Lightweight construction in the Fraunhofer Group for Materials

Lightweight construction is a smart and sustainable transformation technology. It stands for consistent system efficiency: efficient design for circularity, material efficiency, energy and functional efficiency in operation, resource efficiency at the beginning of the value chain through smart design and production as well as at the end of the value chain through circularity.

The Fraunhofer Group for Materials develops efficiency solutions for and together with SMEs and OEMs in the manufacturing sector as well as for and with service providers (e.g. design, simulation, software). The Fraunhofer institutes provide excellent technology transfer in lightweight construction at all points in the value creation cycle: material development, component design, production technology, function and condition monitoring. - Always with sustainability and economic efficiency in mind.

Examples of projects

Project MO·PA·HYB

»ECO2-LInE« - Reducing CO2 by using new manufacturing processes and materials

wear-resistant brake disks made of ceramic-reinforced light metal composites

»LignoLight« - Modular, recyclable lightweight furniture

»CryoCoat« - a barrier coating for inner walls of fuel tanks

Storage compartment demonstrates lightweight potential

MetaVib - Vibro-acoustic metamaterials for reducing noise and vibration

»Lite2Duro« - resource- and CO2-efficient balanced injection molding of thermoset molding compounds

»ROBINIA« - Glued laminated timber made from robinia hardwood

Mobile spherical hydrogen storage in TransHyDE

Sustainable bio-foam made from lignosulfonate

»COOPERATE«-Strong CO2 -reduced components made from fiber-reinforced biopolymers

»BUSTI« - lightweight construction potential of thermoplastic fiber-reinforced composites

Natural fiber reinforcement for textile concrete parts

CaproPULL project

»HyLight« - Energy-efficient production of complexly shaped, multifunctional and recyclable lightweight-construction products

»CHIMERA« - Functionalization of laser-structured fiber-reinforced plastic composites

Lightweight cargo bike »L-LBF«

»FCP Lifetime« - Simulation for longer life

»AltholzAerogel« - sustainable aerogel materials on the basis of waste wood

»CustoMat3D« - Modeling and Simulating Additive Manufacturing

»MM4R« - Recyclable multi-material design for lightweight structures

»AdHoMe« - Bio-based, switchable adhesives

Our offer for you

Lightweights that pack a punch

Fraunhofer LBF offers an in-depth understanding of materials, components and systems with regard to production as well as simulation-based design methods for pushing the limits of what is physically possible and harnessing previously untapped lightweight design potential - while ensuring maximum product safety and reliability.

More Info (lbf.fraunhofer.en)

Development of resource- and cost-efficent system solutions

At Fraunhofer ICT, polymer-based fiber composites and their hybrids are at the center of the developments. Key research topics are long- and continuous-fiber-reinforced polymers with a thermoset and thermoplastic matrix, and their hybridization.

More Info (ict.fraunhofer.en)

Aviation

The business unit Aviation deals with the characterization, modeling, testing and optimization of aviation-related materials, structures and components, especially in the field of lightweight design. The Fraunhofer EMI analyze the effects on aircraft structures caused by hail, bird strike and debris impact as well as lightning strikes.

More Info (emi.fraunhofer.en)

Customized lightweight solutions from a single source

The research division Polymer Materials and Composites PYCO is your competent partner in all questions of polymer-based lightweight construction with fiber-plastic composites and complex fiber composite components in multi-material design.

More Info (iap.fraunhofer.en)

Eddy Current Methods

With the EddyCus^® device platform, Fraunhofer IKTS has created a technology series that meets the growing requirements of the lightweight construction industry and can also cater to the needs for eddy current-based methods for quality assurance in other areas.

More Info (ikts.fraunhofer.en)

Simulations in Lightweight Construction and Insulation Materials

In order to reduce the high computational times, the Fraunhofer ITWM develop model reduction methods that determine the effective material behavior, such as fatigue and damage.

More Info (itwm.fraunhofer.en)

Casting technology and lightweight construction

Our experts in the field of casting technology and lightweight construction are able to map the entire process chain from the concept phase to casting design, toolmaking, casting production and final metallographic or non-destructive testing.

More Info (ifam.fraunhofer.en)

Lightweight-construction materials made from renewable raw resources

Researchers at the Fraunhofer WKI are developing resource-efficient lightweight-construction solutions using renewable raw materials: from the development of alternative raw materials from climate-adapted ecosystems and plant residues, through material and process development, component design and quality control, and on to cascade utilization and recycling.

More Info (wki.fraunhofer.de)