With the creation of this chair, which will benefit from investments totalling more than $2.4 million, Polytechnique Montréal says that it will become one of the first universities in the world to build a large-scale 3D composite laboratory for the aerospace industry.
The chair also benefits from the research infrastructure provided over the last few years by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the Government of Québec and other partners. This state-of-the-art equipment represents a total investment of $5.4 million.
The use of innovative 3D materials in the aerospace industry poses significant challenges, because these materials must be resistant to impact, fatigue and, in some cases, temperatures exceeding 1,200°C. Not to mention the requirement to certify rotating parts to zero defects!
To meet these challenges, the NSERC-Safran Industrial Research Chair on novel 3D composite materials for the aerospace industry, held by Professor Edu Ruiz, is undertaking research work at Polytechnique.
"We will cover the full development of new solutions destined for the aerospace industry: we will work on both the creation of 3D composite nanomaterials and the development of new manufacturing processes for large structures," Professor Ruiz says. "We will then use these innovations to build industrial-scale prototypes. This approach is fairly unique in our field of research. As well, our partnership with the Safran group, a world leader in aerospace, will enable us to develop scientific solutions that address the concerns and challenges of the high-end products industry."
