HVRCFM Report Summary

Proje ct ID: 296722

Funde d unde r: FP7-JTI
Country: Unite d Kingdom

Final Repo rt Summary - HVRCFM (T he Co nversio n o f Recycled Carbo n Fibre Yarn and
T ape Into High Value Fabrics and Materials)
Exe cutive Summary:
1.1 Exe cutive Summary

This proje ct was targe te d at ide ntifying s ource s of re cycle d and/or re cove re d carbon fibre s and de ve loping
te chnologie s to conve rt the m into re inforce me nts by ble nding the m with othe r s uitable raw mate rials . The s e
re inforce me nts can e ve ntually be combine d with the rmos e t and/or the rmoplas tic re s ins for manufacture of compos ite
parts for a varie ty of applications . The obje ctive s of the proje ct we re s ucce s s fully achie ve d in the s tipulate d time -
frame .

The e ntire proje ct was divide d into s e parate work package s which e ncompas s e d all the obje ctive s for the proje ct. The
diffe re nt work package s are de s cribe d be low which s ummariz e the outline of the proje ct

WP1 - De te rmine s ource mate rials for re cove ry of was te mate rials

WP2 - De ve lopme nt of hybrid yarn and tape mate rials s uitable for downs tre am proce s s ing in the rmos e t compos ite
manufacture .

WP3 - De fine s uitable we ave s tyle s or mate rial s tructure for the s ample s to be provide d.
Provide pe rform mate rials as re quire d for s ampling purpos e s .
Provide a me thod of fabric conve rs ion s uitable for the e nd us e r and the yarn prope rtie s .

WP4 - Characte ris ation of mate rials produce d at yarn and fabric s tage s .

WP5 - De live r the de s ire d mate rial to s upport JTI-CS-2011-1-ECO-01-25 call.

Proje ct Conte xt and Obje ctive s :

1.1 Summary de s cription of proje ct conte xt and obje ctive s

The major obje ctive s and conte xt of the proje ct has be e n de s cribe d in the above s e ction as part of the diffe re nt work
package s .

A de taile d s ummary of the proje ct obje ctive s is as follows

WP1

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De te rmine s ource mate rials for re cove ry of was te mate rials

Characte ris ation and as s e s s me nt of s uitability of e nd of life re cove re d CF and proce s s was te s tre ams (TIL,
SIG)
Small s cale proce s s trials of ide ntifie d was te s tre ams to confirm s uitability (TIL)
Pote ntial modification of CF was te pre s e ntation to optimis e proce s s ing pe rformance (TIL/SIG)
Quantification of available and s uitable was te s tre ams for comme rcial proce s s ing (TIL/SIG)
Se le ction of optimum yarn manufacturing route for main was te s tre ams ide ntifie d (TIL)
Ide ntification of all pote ntial the rmos e t compatible fibre s for ble nding with was te CF (TIL)
Ide ntification of pote ntial the rmoplas tic compatible fibre s for ble nding with was te CF (TIL)

WP2

De ve lopme nt of hybrid yarn and tape mate rials s uitable for downs tre am proce s s ing in the rmos e t compos ite
manufacture .

Supply of s uitable raw mate rials for large r s cale trials (SIG)
Hybrid yarn manufacture from e nd of life dis continuous was te CF and the rmos e t compatible fibre s (TIL)
Hybrid yarn manufacture from dis continuous proce s s was te CF and the rmos e t compatible fibre s (TIL)
Commingle d yarn manufacture from continuous was te CF and the rmos e t compatible fibre s (TIL)
Supply of narrow the rmos e t tape mate rials for NCF and wove n fabric manufacture (TIL)
Supply and characte ris ation of wide the rmos e t NCF mate rials (TIL/SIG)
Supply of hybrid the rmoplas tic yarn and tape mate rials from dis continuous CF (TIL)

WP3

De fine s uitable we ave s tyle s or mate rial s tructure for the s ample s to be provide d.
Provide pe rform mate rials as re quire d for s ampling purpos e s .
Provide a me thod of fabric conve rs ion s uitable for the e nd us e r and the yarn prope rtie s .

