Tempe – May 5th2017 ---Solvay is proud to congratulate the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) on the first flight of its new aircraft C919.
COMAC’s single aisle C919 commercial airliner was developed to meet growing air transportation demand in the region but is also intended for export sales. To date, COMAC has received570orders for the C919.
In 2012, Solvay - at the time Cytec - was awarded a long-term agreement to supply high-performance, structural composite and adhesive materials for COMAC’s C919 commercial aircraft via Shanghai Aircraft Manufacturing Company who is responsible for theC919 aircraft’smanufacture:
- In total, nine prepreg specifications and seven adhesive specifications were qualified with Solvay products for the C919 program and were used across the aircraft’s structure. Solvay’s CYCOM®977-2 and CYCOM®X850 prepregs, toughened epoxy materials ideal for primary and secondary structure applications were utilized on the horizontal stabilizer, rear pressure bulkhead, aileron and flaps. CYCOM®970 and CYCOM®7701, two epoxy prepregs producing void-free honeycomb sandwich and monolithic structures were respectively used on the rudder, elevator, winglets, spoiler, wing-to-body fairings and on the radome.
- Various adhesives for metal and composite bonding were also selected.
Carmelo Lo Faro, President of Solvay Composite Materials, said “We are proud to support COMAC in their efforts to advance the Chinese aerospace industry, enabling them to position themselves for growth and to use composites successfully on a range of applications on the C919. We look forward to continuing with our collaborative work with COMAC for their future programs”.
Solvay Research & Innovation and Technical Services teams worked closely with the company’s authorized distributor in China, Argosy International Inc., who provided sales and logistics support for material procurement for this program.
Solvay is a multi-specialty chemical company, committed to developing chemistry that addresses key societal challenges. Solvay innovates and partners with customers in diverse global end markets. Its products and solutions are used in planes, cars, smart and medical devices, batteries, in mineral and oil extraction, among many other applications promoting sustainability. Its lightweighting materials enhance cleaner mobility, its formulations optimize the use of resources and its performance chemicals improve air and water quality. Solvay is headquartered in Brussels with around 27,000 employees in 58 countries. Net sales were € 10.9 billion in 2016, with 90% from activities where Solvay ranks among the world’s top 3 leaders. Solvay SA (SOLB.BE) is listed on Euronext Brussels and Paris (Bloomberg: SOLB.BB - Reuters: SOLB.BR) and in the United States its shares (SOLVY) are traded through a level-1 ADR program.
