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Training Material
CIDETEC & SPECIFIC POLYMERS TRAINING
Covalent adaptable networks (CANs)
Manufacturing processes of 3R-CAN composite materials
Revalorization routes of 3R-CAN composites materials
Epoxy Resins: From today’s challenges to safe & sustainable alternatives
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DITF TRAINING
Modern methods of pultrusion
This lecture provides an overview of pultrusion as a continuous composite manufacturing route and then highlights “modern” variants and enablers that improve efficiency, energy use, and product design freedom. It introduces the typical pultrusion line (fiber guiding, resin impregnation, heated die, pulling/cutting) and showcases developments such as UV pultrusion (including in‑line reshaping), microwave-assisted pultrusion, and curved-profile/(braid) pultrusion concepts aimed at faster curing and broader geometries. It also touches on material choices and sustainability-oriented options-e.g., bio-resin formulations (both thermoset and thermoplastic families) and natural-fiber/bio-composite examples-plus practical considerations such as fiber-matrix interface/sizing and flame-retardancy approaches used in composite systems.
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Carbotainer Project – Products with composites
It is introduces composite pressure cylinders and related composite product applications, outlining cylinder types and a “standard portfolio” example (including a Type III TPED 200/300 bar slide with stated hydrogen capacities), Carbotainer’s value proposition (hexagonal, lightweight, “smart”, and experience), and an iterative design workflow (analytical/netting analysis, 3D design/pattern generation, FEA-based optimization, and prototyping with burst/cycle testing). It then focuses on filament winding (epoxy resin with glass/carbon fibres, and a comparison of tow‑preg vs wet‑winding plus curing), summarizes the test and certification landscape by referencing UNE‑EN 12245 / ISO 11119‑2 and listing typical cylinder and material tests (e.g., burst, fatigue, hydraulic, drop/flaw, extreme temperature cycling, fire resistance, fibre tensile/ILSS, Tg/HDT/viscosity), and closes with “new developments” (Type IV/V, higher pressure, bigger sizes) and examples of hydrogen-related applications (including failure prediction, rotomoulding concepts, and MOF/carbon-based nanomaterials to improve storage), while linking these developments to CUBIC’s circularity chain from biobased materials (bioPA, 3R‑CAN epoxy, lignin-based bioCF) through intermediate formats to final products and end-of-life routes (remodeling, recycling, valorisation).
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Thermoforming of epoxy vitrimer thermosets
This lecture explains how thermoforming—traditionally limited to thermoplastic composites due to their melt/soften behavior—can be extended to thermoset composites by using Covalent Adaptable Networks (CANs), specifically epoxy vitrimers, which enable stress relaxation and reshaping above Tg while retaining thermoset-like performance in service. It outlines the thermoforming workflow (heat laminate → transfer to press/tool → form under pressure → cool and demold) and contrasts thermoplastics vs conventional thermosets, then presents a 3R (reprocessable/repairable/recyclable) epoxy resin approach for circularity. The document reports resin/process performance indicators (e.g., infusion-relevant viscosity/processing windows, Tg values, and rapid stress relaxation at elevated temperatures), along with lab and end-user trials including flattening/reshaping of “recycled” glass-fiber laminates, weathering exposure, and the influence of lay-up, thickness, and curvature on property recovery. It concludes with end-user manufacturing trials showing good reproducibility and high property retention (>85% for several mechanical properties), positioning thermoforming of vitrimer-based composites as a practical route to reuse and life-extension of composite parts without separating fibers from the matrix.
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IDENER x VITAL Learning factory
Digitalisation training session
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COMFIL THERMOPLASTIC THERMOFORMING TRAINING
Processing of Biopolymer Yarns: Melt Spinning, Drawing and Weaving-Robbe De Bisschop & Begüm Akalin (Centexbel)
This deck provides a process-oriented walkthrough for biopolymer yarn production, covering melt spinning setup and key operating considerations such as drying targets (e.g., ppm levels given for PLA and PA), extrusion conditions (viscosity, temperature profiles, working above Tm, and pressure), and the roles of components like the gear pump and die (including L/D and monofilament vs multifilament implications). It then explains drawing sequences (melt and solid-state drawing), linking them to polymer-chain alignment, recrystallisation and crystallinity increase, and stresses shrinkage control as a critical downstream constraint. Finally, it connects yarn processing to composite formation concepts (bicomponent/commingling) and finishes with basic weaving parameters and example patterns.
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Thermoforming of Biobased Thermoplastics — Hans Knudsen (COMFIL)
This presentation first introduces COMFIL’s “chips to part” positioning for thermoplastic fibre composite materials (including reinforcement fibre options and examples around SR-PET sandwich as a 100% PET mono-material concept that can be formed and kept fully recyclable, including overmoulding/foil examples). It then focuses on thermoforming/consolidation fundamentals, using Darcy’s law as a guideline for wetting-out the reinforcement and presenting vacuum consolidation (recipe-driven approach with time-at-temperature and emphasis on mid-laminate temperature, drying, wet-out, and cooling). It contrasts this with press consolidation via a multi-step system (layup, heating/wet-out with parameters, forming/cooling, part removal), summarising practical pros/cons by production volume and energy/automation considerations, and it closes with an example of an established process to manufacture foot soles in SR-PLA.
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Product manufacturing adaptations from different PA formats — Julio Vidal (MOSES)
This training deck provides a high-level overview of polyamide (PA) materials within the broader polymer landscape and then focuses on how product manufacturing can be adapted depending on PA formats, primarily by surveying the main processing routes. It walks through a set of transformation processes—extrusion, casting extrusion, thermoforming, blowing processes, injection moulding, rotomoulding, and reprocessing—and closes with a brief summary that reiterates the breadth of these options for manufacturing with PA materials.
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Advancements in polylactide in foam extrusion and particle foaming for enhanced applications — Janne-Constantin Albrecht & Sascha Kilian (Fraunhofer ICT)
This presentation discusses advances in PLA-focused foaming technologies (foam extrusion and particle foaming), motivating plant-based bead foams and positioning EPLA (expandable PLA) as a biobased “drop-in” route to substitute EPS using comparable machinery and tooling, while emphasizing crystallinity/crystallisation kinetics as a core constraint affecting cycle time and mechanical performance. It highlights development examples and optimisation directions (e.g., faster crystallising formulations and process efficiency improvements) and then broadens into a “mono-material / multi-morphology” design approach where one polymer is shaped into different morphologies (e.g., particle foam, self-reinforced PLA, textiles, injection-moulded parts) to support circular-ready products, including an illustrative multi-morphology product concept and an outlook on application areas and ongoing work themes.
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Embedded Inserts for Mechanical Joining of Thermoplastic and bio Composites — Johnny Jakobsen (Aalborg University)
This presentation explains why mechanical fasteners are widely used in composite structures (they allow assembly/disassembly) while also creating weaknesses and manufacturing challenges, and it distinguishes fastener approaches (surface-mounted vs laminate-integrated; post-machining/bonding vs embedding during layup). It introduces a “patch-technology” concept with examples of mechanical test outcomes for thermoset panels with embedded patches, then discusses a boss system concept for Type IV pressure vessels (polymer liner + composite reinforcement) and associated challenges (heavy/expensive boss systems). The final part describes ongoing work to transfer the patch approach to thermoplastic systems (GF/PETG fabrics and CF/PETG patches), summarizing the fabrication route (vacuum bagging, drying at 120°C and consolidation at 220°C), typical process-induced flaws (insufficient compaction or vacuum), and initial pull-out testing where only machined-hole samples have been tested so far and strength scales with thickness.
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