Input will be re quire d from all partne rs on the mate rial s tructure re quire me nt. From the outs e t e ach partne r will
ne e d to de te rmine the re quire d archite cture s o that a s uitable mate rial can be de fine d and de s igne d (SIG).
The machine parame te rs will ne e d to be programme d to manufacture the s ample s and loom s e tup will take place to
manufacture re quire d s ample s (SIG).
In the cas e of NCF all s ample s will unde rgo e valuation to de te rmine s uitable proce s s parame te rs (SIG).

WP4

Characte ris ation of mate rials produce d at yarn and fabric s tage s .

This WP will provide the information for s ubs e que nt proce s s ing and will de te rmine the optimum route for the conve rte d
fibre s and mate rials (SIG).

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WP5

De live r the de s ire d mate rial to s upport JTI-CS-2011-1-ECO-01-25 call.

The WP will monitor time s cale s and de live rable s to e ns ure de mons trator article s and re ports are de live re d in time to
s upport the call.

Proje ct Re s ults :

1.3 De s cription of the main S&T Re s ults and Fore ground

Mate rials

15% re s in compatible fibre s are re quire d in the pre pre g s ys te m, the re fore s ome othe r s uitable fibre s s uch as Aramid
would be adde d, which will contribute to incre as e the me chanical pe rformance of the compos ite s .

The re fore , the following mate rials we re s ource d:

(i). Epoxy compatible fibre s

(ii). Re cycle d carbon fibre s
(iii). Re cycle grade aramid fibre s

PEI re s in fibre s

The following two type s of PEI fibre s we re s ource d:

(i). PEI 6.7 dte x
(ii). PEI 2.2 dte x

As the fine r fibre s provide be tte r s live r quality, the 2.2dte x PEI fibre was s e le cte d to
ble nd with CF and Aramid.

Virgin was te CF

T700 type s CF in multi-axial was te (MAX 5) we re s upplie d by Sigmate x.

Aramid fibre s

The following four type s of re cycle d grade aramid fibre s (1.7dte x line ar de ns ity) we re s ource d:
(i). Type 1
(ii). Type 1T
(iii). Type 2 and
(iv). Type 55

De pe nding on the s uitable fibre le ngth, only type 55 was s e le cte d.

Fibre le ngth dis tribution of Aramid fibre s

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The me an le ngth and le ngth dis tribution of s ource d aramid fibre s we re inve s tigate d.
It was found that type 1, 1T and 2 s ample s contain 40% longe r fibre s , ranging from 80-
150 mm long, which are cons ide re d not to be s uitable in our carding proce s s

Type 55 was s e le cte d due to s horte r fibre le ngth, for be tte r mixing and ble nding with s imilar le ngth of CF and PEI fibre s .

Initial trials for CF/PEI/Aramid s live r production

As it was de cide d that 50% CF will be ble nde d with 15% PEI and 35% Aramid fibre s , the re fore , an initial s live r production
was trialle d by us ing this combination.

Pre -ope ning the aramid fibre s

The aramid fibre s we re pre -ope ne d by pre -carding of the fibre s be fore mixing with CF and PEI.

Pre -ope ning the PEI

The PEI fibre s we re als o pre -carde d to s e parate the fibre s for be tte r ble nding with CF.

CF/PEI/Aramid s live r production trials

Continuous s live r with 2.5 g/m line ar de ns ity was produce d s ucce s s fully. It was found that s live r can be made from the
above ble nds that can be us e d in furthe r proce s s e s s uch as tape and NCF production.

CF le ngth dis tribution in s live r

CF le ngth dis tribution was me as ure d in the ble nde d s live rs .

De ve lopme nt of carbon fibre and e poxy re s in s oluble fibre bas e d yarns and fabric for the rmos e t compos ite
manufacture trials . The following obje ctive s we re s e t out:

(i) Se le ction of s uitable was te carbon fibre s

(ii) Se le ction of e poxy re s in s oluble /compatible matrix fibre s
(iii) Commingle d yarn and fabric production

Se le ction of was te carbon fibre s

Choppe d/s taple carbon fibre s (60 mm long) be ing ge ne rate d as was te during the multi-axial fabric production proce s s
(MAX-5) at Sigmate x, we re s e le cte d in this work package .

Se le ction of e poxy re s in s oluble fibre s

To produce yarn from was te CFs , s uitable carrie r fibre s are re quire d to ble nd with s taple CFs during carding proce s s .
The crimpe d carrie r fibre s will carry the un-crimpe d CFs during the carding proce s s . More ove r, during the compos ite
fabrication, the e poxy s oluble fibre s will be dis s olve d in the matrix s ys te m and will work as toughe ning compounds in
the compos ite s .

