I was wandering aimlessly around the internet and found the Hexcel web site.
They have a lot more products than they use to have, one of which is pretty much made for uses as BMW .
There is a chart there which shows Hexmc as being a bit stiffer than
Steel and about half the weight of aluminum. And slightly lighter than Magnesium.
Dan
Specific Tensile Modulus appears to be the ratio of weight to stiffness. Notice how similar the metals are despite their greatly differing densities. All four plus wood are suitable for aircraft.
-jsw
You are correct. I should have paid more attention.
Dan
That's very interesting and versatile material -- almost everything that Hexcel makes is top-notch -- but it's a pseudo-random-fiber prepreg mat. The modulus of a unidirectional carbon/epoxy composite is
2 to 2.5 times greater but only in the direction of the fibers.It's difficult to get the theoretical strength and stiffness with unidirectional fibers. The layup has to be carefully engineered. This Hexcel material has the same strength in all directions, which makes it a *lot* easier to use.
The other thing that caught my attention is that the part can be removed from the mold while still hot. So suited for production parts.
Disclaimer. I own some Hexcel stock.
Dan
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