Aluminum Honeycomb Carbon Fiber Sandwich Panel by ACP Composites

ACP Composites' AL-X Aluminum Honeycomb Sandwich Panels are engineered to endure Earth's atmosphere, ensuring mission success for unmanned satellites. Crafted from materials with proven flight heritage and precision processing, these panels serve structural roles, shielding, and protection in diverse satellite designs. Customizable to withstand varied launch loads and accommodate subsystem attachments. Featuring aerospace-grade HexWeb CR III Aluminum Honeycomb Core, these panels boast excellent corrosion resistance, high strength-to-weight ratio, and fatigue resistance. The HexWeb CR III coating provides superior protection, forming a stable, adherent bond. Carbon fiber face sheets, favored for weight reduction and superior stiffness, are bonded to the core with low outgassing, aerospace-grade film adhesive. While carbon fiber excels in specific scenarios, aluminum may be preferred for thermal management, radiation shielding, cost, or ease of fabrication. Offering 5052 and 5056 alloys, post-processing options include Potted Inserts, Edge Closeouts, 3-axis CNC Machining, and more. Compliant with NASA outgassing requirements, these panels offer custom core thicknesses and high-volume processing capabilities.

• ACP Composites AL-X Aluminum Honeycomb Sandwich Panels are built to withstand the Earths atmosphere where unmanned satellites desire to orbit and ensure mission success goals. Constructed of materials with flight heritage and processed with precision. These sandwich panels are widely used in a variety of satellite designs to serve structural functions, shielding, and protection. These panels can be customized to support various resist launch loads and provide attachment points for subsystems.
• Manufactured with aerospace grade HexWeb CR III Aluminum Honeycomb Core, these sandwich panels features excellent corrosion resistance, high strength and rigidity to weight ratio, and high fatigue resistance. The HexWeb CR III coating offers superior protection for aluminum honeycomb exposed to corrosive environments. It offers a clear protective film that interacts with the aluminum surface forming a stable, tightly adherent bond. The coating is primarily an organometallic polymer type that differs from the normal conversion-type corrosion protective coatings.
• The face sheet, or skin of the panel is an Carbon Fiber CFRP bonded to the Aluminum Honeycomb Core with low outgassing, aerospace grade film adhesive.Carbon fiber face sheets are favored when weight reduction is critical, as they offer a higher strength-to-weight ratio than aluminum. They also provide superior stiffness and corrosion resistance, which can be advantageous in specific scenarios. However, for applications prioritizing thermal management, radiation shielding, cost, or ease of fabrication, aluminum often comes out ahead.
• If you have a specific panel design or mission profile in mind, reach out and we can discuss you requirements!
• 5052 and 5056 alloys available.
• Post-processing options to include:
• Potted Inserts
• Edge Closeouts
• 3-axis CNC Machining
• Core only machining
• Multi-layer insulation (MLI)
• Doubler Application
• Cleco or Rivnut Assembly
• MIL-Spec Industry Standard Surface Finishes
• Custom packaging
• Customer-owned materials accepted
• Feature Benefits
• Compliant with NASA outgassing TVL % & CVCM % exposure requirements
• Custom core thicknesses, cell diameters, and densities available
• High-volume processing capabilities
• Customer-owned materials accepted
• Co-curing capability
• 60 x 120 max footprint processing
• Core splicing capability