Fernando Oliveira

Fernando has a master’s degree in materials engineering and a PhD in biomedical engineering from the Universidade do Minho. He has worked at Citeve since 2016 as a project manager and team member on R&D projects related to the development of smart textiles, technical textiles and textile-based composites for automotive applications. His projects include iParasol, iHEATEX, TexBoost, PAC (Portugal AutoCluster for the Future), FDPANEL (Future Door Panel), Be.Neutral and Be@T (Bioeconomy at Textiles).

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Presentation

Textile-based composites for structural and decorative automotive applications

Textile-based composite solutions are a growing trend in the automotive sector, not only for structural applications but also for interior decorative purposes. These solutions take advantage of a wide array of materials ranging from natural fibers to high-performance yarns such as carbon or basalt, and conductive yarns that provide the structure with smart functionalities. Advanced textile manufacturing techniques allow the combination of these materials into hybrid yarns and fabrics, or complex tailored structures integrating smart elements that can be processed into composite parts with improved aesthetics, high performance, integration of smart features and low environmental impact.