Not long ago in Spain, Valencia F1 Grand Prix at the amazing scene took place: Mark Webber’s car speed of 306 km per hour when traveling on a serious roll-over accident. Fortunately, Weber himself intact.
Weber’s “last straw” is very popular in the current F1 racing carbon fiber base. Although iron and aluminum materials, the carbon fiber’s “worth” more, but its resistance to stress and portability are much better than iron and aluminum. Currently, many sophisticated areas can see the “nowhere”, such as aircraft wings, super cars and other expensive mountain bike.
Although carbon fiber has been “fly into common car family” in many parts on the car, but if the German BMW R & D success, then the body made from carbon fiber or will become a mainstream electric car.
Safe and durable is the superiority
Early in July this year, BMW announced its long-awaited electric car development plan launched in 2013 plug-in electric cars Megacity. The new model does not come from the modification of existing models, but BMW’s engineers Great Revival of a new attempt. This excellent performance of the “no iron” four city vehicles will be more light, its two parts: drive and battery included aluminum chassis and installed in the chassis of carbon fiber cars “skeleton.”
Carbon fiber 30% lighter than aluminum, 50% lighter than iron. Moreover, since carbon fiber has a very strong tear resistance, when it is woven into the lattice-like structure, and then into the resin, its strength is larger than the iron. However, This process is labor-consuming and inefficient, so the possibility of large-scale production of carbon fiber is not high. However, BMW is trying to change that.
As early as April this year, BMW chief financial officer, once said: “Reducing vehicle weight is very important for electric cars. BMW car in the production of electric vehicles using carbon fiber to replace steel and aluminum.”
BMW first polymer processed into fibrous, and then at a high temperature by a few carbon fiber working procedure will be obtained only 7 microns thickness of carbon fiber, 50 000 such as carbon fiber spun yarn twisted together. Spinning can be made into fabric, and then die at high temperature and high pressure using fabric to create the shape, and finally the resin into the mold so that fibers sticking together, the whole process can be completed in minutes by the robot.
In this process, the carbon fiber can be made of the car “body.” The company said that in addition to more light, the ability of the car’s anti-extrusion is also amazing. In the rear of the front impact test conducted found that aluminum chassis will be deformed by compression, will also absorb some energy, however, by the rigid carbon fiber passenger area is safe, even to the powerful impact of the side also allows inside the dummy model and battery unscathed (of course, when the air bag device starts, the battery will automatically power off). Even under severe car crash, the body had injury not worry, cut off the damaged parts of the carbon fiber and then stick on the new parts, can let the car restitution.
Carbon fiber composite materials, energy absorption capacity of 4 times higher than the metal to 5 times. Years, F1 team has been using carbon fiber composite material component of their car collision buffer, which significantly reduced the event of serious injury accidents.
In fact, back in 1992, GM introduced the ultra-light concept car on the car’s carbon fiber composite body, carbon fiber prepreg by the manual process, the overall body mass of 191 kg. Replacing steel with carbon fiber body and chassis components manufacturing, reduce the quality of 68%, thus saving gasoline consumption by 40%.
Recycling of carbon fiber cars is difficult
Steel and aluminum are easy to recycle, but carbon fiber is difficult to recycle, so, in some ways, the carbon fiber cars could “become old” after a pile of waste. At present, car manufacturers are working with space agencies, to try to resolve this issue. For now, BMW took the lead in the latest treatment developed carbon fiber “material side of foot” method. By pyrolysis, these “side foot the news” to return to the raw state. Through this method to produce carbon fiber composite material has half the hardness.
Another advantage of carbon fiber is not easy to corrosion, if you do not consider the battery life of 10 years, this carbon fiber electric car can be as long decades of life (of course, the motor still need regular maintenance of), then, how Carbon fiber electric car owners to give it up, may make car manufacturers had trouble.
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