Teijin Limited announced that its Tenax
carbon fiber and carbon fiber thermoplastic unidirectional pre-impregnated tape
(Tenax TPUD) were qualified by Boeing and registered in its qualified products
list. Teijin will supply Tenax TPUD as an intermediate advanced composite
material for primary structural parts for Boeing.
Since Teijin and Boeing signed a
Qualification Agreement in June 2016, the two companies have been working on
material qualification testing and application study of carbon fiber reinforced
thermoplastics (CFRTP) for primary structure parts.
Teijin plans to begin commercial shipments
of Tenax TPUD to Boeing approved parts makers within the next two years.
Tenax TPUD is a carbon fiber thermoplastic
unidirectional pre-impregnated tape made with thermoplastic resin and achieves
high heat, impact and fatigue resistances and helps to reduce production costs
and improve component manufacturing efficiency thanks to its shortened molding
process.
Teijin focuses on the aircraft business as
one of the growth strategies in its medium-term management plan for 2017-2019
and is intensively accelerating its development of mid- to downstream
applications, such as cost-effective carbon fibers with higher-tenacity and
higher-tensile modulus, intermediate materials including Tenax TPUD, carbon
fiber thermoplastic consolidated laminate (Tenax TPCL), thermoset prepreg and
non-crimp fabric.
Going forward, Teijin intends to further
strengthen its carbon fiber and its intermediate material business as a leading
solution provider for aircraft applications, targeting annual sales in this
field in excess of US$900 million by around 2030.