The Implications of the Thermoplastic Composite Trend in Manufacturing

Thermoplastic composite materials are replacing their thermosetting counter- parts in various automotive and aerospace applications. This trend is due to a host of perceived advantages in thermoplastics including improved toughness, lower cycle times, and processing flexibility. However, because the processing requirements for thermoplastics are fundamentally different than thermosets, a host of new manufacturing technologies must be developed for this purpose. A few of these technologies will be described.