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The re fore , s uitable e poxy s oluble re s in fibre s we re s ource d and s e le cte d as carrie rs in this work package to produce
s pun yarns us ing was te carbon fibre s . As the rmos e t (e poxy re s in) compatible matrix fibre s are limite d in availability,
the re fore , only two fibre s have be e n ide ntifie d to be us e d with s taple CF fibre s as follows :
(i). Poly Ethe r Sulphone (PES)
(ii). Ulte m Polye the rimide ( PEI)

(i). PES fibre : PES fibre s s upplie d by Cyte c we re characte ris e d. This fibre can be dis s olve d in e poxy s ys te m e as ily, but
the phys ical prope rtie s of the fibre s we re found ve ry poor to proce s s . More ove r, it was found that the PES fibre s we re
non-crimpe d, ve ry we ak (bre aking load only 0.093N) and fe ll into parts during carding proce s s . The re fore , it was not
cons ide re d as s uitable carrie r fibre s for s taple CFs .

(ii). PEI fibre s : Ulte m PEI re s in fibre s (Tg 217o C) we re s ource d from Fibre Innovation Te chnology, USA. It was found that
PEI fibre s we re s trong, crimpe d (10-12 crimp/inch) and in s taple form (60 mm le ngth) could act as an e fficie nt carrie rs of
s taple CFs in carding proce s s . This fibre was als o found to dis s olve in e poxy s ys te m, and the re fore , was s e le cte d as
e poxy compatible fibre s .

The following two type s of Ulte m PEI fibre s we re s ource d:

(i). PEI 6.7 dte x

(ii). PEI 2.2 dte x

Commingle d yarn manufacturing

CF/PEI (60/40) ble nds

The MAX 5 was te carbon fibre s and Ulte m PEI fibre s (2.2dte x) we re finally s e le cte d to produce yarn. The ble nds of
was te carbon with PEI carrie r fibre s (60/40 we ight ratios ) we re conve rte d into continuous s live r us ing a modifie d
carding proce s s . The n the s live rs we re us e d to produce s pun yarn of 1100 te x by filame nt wrap s pinning proce s s .
During the wrap s pinning proce s s , PEI filame nts we re als o us e d as wrappe r to produce continuous yarn. The yarns
we re the n de live re d to Sigmate x for wove n fabric production.

Ble nding of highe r CF% (ove r 60%) with PEI fibre made the carding proce s s difficult. More ove r, it was found that the
yarn contains a s ignificant amount of loos e fibre s that caus e s proble ms in we aving proce s s . The re fore , yarn route was
re je cte d by the partne rs for furthe r de ve lopme nt work.

As it is difficult to incre as e the CF% in the s live r (re porte d in D2.1) to >70% due to the limitation of the proce s s ing
pe rformance of the ble nds in the carding proce s s , the addition of was te aramid was ide ntifie d as a pos s ible s olution to
the proble m to act as both a carrie r fibre and additional re inforcing fibre . The main obje ctive of this work package was
the re fore to produce hybrid s live r from CF/ aramid ble nds . It was als o ide ntifie d that tape from CF/Aramid could be
anothe r inte re s ting option for the rmos e t application. The following targe ts we re ide ntifie d for the work package :

(i) Production of CF/Aramid and CF/Aramid/PEI hybrid s live r and

(ii) Tape production from CF/Aramid ble nds

Both s live r and tape can be us e d in multi-axial fabric production proce s s . For tape , a s mall % of the rmoplas tic fibre s are
re quire d as a binde r for the tape production proce s s .

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De ve lopme nt of Slive rs

Se le ction of mate rials

The following mate rials we re s e le cte d in this work package :

(i) Was te CFs (Max 5)

(ii) Was te Aramid
(iii) Male ic Anhydride grafte d Polypropyle ne (MAPP) the rmoplas tic fibre s
(iv) PEI

De s cription the mate rials

(i). Was te carbon fibre s : Was te carbon fibre s (60 mm long) ge ne rate d during the multi-axial fabric production proce s s
(MAX-5) at Sigmate x we re s e le cte d.

