DEVELOPMENT OF A LIGHT-WEIGHT SEAT STRUCTURE USING A HYBRID MATERIAL APPROACH

Carbon fibre composites are lightweight, and provide a high strength solution for automotive applications, however, the associated material and processing costs are relatively high. This project focused on the development of a composite front seat back (FSB) by primarily reducing cost through materials and component design without compromising safety. The use of cheaper, lower strength materials and low-cost production methods was explored. A hybrid light-weight material system consisting of carbon fibre non-woven and a low-cost long fibre reinforced thermoplastic was developed. Consequently, bonding solutions for dissimilar materials including the exploration of surface preparation techniques and their impact on the composite bond strength were investigated. The employment of flame and blown ion plasma treatment resulted in a 300 % increase in shear strength between inner and outer seat material. As a result, a unique materials and production solution that met the performance criteria with continued reduction in weight and cost was achieved.