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In This Issue
The Foresight Science & Technology Energy
Newsletter
A
Note From Foresight
Better,
Stronger, Lighter… Cheaper?
“The
Year in Energy.”
“Advanced Composite Materials Helping With Renewable
Energy Generation from Wind, Wave and Solar Sources.”
“Global market for advanced materials and devices for
Renewable Energy to be worth $16.9 billion in 2014.”
“Existing Energy Efficiency Technologies Could Provide
Major Savings.”
“Glitter-Sized Solar Photovoltaics Could Revolutionize
the Way Solar Energy Is Collected and Used.”
www.ForesightST.com
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Register for the DOE SBIR TAP Portal!
www.T2Plus2.com
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web-based technology commercialization service, T2+2™.
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batteries and ultracapacitors, sponsored by the Department of Energy.
http://www.ForesightST.com
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A Note From Foresight Science & Technology
With all
of the focus on renewable energy these days, it can be easy to forget that
great strides are being made in other areas that will have an enormous impact
on the way we consume energy. Advanced composite materials is one of these
areas. Generally lighter and stronger than conventional materials, advanced
composites are revolutionizing energy production and transportation by
increasing the efficiency of everything from commercial jets to wind
turbines. If you are not already familiar with the dynamic advanced
composites market, please take a minute to read our discussion below.
And
please remember, as a registered user of the DOE SBIR TAP portal, you have
access to market research, training and tools available nowhere else that
will be extremely helpful to you in writing SBIR proposals and commercializing
technologies. To access the portal, all you have to do is go to www.T2Plus2.com.
If you have forgotten your username and/or password, please contact me
directly at matt.wool@foresightst.com.
Enjoy
the newsletter!
Matt
Wool
VP,
Software & Internet Products
Foresight
Science & Technology
Better, Stronger, Lighter…Cheaper?
A Look into
the World of Advanced Composite Materials
The
demand for advanced composite materials has been rapidly increasing in the
past decade. This is particularly true for high-performance applications, due
to their need for materials of light weight and supreme durability. These applications
include aerospace, wind energy, automotive, pressure tanks, bridges, offshore
oil wells, cables and gas turbines, all of which have increased the demand
for composite materials, most notably carbon fiber and ceramic composites.
Currently,
wind turbine blade manufacturing is one of the largest single applications of
engineered composites. This market segment is being driven by the need for
longer, lighter blades that can mitigate the effects of wind shear. In 2007,
there were over 43,777 wind turbines produced, which required 441 million pounds,
or a little over 200,000 metric tonnes, of finished blade composite
structures. Overall, composite use in wind turbines is expected to reach 2.66
billion pounds (1.18 million metric tonnes) by 2017.
Advanced
composite use is also expected to grow dramatically in commercial aerospace
applications. An excellent symbol for this growth is the successful recent
test flight of Boeing’s new 787 Dreamliner. Forgoing a traditional tube and
wing construction, Boeing built a rivetless composite airframe that won’t
corrode or fatigue like the currently prevalent aluminum airframes. Boeing
claims the new plane is 20% more fuel-efficient than similar jets, and will
be 30,000 to 40,000 pounds lighter than the similarly-sized Airbus A330. By
using advanced composites in lieu of the traditional materials that have been
the mainstay for the last 70 years, Boeing hopes to better mitigate the
challenges proposed by fuel costs, which is the number one cost to the
airline industry after payroll.
High-temperature
thermostructural materials are another area of expected growth for advanced
composites, fueled principally by power generation systems for aircraft
engines and land-based turbine systems. Gas turbine components especially are
seen as an application with great potential for composite materials,
particularly ceramic matrix composites, as they can be used in rotating
parts, including turbine tip shrouds. Long-term durability at elevated
temperatures is critical in gas turbines, and new advanced composites have
the potential to meet these needs as well as the requirements for improved
fuel burn efficiency, which helps to reduce fuel consumption and limit NOx
emissions. While the upside is significant, cost is still an issue, as today
ceramic composite turbine parts costs exceed $1,000/lb when using continuous
fiber reinforcement.
One of
the major reasons for the high costs of certain advanced composites is their
complexity. The design of innovative composite materials often involves
integrating multiple technologies including coatings, adhesives, laminates
and core materials. These multifaceted technologies require extensive testing
and R&D before being commercialized or implemented on a large scale, as
technical maturity and validation are critical for adoption in sensitive or
structural applications. Due to this, there remains a large gap in
developmental funding to successfully commercialize advanced composite materials.
Despite
the cost issues, strong growth in the advanced composites market is expected.
For example, the carbon fiber composites market is forecast by the American Ceramic
Society to grow at a 13% clip through 2010. Much of this growth can be
attributed to the aerospace industry, where the promise of lower fuel costs and
reduced maintenance expenses has led to the transition to more fiber reinforced
composite materials. Although the global economic downturn and the volatile
nature of the required raw materials may constrain market growth in the
medium-term, the capabilities and utility of advanced composite materials are
likely to have a profound impact on numerous energy, transportation, and
construction applications over the long-term.
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