The growing demand to reduce CO₂ emissions from cars has led automotive OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) to invest heavily in electrification and weight reduction. Similarly, the aviation industry is looking to reduce CO₂ emissions. Electric bikes, boards and scooters are redefining mobility in today's cities. These new forms of sustainable mobility are made possible by innovations in advanced materials, especially lightweight materials.

Demand for these materials will dramatically outstrip current production over the next 10 to 15 years. In summary, composites are a key strategic area for improving the resilience of the EU mobility industry and their development has the potential to disrupt the mobility sectors.

The FURHY project aims to put Europe at the forefront of the development of a new, bio-based, smart and fully recyclable composite material obtained by a fast and low energy out-of-autoclave process. The matrix will consist of a new bio-based epoxy resin formulation filled with expanded graphite (EG), which will play a multiple role in improving both the material and the manufacturing process by providing smart functions. A hybrid composite will be developed using hemp and recycled carbon fibre (rCF) to maximise environmental benefits from a life cycle perspective. Hybridisation will make it possible to exploit the advantages of both fibres while minimising their disadvantages. The manufacturing process will be a low energy version of prepreg compression moulding (PCM). Aeronautics and automotive are the main sectors of interest.

Project partners

• ONYRIQ - Spain
• OLGUN CELIK - Turkey
• CENTEXBEL - Belgium
• GEN2CARBON - U.K.
• University of Salerno, RINA Consulting, LEONARDO Company, and NANOTECH - Italy