Polymer, defence and aerospace industries gather

Rapra Technology's upcoming conference will bring together the polymer industry and the defence and aerospace supply chains to discuss new polymer materials.

Rapra Technology is organising a new conference in Toulouse on 18th-19th September 2007, bringing together the international polymer industry and the defence and aerospace supply chains to discuss new polymer materials, applications and future requirements.

The conference covers a broad range of subjects presented by some of the world's leading authorities and organisations, boasting a panel of speakers from organisations such as BAE Systems, DuPont Performance Elastomers, QinetiQ, NASA, AWE, Victrex and AGC Chemicals Europe.

A significant part of the conference is devoted to presentations detailing composites, nanocomposites and their novel applications.

The conference also covers many of the other key novel polymers, processes and applications, including high-temperature thermoplastics, elastomers and rubbers.

The conference will open with a paper from Dr Dan Kells, Head of Material Sciences at BAE Systems' Advanced Technology Centre in the UK, describing research in high-performance polymers and composites.

In his presentation, Dr Kells will take a close look at the evaluation and modelling of polymer matrix composites subject to blast and ballistic events, enhancements in damage tolerance using 3D fibre re-inforcements and nanocomposites and a determination of paint layer fatigue limits for life cycle management and corrosion protection.

There follows a number of papers on nanocomposites including research conducted by NASA into the thermal conductivity of ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer/carbon nanofiller blends and a paper from Hybrid Plastics on the nanoscopically controlled polymer containing gadolinium atoms for shielding against radiation.

A selection of novel polymer systems will be explained during the afternoon, with one notable example being an electrically conductive shape memory polymer with anisotropic electro-thermo-mechanical properties presented by Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

Shape memory polymers (SMPs) possess huge potential for many applications, for instance morphing unmanned aviation vehicles, however thermo-responsive SMPs are intrinsically electrically nonconductive.

Their (often problematic) fabrication and characterisation process will be reported in this paper.

Day one concludes with a tour of the nearby Airbus A380 site, enabling delegates to see first-hand the assembly process of the spectacular super jumbo and its testing stations.

Conference delegates will be invited to view the world's largest aeronautical plant in operation and will then reconvene at the conference venue for a networking drinks reception.

The second day's proceedings begins with a series of papers on developments in elastomers and rubbers for aerospace and defence applications.

DuPont Performance Elastomers will discuss the compatibility of selected fluoroelastomers and perfluoroelastomers with standard and higher thermo-oxidative stability oils, in an effort to design more robust sealing systems for jet oils for long-life engines.

Dr Marek Gnatwoski of Polymer Engineering will follow with a paper on the use of novel nylon/halogenated butyl rubber blends in protection against warfare agents.

The afternoon continues with presentations on polymerisation, compound and elastomeric modified ETFE from AGC Chemicals Europe and developments in PEEK process technology from Victrex.

The first of two papers from AWE on the lifetime prediction and assessment of metal-polymer laminates assesses three adhesives for their suitability for use in laminate systems commonly used in the aerospace industry.

The paper describes a five-year ageing programme that has been conducted at both ambient and elevated temperatures to evaluate the different adhesive types.

A combination of FTIR, optical microscopy, T-Peel test and HPLC were also used to test their resistance to organic solvent vapour.

The results of this programme will be reported at the conference.

A final session on polymer processes and applications includes work undertaken by QinetiQ into the role of polymeric materials for effective structural damping.

Acoustic noise and vibration reduction for all forms of military platforms has played a vital part in achieving acoustic stealth either for covert effectiveness in an operational environment, for meeting emerging EU regulations concerning hearing protection for military personnel, or for reducing the problems associated with structural fatigue.

The paper will explain how the polymer mechanical properties influence the choice of conventional technologies and how they are being used in some emerging and unconventional structural damping methods.

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