Affordable Composites for Lightweight Vehicles (ACLIV)

Manufacturing lightweight vehicles from carbon fibre reinforced composites significantly lowers fuel

consumption and therefore reduces CO2 and other emissions. Currently, the high cost of carbon fibre

composites is a barrier to the inclusion of these materials in mass-produced vehicles. This project aims to

develop a low cost composite manufacturing technique that will make composites a feasible alternative to

metals in family cars and other road vehicles. The innovative manufacturing route developed in this project

aims to reduce cost through two factors: 1) eliminating waste during composite production; 2) using cheaper

starting materials without compromising the properties of the finished components. The consortium for this

project includes industrial and academic partners. Combined they have a wealth of experience in developing

composite materials and together have the ability to create an effective solution to reducing harmful vehicle

emissions.