Core tips：On Wednesday 5 March 2025, on the open stage at JEC World 25 in Paris, three teams of young engineers presented their work as part of the Young Engineer’s Challenge (YEC). The competition, organised by the Society of Advanced Manufacturing Process Enginee
The Canadian team won the Sampe challenge for young engineers on Wednesday 5 March 2025 at JEC World 25. Negar Aghigh, Ghita El Anbri and Etienne Leclerc, students at École Polytechnique de Montréal, convinced the jury with their research work entitled “Multi-material additive manufacturing of thermoplastic sandwich panels reinforced with recycled short fibres: a sustainable approach”. They were up against two other equally talented teams selected for this Young Engineer’s Challenge. The Spanish team of Eduardo Gonzalo, Irene Chichon and Alberto Perez discussed “Recycling from the bottom up”, while the British team of Jason Mccabe, John Mccaughey, Reuben Newell and Catherine Stewart presented their work entitled ‘Press to Impress – Where Pressure Makes Perfection’.
Each team had 15 minutes to present its project to a panel of judges made up of Charlotte Salaün (3M), Guy Larnac (Ariane), Tamara Blanco (Airbus), Jérôme Brouard (Dassault) and Julien Mallet (JEC).
Additive manufacturing project honoured
The winning method, developed by the finalists of the Challenge from Polytechnique Montréal, is based on the additive manufacture in a single step of a sandwich panel incorporating a recycled short-fibre reinforced thermoplastic material. This solution can be applied to all types of thermoplastic materials (PEEK, PPS, PEI), combining geometric customisation and improved mechanical properties with a reduced environmental footprint. Finite element analysis (FEA) modelling has been used to identify low-stress areas that can be effectively made from recycled materials.
In their presentation, the students highlighted several aspects of their project. Firstly, additive manufacturing using thermoplastic filaments and granules on multifunctional composites. Secondly, the circularity of high-performance composites in aeronautics, to encourage their recycling and continued industrial use. Finally, the use of simulation methods to improve the manufacture of thermoplastic sandwich panels reinforced with recycled short fibres.
“We first analysed how to use recycled materials from industry. Simulation can help integrate recycled materials into composites, particularly in highly stressed areas where the cohesion of materials can be limited,” explains Negar Aghigh, a second-year doctoral student in mechanical engineering at Polytechnique Montréal’s multiscale materials laboratory.
“We are working with thermoplastics, and one of the aims of our project is to come up with self-repairing composites that can detect and repair cracks or damage, for example by heating and incorporating sensors,” added Ghita El Anbri, a second-year doctoral student in industrial engineering.
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