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Additive Manufacturing
Additive ManufacturingAdditive manufacturing is another potential market for the application of recycled carbon fibers.
For example, Shocker Composites compounded its recycled carbon fibers into 20% to 40% reinforced ABS filaments, and used the large-area additive manufacturing 3D printing process of the Cincinnati company in the United States.
The successful application of this material is demonstrated
.
In addition, Vartega is leveraging its carbon fiber recycling technology and material development experience to provide polymer feedstocks for powder bed fusion additive manufacturing
.
The company recently received a Small Business Innovation Research grant from the US National Science Foundation to conduct R&D in this area
.
Vartega is also developing a process to allow the reinforcement of thermoplastic powders with carbon fibers and to ensure that functional parts can be produced using this material in infrared additive systems
.
According to reports, this development will allow digital manufacturers to realize the full potential of new powder-based hardware platforms to produce parts with similar properties to injection molding materials at moderate yields
.
"By offering carbon fiber-reinforced polymer powders, manufacturers in industries such as drones and medical prosthetics will benefit from fast, complex and custom 3D printing, while ensuring their material choices demonstrate what their products require Structural integrity
," said Alice Havill, CEO of Vartega
.
other apps
other appsAt the same time, other markets and application areas where recycled carbon fiber can play a role are emerging
.
The Composites Recycling Technology Center (CRTC) has been exploring the use of recycled carbon fiber in a variety of products, from station benches to high-performance sporting goods to composite tubing
.
The company uses recycled uncured prepreg from Toray Composites America and recycled carbon fiber from ELG
.
CRTC CEO Dave Walter pointed to the construction industry as a potential growth area
.
Using a patent-pending process, the company has recently developed a construction-grade cross-laminated lumber that combines heat-modified wood with recycled carbon fiber
.
This thermal modification burns off sugar and lignin to provide corrosion and termite resistance, and then adds carbon fiber tape for strength
.
This construction-grade cross-laminated lumber combines heat-modified wood with recycled carbon fiber from the U.
S.
Composites Recycling Technology Center (image via the U.
S.
Composites Recycling Technology Center)
CRTC also uses recycled carbon fiber to make panels with bonded wood veneers
.
These panels showcase the beauty of wood for a variety of interior and exterior applications in a strong, lightweight and flexible base, such as those used for Seattle's Benaroya Concert Hall in 2019
.
Sheets used in Octave 9 Rathbeck Music Center-Benaroa Concert Hall (image courtesy of American Composites Recycling Technology Center)
Has the perception of the recycled carbon fiber industry changed?
Has the perception of the recycled carbon fiber industry changed?Big changes tend to be incremental, and the relatively young recycled carbon fiber industry is moving forward continuously and slowly
.
As recycled carbon fiber continues to be down-cycled, perceptions of the material are starting to change
.
The quality of this fiber has been proven and the craftsmanship is constantly improving
.
Recognizing the need to recycle carbon fiber, high-level and more people are involved
.
"ELG's partnership with Boeing is really a big deal, and it helps all sides move forward to accelerate the connection of the supply chain,
" Maxey said.
"Our role here is to initiate and connect the dots
.
We have Enabling technology in the middle of the supply chain, but our real purpose is to connect idle assets in the waste stream with unmet demand downstream
.
”
According to Mark Mauhar of Carbon Conversions, the biggest change is that suppliers now want to be part of the solution
.
“Two years ago, we were getting multiple weekly calls from suppliers to dispose of scrap with no interest in using these materials, and now people are taking action
.
Just recently, we’ve finally started to see the potential of recycled carbon fiber.
Customers spend a lot of resources on cutting molding dies, constructing prototypes and solid models, and solving machining problems, all of which, of course, are far from commercial application,
” he said
.
Perhaps what is really needed is patience
.
Detlef Drafz, CEO of ELG, notes that it is helpful to look back at the history of recycling other traditional materials: “For more than 50 years, ELG has recycled raw materials for the stainless steel industry
.
For metals, it is even possible to make turbine blades from scrap in a vacuum furnace… Recycled metal is widely thought of as a raw material that can be used when properly processed, but this was not common in aerospace applications 25 years ago
.
However, we have established supply chains that guarantee the performance of materials
.
Now, We are doing the same thing
.
"
