Public Funding for Fiba Tech Industries Limited

The rise of the global electric vehicle (EV) market has led to a major upheaval in the braking sector due to the use of regenerative braking systems, which reduce the use of conventional brakes by 95%. This was expected to end the routine replacement of brake pads, however, experience on vehicles like the Chevrolet Volt, Kia Soul and Toyota Prius has shown that, while the friction material can last up to 100k miles, brake pads must be replaced in as little 7.5k miles due to corrosion of the steel backing plate debonding the friction material. This is because brakes are no longer used often enough to prevent excessive moisture build up. In addition, the corrosion itself is a key component of non-exhaust emissions, an area soon to be heavily legislated against in the upcoming Euro 7 standards. Furthermore, modern EVs still require conventional brakes for scenarios where more than 0.4g of deceleration is required and emergency stopping scenarios and must be designed to work in the advent of failure of the regenerative system. Given that EVs weigh on average 25% more than their combustion engine counterparts, this requires reciprocally bigger and heavier conventional braking systems, impacting range and emissions whilst being effectively redundant for the vast majority of braking scenarios. Tribol Braking Ltd. has found a highly effective solution to this problem in the form of carbon fibre composite backing plates (CBPs) that match the performance of steel plates, are 70% lighter, are immune to corrosion issues and will therefore perform as a lifetime item. This saves resources, cuts waste and emissions, and improves vehicle range. In addition, the composite used possesses extremely low thermal conductivity compared to metals. This makes the CBP extremely attractive to the race sector, where the lightweighting coupled with the significantly reduced risk of brake fluid boil offers a noticeable advantage over metal plates. Importantly for the prospects of mass adoption in the automotive sector, motorsport has a longstanding reputation for being the testbed for new technologies making their way to passenger cars and the mass market. The CBPs, developed with the University of Exeter, use a unique combination of materials and specialised surface treatments that allow optimised bonding of the new plates to the friction material. Brake pads using our technology have passed all industry standard and internal qualifications and are ready to make their presence felt in the $8.2bn brake pad market.

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The objective of the project is to research and develop a range of composite materials (known as bulk moulding compounds) using recycled carbon fibres reclaimed from end-of-life (EOL) aircraft and aerospace production waste. The material will be suitable for large scale volume production of lightweight automotive components, using material that is currently sent to landfill or burned. This approach will reduce the environmental impact of the vehicle through reduced energy usage in manufacturing when compared to the production of virgin carbon fibres. All the consortium members are UK based but the output has large scale export potential and job creation possibilities. GKN can supply aviation waste CFRP and process the developed material giving a circular supply chain. FTI Group will develop the BMC materials and TTUK supply the reclaimed fibres.

"The car industry is set to undergo a fundamental change as the deployment of EVs is expected to continue to show double digit growth, with multiple new market entrants, encouraged further by clean air initiatives from 2025 to reinforce trends. Additionally, greater automation and the prospect of the driverless car is looming, where from 2020- 2030 onwards initial offerings from major OEMs are expected. EVs and Level 4 &5 Fully Autonomous Vehicles (AV) will utilise Regenerative Braking Systems (RBS) which introduces a fundamentally new method of decelerating the vehicle. This means the need to convert kinetic into thermal energy is significantly reduced and foundation brakes can therefore, can be fundamentally re-designed. Right now, the vast majority of cars use braking components (calipers and discs) made from heavy grey cast iron -the material of choice for the last 80 years and deployed on almost all cars. The only alternative is carbon ceramic technology -- extremely expensive, taking months and vast amounts of energy to manufacture. **Full-Stop** offers the market a third alternative, -a viable system that is far lighter than cast iron but with matching performance in all industry standard tests, but also with comparable cost, -with a simple manufacturing process that's fast and clean. Full-Stop utilises the latest advances in high temperature tolerant composite materials, to deliver a foundation braking system (Callipers/discs and pads) with a 60% weight saving, whist still performing to the highest rating for these safety-critical components. **Full- Stop** brings together two preceding Innovate-UK initiatives -- 1) BRAKETHRU, a 2yr program focused on the composite brake disc, where a new disc architecture was born and is now being patented. 2) CABTEC -- a short study focused on developing polymer composite calipers and lightweight brake pads, where feasibility had been demonstrated and a first prototype produced by project end (March-2018). **The Full --Stop** objective is to raise the TRL level and prepare for commercialisation. Whilst the BRAKETHRU outcomes are extremely encouraging, a more extensive longer term testing programme is required, along with a whole raft of OEM-specific, and environmental testing in order to establish performance under all feasible conditions together with demonstrating the scalability to other vehicle types, and investigate noise performance, corrosion resistance and other desirable commercial aspects. CABTEC needs to progress into a full R&D program involving several more iterations of the current composite calliper prototype, and a full on-vehicle test programme."