BMW 2010 Annual Report Download - page 196

FUTURE
Megacity Vehicle
14
Sometimes it is the little things that make the
biggest di erence. This particular detail is tiny, in fact,
butits potential to change things may well be
huge. The diameter of a carbon-fi bre measures just
0.007millimetres – just a seventh of that of a human
hair – but the possibilities it opens up are astounding.
This ultra-modern composite material, made from
acombination of carbon-fi bres and synthetic resin,
boasts some very impressive properties. Carbon-fi bre
reinforced plastic, or CFRP, is more robust than
steel, but less than half its weight; resistant but
highly malleable; versatile and relatively easy to
work with. Up until now, CFRP was mostly used in the
aerospace industry, in racing cars and wind rotors –
wherever heavy-duty, lightweight materials with high
rigidity and strength are needed. These properties
also make CFRP the ideal material for the body of the
Megacity Vehicle, a car which will mark the beginning
of a brand new chapter in sustainable automobile
design and production.
This may seem surprising, since the initial stages
in the life of a CFRP are fairly complex. Producing car-
bon-fi bre reinforced plastic entails chemically modi-
fying polyacrylnitrile fi bres at di erent temperatures
to
make a stable fi bre of substantially pure carbon. This
is a relatively energy-intensive process. That is why,
early in the development process, the Megacity Vehicle
project team started looking for a production loca-
tion
with a steady, competitively priced supply of sus-
tainable energy. They found what they were looking
for in Moses Lake, in the US state of Washington,
where the hydroelectric power plants of the Columbia
Making CFRP needs a lot of energy.
Nature provides an abundant supply
at the Moses Lake location.
3
Human hair in relation to carbon-fibre
Diameter in mm
Human hair
Carbon fibre
0.007
0.050