Special Issue 'Reinforced Polymers in the Service of the Automotive Industry'

Reinforced polymers are amongst the materials that have had the most prominent production growth in the last decades. These materials have been applied to modern vehicles, with the aim of addressing the difficulty in combining the convenience of lightweight structures with the need to provide safety within these vehicles. Reinforced polymers allow structures to be reinforced exactly where needed through material design, and this material design can lead to light, stiff, and resistant vehicles. Additionally, thanks to emerging technologies, both in terms of materials and processes, reinforced polymers are also able to offer valid responses to the request of eco-sustainability. This special issue welcomes studies that portray innovative usage of reinforced polymers, characterization techniques, and reinforced and matrix materials in vehicle and transport applications