Optimizing Carbon Forging through Additive Manufacturing

Tenco is constantly seeking alternative ways to manufacture high-quality parts for demanding applications. Carbon fibre has long been recognised as a high-performance material, mainly applied in motorsport, aerospace, premium bicycles, and boats.

We also notice that carbon fibre components are increasingly being used in other industries, such as machinery, robotics, or medical equipment, and the demand for more complex parts is growing.

And like any manufacturing technique, the production of carbon-filled parts also has its specific drawbacks:

• High start-up and production costs
• Limited design freedom
• Little to no room for customisation

The Challenge

To assess to what extent these limitations could be overcome, we explored the process of ‘forged carbon’, which does not rely on vacuum or prepreg technology (i.e. high pressure or high temperature).

In this relatively simple process, the tooling is designed and produced directly from the CAD file of a part. The carbon fibres or fabrics are then placed into a 3D-printed mould at room temperature. The mould is then closed, and the part cures under the pressure of the clamped mould sections.

Since the mould is printed, this also offers more design possibilities for producing components with more complex geometries, variable thicknesses, or inserts.

We also wanted to investigate the influence of carbon fibre orientation to investigate the effects on the properties of the final part.

The first results..

The first result is part with very high stiffness and lower weight compared to, for example, aluminium.

And using both short and long fibres and applying them to a limited extent in the Z-direction also offers the possibility to incorporate fine details into designs, such as thin edges.

Our initial conclusion is that tweaking the carbon forging process and combining this with the advantages of 3D printing can provide opportunities for various application areas.

The Benefits of Additive Manufacturing (AM) and Carbon Forging

• The ability to produce lighter and stiffer components than, for example, aluminium,
• A significantly shorter lead time, as traditional tooling is not required,
• Low start-up costs for the mould, as it is produced via 3D-printing in plastic,
• Cost-efficient and flexible production of parts in smaller quantities (mass customisation).

What kind of applications could benefit from this?

• Medical equipment such as scanners, where components must not interfere with imaging,
• Machinery, where strong and specific parts are often required,
• Robotics, to produce rigid components that enable fast and precise movements and/or positioning,
• Lightweight components with good shielding capabilities for electronic applications.

Any thoughts on this or thinking about a potential application? Let us know!