Polar Technology and Ultima Forma announce a new market-ready electroformed leading-edge protection for composite structures
Polar Technology and Ultima Forma today announce the successful completion of the Leading-Edge Electro-Forms (LEEF) project, an Innovate-UK funded collaboration to develop and validate a market-ready electro-formed leading-edge protection solution, that significantly improves the capacity of composite structures to withstand erosion, impact and corrosion.
The LEEF project has demonstrated a significant step change in erosion resistance, delivering lightweight, high-performance leading-edge protection for composite aerospace structures while strengthening the UK's sovereign aerospace supply chain through innovative, UK-developed manufacturing capability.
The collaboration combined Ultima Forma’s advanced electroforming expertise with Polar Technology’s specialist composite manufacturing capability. Ultima Forma utilises electric currents to deposit a precision layer of nickel or nickel-cobalt onto a substrate, before Polar Technology applies the electroformed leading-edge protection to a composite structure using its advanced bonding and co-moulding manufacturing process.
Standard erosion testing demonstrated that composite structures fitted with the electroformed leading-edge protection exhibited an 88-fold improvement in erosion resistance compared with unprotected composite structures.
Back-to-back erosions trials were conducted using composite aerofoil sections in two configurations: baseline CFRP (Carbon Fibre Reinforced Polymer) and CFRP fitted with a protective electroformed nickel leading-edge guard, with both sets exposed to identical erosion conditions and assessed at increasing time intervals.
The unprotected CFRP sections exhibited severe material loss and surface degradation as exposure increased, while the nickel-guarded sections showed only minimal wear over the same test duration, demonstrating a step-change in erosion resistance under like-for-like conditions. The thickness of the electroformed metal can be tailored to maximise protection while minimising weight, delivering a 64% lower erosion rate than equivalent titanium solutions.
Given these strong outcomes, this project has many relevant and immediate potential applications across the aerospace and defence industries, including but not limited to rotor and propeller blades for eVTOL and UAV applications, aerofoils for turbine inlets, and outlet guide vanes for aircraft engines. Within aerospace, for example, further development of this technology could be an aesthetic solution for the protection of vulnerable composite leading edges from rain, sand, and debris. This could significantly increase their lifespan, eliminate structural delamination and reduce expensive maintenance downtime. Further research would determine if it could contribute to the structure’s resistance to lightning and bird strikes.
The LEEF project has been supported by various prominent organisations, including Short Brothers, a Boeing Company, and Vertical Aerospace, who are interested in the potential benefits it can offer their new aerospace applications.
The project has been part-funded by Innovate UK, the UK’s national innovation agency. Chaco van der Sijp, Innovation Lead at Innovate UK, said “LEEF demonstrates the power of collaboration to overcome technical barriers. Inspired by Polar Technology’s ambition to push the boundaries of composite technology in aerospace applications, Ultima Forma transformed the seemingly impossible challenge of electroforming composite wings into reality. The project marks the leading edge of a new generation of durable composite structures built for the harshest operating environments.”
Overall, the collaboration between Polar Technology and Ultima Forma on the LEEF project is a prime example of how UK businesses are identifying challenges and applying innovative engineering and manufacturing methodology to develop a market-ready solution that has genuine commercial and functional benefits.