NEWS: BAC Graphene Innovation @DiscoverMono
Over the weekend, BAC were playing with the famous RAF red arrows, raising money for charity and now they hit us with the an amazingly innovative car industry first... taking "a large development leap by using (super light, super-strong) graphene on the single seater supercar, the Mono."
Is this the new carbon fibre?
The uber-cool single seater track day special manufacturer BAC say the use of the innovative graphene material is a world first – further illustrating their USP ability of make technological advancements through their car building program.
The panel development was done in collaboration with Haydale Composite Solutions and the lightweight material that is stronger than its main rival carbon fibre features on the Mono’s rear wheel arches, bringing weight and performance benefits.
Trick eh?
Graphene is made of sheets of carbon just one atom thick, and is significantly lighter than standard carbon fibre. It is also stronger than carbon fibre, meaning that it can bring weight reductions of around 20% while being 200 times stronger than steel. These benefits could have implications for cost, performance and fuel economy when applied wider in the manufacturing process.
BAC chose to test the use of graphene on the rear wheel arches due to the size and complexity of the part, to thoroughly test the manufacturing process and how the material fitted in with the car.
BAC Development Director and co-founder Neill Briggs said: "BAC is uniquely placed in the automotive industry to be able to take innovative steps, and latest work with graphene is further proof of this. This development work is further proof of our ability to work with the very latest materials and innovators. At BAC we don’t wait for new technology to come to us, we actively seek it out and work with the very best in the industry to stay at the forefront of the automotive and motorsport industries.
"Making significant weight savings and improving body strength will allow us to offer improved performance to our customers. This is the latest in a line of ground-breaking innovations on the Mono, and we were delighted to have worked with graphene composite industry leaders, Haydale, on this exciting project."
Ebby Shahidi, Haydale Composite Solutions Ltd.’s Director of Aerospace and Defence added: "We are pleased to have worked on the design and development of the graphene enhanced carbon fibre materials for the BAC Mono. These initial materials have shown some major increases in impact and thermal performance coupled with improved surface finish and it’s pleasing to see these attributes being demonstrated on such a high performance vehicle as the Mono. We look forward to collaborating further with BAC and delivering even higher performance materials and components to increase the performance of this exciting vehicle."
BAC recently showcased the graphene enhanced Mono at the Science in the City festival in Manchester.
BAC Development Director and co-founder Neill Briggs said: "BAC is uniquely placed in the automotive industry to be able to take innovative steps, and latest work with graphene is further proof of this. This development work is further proof of our ability to work with the very latest materials and innovators. At BAC we don’t wait for new technology to come to us, we actively seek it out and work with the very best in the industry to stay at the forefront of the automotive and motorsport industries.
"Making significant weight savings and improving body strength will allow us to offer improved performance to our customers. This is the latest in a line of ground-breaking innovations on the Mono, and we were delighted to have worked with graphene composite industry leaders, Haydale, on this exciting project."
Ebby Shahidi, Haydale Composite Solutions Ltd.’s Director of Aerospace and Defence added: "We are pleased to have worked on the design and development of the graphene enhanced carbon fibre materials for the BAC Mono. These initial materials have shown some major increases in impact and thermal performance coupled with improved surface finish and it’s pleasing to see these attributes being demonstrated on such a high performance vehicle as the Mono. We look forward to collaborating further with BAC and delivering even higher performance materials and components to increase the performance of this exciting vehicle."
BAC recently showcased the graphene enhanced Mono at the Science in the City festival in Manchester.
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