Research

Excerpt

Long-fibre-reinforced thermoplastics (LFTs) are used in the automotive industry to make lightweight bumper mountings and door modules, for example. In order to ensure that the components are as light in weight as possible, it is important to be able to simulate the significant variations in the microstructure of the material. However, using existing methods, this can only be done in a highly simplified way. Dr. Sascha Fliegener from the Fraunhofer Institute for Mechanics of Materials IWM has taken an important step towards the realistic representation of the microstructure with his NEW SIMULATION MODEL. In future, component and material manufacturers will be able to use virtual experiments to understand the behaviour of the material in more detail. The new microstructure model allows the fibre structure in any area of an LFT component to be realistically reconstructed. This makes it possible to predict the mechanical behaviour of the material and the complex deterioration caused by increasing loads. …