we consider for re-design.
For our project, the combined impact and thermal resistance
provided by Windform SP allowed us to use a fully carbon fi lled composite oil pan which we would have never considered with other available composites. Within the Windform line of composite materials, the variety of the available products means that we always have a material that is suitable to our design, such as Windform RL thermoplastic elastomer which we used as custom ergonomic grips for our steering wheel. On top of all that, CRP has exceptional print resolution and quality which has allowed us to keep the overall size of our design to a minimum and eliminate post- machining.”
A ROBUST INTAKE
T e intake the UVic team ran was manufactured through CRP USA out of Windform XT 2.0 back in 2019. T e intake has held up incredibly well since then, Wooldridge says, lasting the team four seasons: “During our competition, we had engine clock temperatures reach up to 125°C and we experienced no warping or deformation at the mating surface between the cylinder head and intake. T is thermal stability is critical to the reliability of our car as any
deformation at this surface could lead to a catastrophic intake lead which would put us out of the race.”
T e UVic team recently redesigned the intake to be larger and have a more optimised geometry for airfl ow into the engine, using the Windform XT 2.0 composite. Discussing some of the engineering characteristics of the new design, Wooldridge adds: “T anks to the manufacturing capabilities of CRP USA, we were able to increase the overall size drastically, from a volume of 1.4
litres to 4.24 litres, while still having the
print resolution necessary to print sealing surfaces and sensor mounting directly into our intake
without the need for post-machining. T e larger intake allowed us to transition from bent to straight intake runners improving the simulated effi ciency of our air fl ow by 100%.”
T e team plans to have the new intake up and running within the next few weeks. “T e durability of all the components 3D printed by CRP USA is incredible,” Wooldridge says. “In all honesty, we ask a lot of these parts when we are out on the track, and they continue to deliver. For example, this year, during testing, we struck a traffi c cone hard enough to shear off the screw attaching the front wing to the chassis and bend our aluminium mounting arm without damaging the wind insert in Windform XT 2.0 attached to the other side.”
LEFT: The catch cans were made using Windform SP TOP: : The intake is manufactured using Windform XT 2.0 composite material ABOVE: The intake is manufactured using Windform XT 2.0 composite material
For more information visit
www.crp-usa.net
www.engineerlive.com 39
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