Composite material reinforcement materials. Another important factor is the gross quantity of material to be produced. Large quantities can be used to justify high capital expenditures for rapid and automated manufacturing technology. Small production quantities are accommodated with lower capital expenditures but higher labour and tooling costs at a correspondingly slower rate. Many commercially produced composites use a polymer matrix material often called a resin solution. There are many different polymers available depending upon the starting raw ingredients. There are several broad categories, each with numerous variations. The most common are known as polyester, vinyl ester, epoxy, phenolic, polyimide, polyamide, polypropylene, PEEK,
Aluminum polymer composite Aluminum polymer composite An aluminum polymer composite (APC) material combines aluminum with a polymer to create materials with interesting characteristics. In 2014 researchers used a 3d laser printer to produce a polymer matrix. When coated with a 50-100 nanometer layer of aluminum oxide, the material was able to withstand loads of as much as 280 megapascals, stronger than any other known material whose density was less than , that of water. Spherical aluminum foam pieces bonded by polymers produced foams that were 80-95% metal. Such foams were test=manufactured on an automated assembly line and are under consideration as automobile parts.