Abstract

The recent trend to replace Body-in-White components with carbon fibre laminates, known as “Body in Black”, has been taking hold in new vehicle designs. This is how various hybrids with a thermoplastic matrix are born, such as CAPET, which has titanium with carbon fibres in PEEK, CAPAAL, which has aluminium with carbon fibres and glass in PA 6, CATPUAL based on CAPAAL, with thermoplastic polyurethane matrix and aluminium sheets. This project includes the study and design of hybrid laminates that can replace a monolithic steel sheet. Analytical models based on the classical laminate theory and models based on the rule of mixtures were used to predict the mechanical behaviour of the material. The structural behaviour of a semi-product was analysed using finite element simulations. The results show that it is possible to obtain a weight reduction between 13% and 22% when using a hybrid laminate, but it is required to increase the thickness of the lamina up to 3 times compared to the metal. Subsequently, studies were carried out to measure the wetness of the surface and the adhesion resistance of a carbon fibre prepreg with PA6 matrix on aluminium. A life cycle analysis (LCA) of hybrid laminates designed to observe the environmental impact on energy consumption and carbon footprint was carried out.