Sustainability is a major topic in almost every industry today. Companies that set out to tackle a composite material project are starting to consider the kind of impact they make on the environment. Many firms have been able to eliminate toxic chemicals and other hazards from their workflows, which has helped to drastically reduce their impact on the environment.
Reducing Your Carbon Footprint
Composite materials have several advantages that are particularly attractive to those who are working on reducing their carbon footprint. They’re extremely resilient, which means that end-users won’t have to replace parts made out of them nearly as often as they would if they were using steel or iron components.
Steel is notable for its durability as well, but it can eventually corrode. Increasing the amount of chromium in stainless steel components can help to increase their corrosion resistance, but this isn’t exactly an environmentally friendly process. As a result, more engineers are signing onto a composite material project than ever before.
Iron components corrode even more quickly since ferrous material tends to attract rust. Some engineers have suggested that designers restrict themselves to using organic materials, but these have their issues as well.
While wood has the benefit of being natural, it isn’t always durable. Wood and laminate products will eventually start breaking down, and certain environments can increase the rate at which they do.
Choose Composite Material
As a result, those concerned with longevity have a tendency to pick composite materials over other options. Composites are rather lightweight as well, which is good for those who are building automobiles or aircraft. Lighter vehicles generally use less fuel, so they make less of an impact on the environment.
Scientists are now looking into new ways to recycle composite materials, to help further cement the choice of environmentally-conscious engineers. Visit SMI Composites for more information about this groundbreaking research.