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Carbon fiber has emerged as one of the most widely used materials for engineering and manufacturing purposes and has been extensively studied in the past decade. It has been widely used for manufacturing applications including aerospace, automotive, sports, wind, and civil construction, medical fields among others. This post explores the manufacturing processes and provides an in-depth understanding of the current manufacturing technologies, current and future challenges and solutions for its applications, and how they can be improved.
Manufacturing of Carbon Fiber:
The production process consists of several steps such as;
Step 1: Carbonization:
It is derived from a mixture of pitch (derived from crude oil) and petroleum naphtha (a mixture of various hydrocarbons). It is first liquefied and then heated to a temperature of 850 degrees Celsius in a furnace.
Step 2: Crystallization:
This is the heart of the whole production process. The molten, highly viscous, and highly amorphous pitch substance is rapidly cooled with gas until it solidifies. A crystal seed is introduced, which forms the crystalline lattice for the rest of the material. This lattice can grow into a long chain.
Step 3: Filament Spinning:
The fibers are now spun using a special spinning technology and then woven. The yarns are stretched by means of tensile forces and are stabilized during further processing by a special curing process.
Step 4: Curing:
Here, the individual fibers are stabilized so that they retain their high tensile strength.
Step 5: Drawing:
Finally, the fibers are drawn, whereby the long chain is broken down into individual threads to manufacture the best carbon fiber products.
The advantages of Carbon Fiber:
First and foremost, the properties of carbon fiber are extremely interesting for the aerospace and automotive industries, but also for the consumer market, such as in the sports sector. The main advantage is the great strength and stiffness at a low weight. It has 5 times the stiffness and 20 times the tensile strength of steel. At the same time, it weighs less than half as much.
The following properties distinguish the material from other materials:
High specific strength: It is extremely lightweight and has a high strength-to-weight ratio.
High modulus: This is the ratio of the stress on a material to its resulting strain.
High elongation at break: A material can be described as "elastic" if it can stretch and deform without breaking.
High fatigue strength: A material can withstand stress over and over again.
Good chemical resistance: Carbon fiber sheets can resist the effects of UV radiation, acids, oils, and alkalis.
Electrical isolation: It does not conduct electricity, so it is perfect for electronics and insulation.
Fireproof: In the event of a fire, it does not emit toxic gases or flames.
Good corrosion resistance: It is not corroded by many substances.
Challenges and Solutions in Manufacturing:
The real problem: How can this extremely difficult material be produced economically and in large quantities? The costs are currently very high, and this is a big obstacle to its wide-scale application.
- To give you a rough idea, the following numbers are a good starting point:
- It is currently about 100 times more expensive than steel.
- It costs up to 20 times as much to manufacture as steel.
- To produce the material, the manufacturer must invest in a factory and the appropriate technology.
- Production is a labor-intensive and complicated procedure.
- In addition, there is a lot of waste involved.
Solutions for the Future:
The solution is simple: To make the manufacturing process cheaper, the number of necessary steps must be reduced. This is done through the development of new technologies and the improvement of the current processes.
Here is a list of challenges that are currently being worked on:
- More efficient production of carbon fiber raw materials
- Less energy-intensive production process
- More economical production equipment
- Less waste
- Improved process chain
- Reduction of the price
- More economic manufacturing processes
- Less energy-intensive production procedures
- Less expensive production equipment
- Improved manufacturing procedures
- Lower-expense fabricating methods
The goal is to produce it at the lowest possible price and a good way to lower the cost is to produce it from scratch. This means that all the ingredients and equipment are purchased and assembled from scratch. Of course, the biggest problem with this method is the time required. And this can cause delays in production.
That's why the companies usually choose a different route. They buy the raw materials and then use them to produce the final product. It's still a lot of work, but it's a lot faster and cheaper. However, the companies have to be careful. If they are not careful, they can easily run into trouble. For example, they may end up with a product that is not as good as it could be. And they could have problems with quality control and customer service. It's not a risk-free method, but it's the fastest and cheapest way.
So, what can we learn from this?
Carbon fiber is shaping the future across various industries. It has tensile strength, low weight, and corrosion resistance. It has been used in various applications, including aerospace, automotive, sports, wind, and civil construction, among others. In the last two decades, there have been many innovations in the development of new technologies for its production, which have significantly contributed to the growth of the industry. For example, the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method has been developed as a new method for the production of carbon fibers and composites.
