Aluula Composites, an advanced materials technology firm, has reported the addition of a new brand partner, Incidence Sails, to introduce a new generation of ultra-light, strong, and recycle-ready composite material for use in sailmaking.

After two years of thorough testing both on and off the water, Incidence Sails is the first to commercialise Aluula Durlyte, primarily for critical sail reinforcements such as batten pockets, bolt ropes and high wear points such as stanchions and spreaders, but additional applications include deck sweepers and sail bags. With 10x the abrasion resistance of competing materials and an extremely low friction surface, Aluula Durlyte is changing what's possible in both sail design and performance.

Incidence Sails is supplying skipper Paul Meilhat’s IMOCA Biotherm race boat with high-performance sails for The Ocean Race, one of sailing’s greatest round-the-world racing challenges. With a deck sweeper and various critical reinforcements made with Aluula Durlyte on the team’s boat, the initial applications of this material are proving to exceed expectations in extreme conditions.

In addition to being an industry leader in performance sail design, Incidence Sails is committed to creating a more sustainable future. As an inherently recycle-ready material, Aluula Durlyte is a key ingredient towards sustainable sailmaking, the two companies said in a media release.

Aluula Composites uses a patented fusion technology to bond technical films to a UHMWPE core, resulting in a new generation of performance composite fabrics that deliver unique and superior performance results. This ‘process, rather than a product’ allows for a wide range of iterations to meet a broad range of applications.

“Our DFi filamentary membrane allows us to offer the best weight/performance compromise for our sails. But care must be taken to preserve this optimisation work right down to the finishing touches, which is not always easy for the most stressed sails. With a material like Durlyte, our floor crews can make reinforcements at the chafe points with very high abrasion resistance without weighing down the sail or altering its behaviour,” Vincent Maris, Incidence Technologies R&D manager, said.

“Given the astounding performance impact Aluula has had on kiteboarding and wingfoiling, sailing is a natural next step. The combination of Durlyte’s extreme abrasion, tear and UV resistance coupled with zero water absorption make it an attractive choice for a technical sail brand such as Incidence Sails in reducing the weight of their sails while greatly improving durability,” said Aluula Composites director of partner innovation and design, Dave Westwood.