(ii). Was te Aramid: Aramid fibre s we re adde d as s e cond re inforce me nt fibre in the ble nd with CFs .

(iii). Male ic anhydride grafte d polypropyle ne fibre s : In the tape making proce s s , a s mall amount of the rmoplas tic fibre is
re quire d as a binde r to hold the CFs and aramid fibre s in pos ition and cons olidate the tape . Male ic anhydride grafte d
polypropyle ne (MAPP) was s e le cte d as the binding mate rials due to the low me lt te mpe rature and high me lt flow
characte ris tics of this particular mate rial .

Commingle d s live r manufacturing

The ble nding and mixing proce s s of the CFs with carrie r fibre s re porte d in D2.2 re port was als o us e d in this work
package . The following ble nd ratios we re s e le cte d through dis cus s ion with the proje ct partne rs :

(i) CF/PEI/Aramid (CF 50%, PEI 15%, Aramid 35%)

(ii) CF/Aramid (70% CF 30% Aramid)

(iii) CF/Aramid/MAPP (50% 30% 20%)

Thre e diffe re nt type s of mate rials we re produce d and de live re d to Sigmate x and Cyte c for the rmos e t compos ite
manufacture trials . Was te aramid fibre s work as a s uitable carrie r for s taple CFs in the carding proce s s by virtue of the
high le ve ls of cohe s ion e xhibite d. The s live rs and tape s produce d we re found to offe r acce ptable le ve ls of s tre ngth for
multi-axial fabric production proce s s . De pe nding on the re s ults achie ve d, furthe r work is pos s ible to re duce the le ve l of
MAPP conte nt while s till re taining an acce ptable le ve l of binding.

Mate rial conve rs ion route s

MAX-5 was te CFs and carrie r fibre s we re conve rte d into s uitable te xtile pre forms as part of WP2. Various route s , we re
inve s tigate d to produce s uitable compos ite pre pre gs from the s e le cte d mate rials .

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Conve rs ion of wCFs into continuous s live rs

Ble nding of wCFs with polyme r matrix fibre s

Prior to compos ite pre pre g production proce s s e s , it was ne ce s s ary to produce continuous s live rs from the was te
carbon fibre s . It is a challe nge to produce s live r from choppe d was te carbon fibre s due to the non-crimpe d and brittle
nature of the CFs . The re fore , carrie r fibre s are re quire d as a proce s s ing aid and the s e le cte d carrie r fibre s we re
ble nde d with was te CFs in diffe re nt we ight ratios (de pe nding on the the rmoplas tic or the rmos e t pre pre g production)
us ing a modifie d fibre ope ning and ble nding unit prior to continuous s live r production.

Slive r production

The wCFs /polyme r fibre ble nds we re pas s e d through a modifie d carding proce s s , whe re the wCFs we re furthe r
s e parate d by a carding action. During the proce s s of inte rmingling the CF (55 mm) with matrix fibre s (60mm) on the
modifie d card, it was found that the crimpe d polyme r fibre s acte d as e fficie nt carrie rs for the non-crimpe d CFs with
minimum fibre bre akage and re s ulte d in good inte rmingling (ble nding). Afte r carding, the ble nde d CF/matrix fibre s live r
was produce d.

A continuous s live r with 6-7 g/m line ar de ns ity was produce d s ucce s s fully from the diffe re nt ble nds re quire d for both
the rmoplas tic and the rmos e t compos ite pre pre g production proce s s e s .

Conve rs ion of s live rs into tape

It was found that the continuous s live rs could not be us e d dire ctly into ne w compos ite fabrication as the y we re ve ry
we ak (bre aking load 1-1.5N) and broke e as ily during handling in downs tre am proce s s e s . It was howe ve r found that
partly s tabilis e d/full s tabilis e d (s e mi-cons olidate d /fully cons olidate d) s live r can be dire ctly us e d in diffe re nt pre pre g
manufacturing proce s s e s . As a re s ult, a the rmal cons olidation proce s s was cons tructe d to s tabilis e the s live rs into a
tape . The de tails of the proce s s was re porte d in D2.2 de live rable re port.

