Technical textiles in transport (land, sea and air)

Technical textiles feature throughout the transport sector where they are used in functional roles such as reinforcement in flexible composites, for example tyres, and rigid composites as structural elements. These latter function as metal replacements and so offer the main means of reducing overall vehicle mass to yield improvement in fuel efficiency. In parallel, increases in vehicle safety are driven by developments in technical textiles such as passenger seat belts and airbags. However, one essential feature that many vehicle components require, especially in passenger compartments, is a minimal level of fire resistance and as land, marine and air transport becomes more safety conscious, achieves higher velocities and capacities and increasingly uses composites within their structural components as a means of weight reduction, so the potential flammability of all materials used to construct them becomes of increasing importance. This chapter is divided into three parts the first of which discusses technical textiles used as reinforcements of flexible and so-called mechanical rubber products which include tyres, hoses and drive beltings. Secondly, those products that increase passenger passive safety such as seat belts and airbags are outlined. Finally components and products which require certified levels of fire resistance, usually defined by international regulations and fire standards, are described for land, marine and air commercial transport. This section in particular, describes the major uses of technical textiles having both technical and aesthetic properties, especially within the passenger compartments, as well as composites for structural components, their respective fire risks, test regimes and favoured textile materials