BLOODHOUND SSC is the world’s first 1000 mph car and it will begin its land speed record campaign in South Africa in the summer of 2017.
Graphite Additive Manufacturing, a supplier of 3D printed parts produced in high performance materials for the most demanding applications in motor sport, has been named as the latest Product Sponsor for the BLOODHOUND Project.
Product Sponsors support the project in many ways including; advising on design considerations and material choices for the manufacture of key components of the rocket and jet powered BLOODHOUND Supersonic Car.
Graphite has been specifically selected to provide 3D printed, carbon fibre reinforced selective laser sintered (SLS*) parts such as ducts, covers and brackets, which will be utilised as final components on the car. The laser sintered parts will have a temperature resistance of 170ºC and be up to 400 mm in length in one piece.
Graphite is in a unique position to support the project as it is the only service bureau in the UK market with a dedicated machine to run carbon fibre reinforced SLS parts.
The carbon fibre filled SLS material offered by Graphite provides the highest stiffness-to-weight ratio and strength-to-weight ratio of any 3D-printed plastic available on the market today making it ideal for this specialist application. This proven product has been the material of choice on Formula One cars for a number of years, combining enhanced mechanical properties of low density, high stiffness and sustainable accuracy at elevated temperatures with relatively cost effective pricing, providing an already proven solution for this and many other applications.
The car is supersonic as it is designed to go faster than the speed of sound and with its slender body of approximately 14 m in length, and weighing in at over 7.5 tonnes, the engines produce more than 135,000 horsepower. Interestingly, the design is a mix of motor sport and aircraft technology with the front half being a carbon fibre monocoque like a racing car and the back half being a metallic framework and panels like an aircraft.
