Development of Translucent and Flame Retardant Epoxy-SMC for Aircraft Cabin Applications

Sheet Moulding Compounds (SMC) offer high mechanical performance and lightweight potential paired with short processing times. Therefore, SMC are used for applications in large scale serial production in aviation and automotive. Aircraft interior applications require flame retardant properties. Flame retardant SMC materials for aircraft interior applications are state of the art. They offer good performance, but lack surface quality, freedom in color and are opaque due to the high content of mineral fillers and flame retardants. Therefore, the use of SMC in visible components is limited by design challenges and requires surface finishing and coating, which enhances costs and carbon footprint. In project “TRANA”, founded by the German Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, CompriseTec, Fraunhofer IAP and ISC, Leibniz-Institut für Verbundwerkstoffe and Schmidt & Heinzmann are developing an innovative SMC system, which is flame retardant and offers a good surface quality but is also translucent. This is achieved via nanoscaled flame retardants, which are specifically modified for the SMC system. The project also includes the development of an SMC production line, which enables the robust processing of very high viscous resin paste systems and their processing in sealing edge molds. For visible parts, high surface qualities and colorization are possible. Translucent flame retardant SMC offers a vast amount of new applications, e.g. for passenger information or lighting applications.