- Capability group
- Advanced Materials & Manufacturing
- Domain
- Critical Technology · Hard Power
- Identifier
- factbase.org/cap/3GKXK8FP0G
- Reference
- Composite material Wikipedia
Papers
44k
2020–2024
Paper growth
+18%
2020–24 on 2015–19
Patent families
57k
2020–2024
Filed abroad
19%
families in more than one office
In the framework
What the capability covers and what it leaves to others, and the indicators it will be measured by.
Bounds
Covers the materials and their qualification, absorbing the protection node; the platforms built from them register under other domains, and armour as fielded equipment is an indicator under the force capabilities of National Security.
Lineage
Carried from v0.0 (formerly Advanced composite materials) with the same identifier, absorbing Advanced protection (retired): protection is an application of structural materials, not a separate national capacity, and its evidence persists at the discover layer.
Indicators
- research publication share in structural materialsResearch
- patent families in composites and alloysPatents
- advanced composites production capacityPending
Research
Papers classified to the capability, by year and by the nation of their authors' institutions, 2020–2024. Read from the v0.0 research topics Advanced composite materials and Advanced protection.
Papers by year
The five leading nations, papers by year
Share of papers, 2020–2024
Of papers with a known author nation; 32% have none and are left out.
- 1China19.8%7,151 papers
- 2India9.7%3,492 papers
- 3United States7.9%2,840 papers
- 4Russia7.5%2,694 papers
- 5United Kingdom4.0%1,444 papers
- 6Germany3.5%1,265 papers
- 7France2.8%1,014 papers
- 8Iran2.5%895 papers
- 9Türkiye2.5%890 papers
- 10Italy2.3%844 papers
Leading institutions, 2020–2024
By fractional count: each paper divided among its authors' institutions.
- 1Northwestern Polytechnical University260fractional papers
- 2Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics252fractional papers
- 3Harbin Institute of Technology243fractional papers
- 4Beihang University158fractional papers
- 5Donghua University135fractional papers
- 6Shanghai Jiao Tong University134fractional papers
- 7Dalian University of Technology121fractional papers
- 8Vellore Institute of Technology University115fractional papers
- 9Central South University114fractional papers
- 10Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique111fractional papers
Patents
Patent families by the nation of origin of their applicants and their earliest priority year, from the CPC and IPC classes the capability is read from. 2025 onwards is incomplete: families are published 18 months after priority.
Families by priority year
The five leading origins, families by year
12,639 applicants filed here in 2015–2024; the five largest held 5% of families (HHI 17 of 10,000: unconcentrated).
Share of families by origin, 2020–2024
- 1China69.9%39,845 families
- 2Japan10.1%5,750 families
- 3South Korea5.2%2,961 families
- 4United States5.2%2,959 families
- 5Germany2.0%1,165 families
- 6France2.0%1,159 families
- 7Taiwan0.9%495 families
- 8United Kingdom0.5%309 families
- 9Denmark0.4%225 families
- 10Italy0.4%215 families
Applicants filing most internationally, 2015–2024
Families filed in more than one office, by applicant as the offices name them.
- 1BOEING CO734international families
- 2TORAY INDUSTRIES473international families
- 3NIPPON STEEL CORP344international families
- 4GEN ELECTRIC316international families
- 5RTX CORP248international families
- 6TOYOTA MOTOR CO LTD247international families
- 7SAFRAN AIRCRAFT ENGINES245international families
- 8TOYOTA MOTOR CORP244international families
- 9PANASONIC IP MAN CO LTD234international families
- 10NIPPON STEEL & SUMITOMO METAL CORP229international families
Classification read
- C08J5/04 Polymers reinforced with fibres · 92k documents
- C08J5/24 Prepregs: fibre materials impregnated with curable resin · 72.3k documents
- B29C70/04 Shaping fibre-reinforced plastic composites · 337.1k documents
- C04B35/71 Ceramic-matrix composites with reinforcing fibres or whiskers · 42.1k documents
- D01F9/12 Carbon fibre and its manufacture · 41.2k documents
- C22C14/00 Titanium alloys · 22.2k documents
- C22C19/00 Nickel and cobalt alloys, including superalloys · 82.8k documents
- C22C21/00 Aluminium alloys · 130.4k documents
- C22C23/00 Magnesium alloys · 22.1k documents
- C22C27/00 Refractory-metal alloys such as tungsten, molybdenum, niobium · 20.8k documents
- C22C30/00 Multi-principal-element alloys, including high-entropy alloys · 36.2k documents
- C22C47/00 Making fibre-reinforced metal-matrix composites · 15.6k documents
Shares inventions with
Capabilities whose classes the same families also fall in, by overlap (Jaccard).
- Additive & Precision Manufacturing1,787 families · 0.027
- Functional Materials & Coatings1,193 families · 0.022
- Nanomaterials & Metamaterials631 families · 0.013
Companies
51 companies in this capability, across 8 regions. The leading 12:
- 1Toray IndustriesWorld's largest carbon fibre producer (Torayca, including Zoltek large-tow and Toray Advanced Composites prepregs), primary supplier of the carbon fibre in the Boeing 787 and the second-largest PCT patent applicant in this field.Manufacture
- 2HexcelLeading Western maker of aerospace-grade carbon fibre (HexTow), prepregs and honeycomb, qualified on the Airbus A350 and on most US military aircraft.Manufacture
- 3Howmet AerospaceLargest maker of nickel-superalloy and titanium jet-engine castings, forged structural parts and aerospace fasteners, spun out of Arconic (founded 1888 as Alcoa).Manufacture
- 4TeijinMakes Tenax carbon fibre and Twaron and Technora aramid fibres used in aerospace composites and ballistic protection.Manufacture
- 5Precision Castparts Corp.Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary that makes complex superalloy and titanium castings and forgings (Wyman-Gordon) and titanium mill products (TIMET) for engines and airframes.Manufacture
- 6SyensqoSpun out of Solvay (Cytec heritage); supplies toughened aerospace prepregs, adhesives and thermoplastic composites (CYCOM, PEEK/PEKK) used on F-35, Boeing and Airbus programmes.Equipment & materials
- 7Mitsubishi Chemical GroupOne of the three Japanese carbon fibre majors (Pyrofil fibre and prepreg, pitch-based Dialead), with carbon fibre composite plants in Japan, the US and Europe.Manufacture
- 8ATIProduces titanium and nickel-based alloys, superalloy powders and forgings for jet engines and airframes, and armour plate.Manufacture
- 9Nippon SteelAmong the top patent applicants for advanced high-strength steels, titanium and structural alloys; now also owns U.S. Steel.Manufacture
- 10GE AerospaceMakes ceramic matrix composites end to end, from silicon carbide fibre in Huntsville to CMC parts in Asheville, for LEAP and GE9X hot sections, and is a top patent applicant in the field.Research
- 11SGL CarbonEurope's main carbon fibre and specialty graphite producer, making carbon-fibre materials, carbon-ceramic and C/C composites for industrial and automotive uses.Manufacture
- 12Carpenter TechnologySpecialty-alloy maker of premium nickel and cobalt superalloys, titanium and alloy powders for aerospace and defence.Manufacture
