NawaStitch's new process is expected to make carbon fiber composites lighter and stronger

According to foreign media New Atlas, Nawa Technologies of France established a branch in the United States and brought its fast and affordable vertical alignment carbon nanotube (VACNT) manufacturing process to a new application: making carbon fiber composites stronger
.
Nawa previously announced that it has been producing a new electrode design that can fundamentally improve the chemical performance of existing and future batteries.
It will be the fastest electrode in the world: it can provide up to 3 times the energy density and 10 times the energy density.
Power density, faster charging speed and up to 5 times the battery life
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Nawa's advantage comes from its secret: ultra-fast single-step nanotube growth process
.
The company’s CEO Pascal Boulanger said: “This is the same as the coating process for anti-reflective coated glass and photovoltaics
.
Its price is already very cheap
.
” These nanotubes have extremely strong strength and high conductivity.
The electronics field has obvious advantages, but Nawa is now considering using them to advance the development of materials
.
Nawa has acquired the assets of N12 Technologies, a company located in Massachusetts
.
According to Crunchbase data, since its establishment in 2012, N12 Technologies has raised nearly 33 million U.
S.
dollars, with the goal of using VACNT technology to make carbon composite structures lighter and stronger
.
N12 uses a two-step process authorized from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to grow nanotubes.
Nawa will continue this relationship and describe the two manufacturing methods as "complementary"
.
Below is the process of how NawaStitch (previously known as NanoStitch) works
.
Normally, when making things with carbon fiber composite materials, they buy sheets of carbon fiber reinforced resin, and then lay them one by one on top of the other, glue them together with epoxy resin, and follow each layer of carbon fiber Alternate directions to adjust the final work to meet the load it needs to bear
.
According to N12 and the current Nawa, the glue between the layers may be a weak point, which deteriorates as the part is bent
.
This may cause delamination, or simply destroy the strength of the part
.
Nawastitch used a super-strong VACNT array to reinforce the epoxy layer.
As a result, Nawa said that the shear strength was increased by 100 times, the impact resistance was increased by 10 times, no delamination occurred at all, and the high-speed impact reduced internal damage by 50%
.
Composite parts can be reinforced in this way, without the need for substantial changes in conventional manufacturing processes
.
Nawa said that it has also been researching its own multifunctional composite material NawaShell, which can not only enhance the mechanical strength of carbon composites, but also allow embedded carbon nanotubes to store electrical energy, making it possible to create, for example, solar roofs.
The board stores energy directly on the roof itself
.
It is unclear how successful N12 has been in bringing its high-strength composite processing to the market, but as long as the price is right, anything that can make carbon fiber parts lighter and stronger will have a chance
.
Nawa is obviously very excited about opening a new US base, which will be located in Dayton, Ohio
.
The company has established a research cooperation and licensing agreement with the University of Dayton Research Institute
.
Pascal Boulanger, Nawa’s founder, chairman and chief technology officer, said: “The establishment of Nawa America is a very exciting and natural strategic step
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We have realized the excellent work of N12 Technologies over the years; I am very happy to have Opportunity to acquire its activities, further develop technology and incorporate it into our investment portfolio
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This move further strengthens Nawa Technology’s position as a leading expert in the VACNT field and the largest continuous industrial-grade VACNT manufacturer
.
We not only have the two most efficient and Complementary VACNT patented growth process rights and technical know-how, strong academic support from both sides of the Atlantic, and two main applications of VACNT in the global market: super composite materials and energy storage
.
"Nawa immediately began prototyping and is expected to start mass production in 2021
.