3rd TAGRA

The F1 Halo component, mandated to protect drivers' heads, is manufactured from Grade 5 titanium (Ti-6Al-4V) per FIA Standard 8869-2018, yet strict weight limits make every kilogram critical to vehicle performance. This study investigates whether carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites can offer a lighter alternative to titanium without compromising FIA safety requirements. Six candidate materials, including standard-modulus T700 and high-modulus M46J, were defined in Ansys Material Designer using fabric-epoxy systems with 0°, ±10°, and ±30° shear angles; the Halo geometry was imported as an STL file and simplified through surface wrapping. Two static load cases reflecting FIA standards, with combined vertical and lateral forces of 116 kN/46 kN and 122 kN/46 kN, were applied to each material, and maximum displacement and principal stress were compared against titanium. Results obtained at the 0° fiber orientation show that M46J experiences 6.6% higher stress than titanium but achieves substantially lower deformation than IM7 carbon, reducing displacement by 24% in Test 1 and 19% in Test 2, while still meeting FIA displacement and permanent-deformation criteria. These findings indicate that high-modulus carbon fiber composites can meet FIA static safety requirements while reducing Halo system weight by up to 60%, offering a promising alternative for motorsport structural design. Since only static linear loading was examined, dynamic impact tests and the brittle fracture and delamination behavior specific to composites were excluded from this analysis; unlike titanium's ductile behavior, the potential for sudden and unpredictable fracture in composites should be regarded as an important limitation of these findings. Future work should extend this analysis to dynamic crash simulations, incorporate failure criteria such as Tsai-Wu and Puck and validate the findings through physical prototype testing.