Tape production proce s s

A the rmal bonding te chnology was de ve lope d and cons tructe d to produce s e mi-cons olidate d continuous tape from the
carde d s live r as s e mbly. The whole unit contains thre e s e parate re gions ; fibre fe e ding, s pre ading and a he ating z one .
On le aving the drafting s tage , the thin we b of fibre is he ate d above the me lting point of the PA66 polyme r fibre s and
te ns ion applie d to produce furthe r alignme nt of the carbon fibre s . A pre s s ure of 2 bar was the n applie d by a pair of
pre s s uris e d rolle rs , me lting the matrix fibre s to the carbon fibre s to produce a 0.6 mm thickne s s s e mi-cons olidate d
tape .

During the tape making proce s s , the contact dwe ll time (CDT) in s e cond for pre s s ure rolle rs and he ating dwe ll time
(HDT) we re calculate d.

Diffe re nt type s of tape s with diffe re nt are al de ns itie s we re produce d for both the rmoplas tic and the rmos e t compos ite
applications us ing diffe re nt CF%.

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The rmoplas tic tape s

The s e mi-cons olidate d the rmoplas tic tape s manufacture d as the rmoplas tic compos ite pre pre g contain 50-55% CF and
50-45% the rmoplas tic matrix fibre s . During compos ite moulding, the the rmoplas tic fibre s me lt and act as matrix. The s e
type of pre pre gs are found as attractive option for the rmoplas tic route as the tape /s he e ts are ve ry fle xible and light in
we ight. Thos e tape s can be us e d dire ctly as unidire ctional pre pre gs and als o can be s lit into narrow widths for tape
wove n fabric production.

The rmos e t tape s

Slive rs produce d from wCFs and aramid ble nds (70% 30%) and mixing with e poxy compatible carrie r fibre s (50% wCFs ,
35% AR and 15% PEI) or 60% CF 40% PEI we re conve rte d to s tabilis e d tape s (s e e Figure 8). The s ubs e que nt tape s
we re us e d in NCF production line to make biaxial (+45o/-45o) fabrics .

Conve rs ion of the tape s /s live rs into Non-crimpe d fabric (NCF)

NCF production proce s s

The wide r tape s produce d us ing the tape -making unit we re us e d dire ctly for NCF production. Anothe r alte rnative route
was als o e s tablis he d to us e the s live r dire ctly into NCF production, whe re the s live rs we re partly s tabiliz e d us ing a
binde r and produce a wide r s he e t.

Biaxial non-crimpe d fabrics (NCFs ) we re produce d by the continuous place me nt of the s tabiliz e d s live r s he e ts in a
+45o/-45o lay-up protocol and s titch-bonde d with a polyme r filame nt yarn of 55dte x. The nominal we ight of the NCF
pre pre g produce d was 20010g/m2. Figure 10 als o s hows the top and bottom s urface s of the NCF with plain and z igz ag
s titch patte rns , re s pe ctive ly. The s titch de ns ity was 640/m2.

Conve rs ion of was te CFs into continuous s live rs by mixing with diffe re nt carrie r fibre s has be e n de ve lope d. Diffe re nt
route s for pre pre g manufacturing us ing the carde d s live rs have als o be e n s ucce s s fully de ve lope d for both
the rmoplas tic and the rmos e t compos ite applications .

From initial work carrie d out by Tils ate c, the route for mate rial s upply for 2D fabrics is Tape . 60/40 CF/PET we re
provide d by Tils ate c and us e d as we ft on a s tandard Dornie r loom. The us e of tape for warp is not fe as ible at this time
due to the amount of tape ne e de d and the re quire me nt for an alte rnative warp de live ry s ys te m.
Wove n 10mm tape s laminate d (4laye rs only). Cons olidation was s ucce s s ful although warp and we ft re quire d for furthe r
re s e arch. Sigmate x are curre ntly trialling a ne w de ve lopme nt machine which will be more s uite d to the manufacture of
tape fabrics and will as s e s s the re cycle d mate rial whe n available .

With Plain, Twill and s atin we ave s making up the majority of fabrics in the compos ite s indus try, tape wove n
de mons trators we re manufacture d to s how the appe arance of the fabrics us ing the re cycle Cf/PET tape . Initial findings
s howe d that the fibre was quite s tiff and difficult to pick up by the s tandard rapie r me chanis m. Give n the width and the
s tiffne s s of the mate rials it was conclude d that warp de live ry would ne e d to be update d and an alte rnative me thod of
we ft ins e rtion would ne e d to be re alis e d to make the fabric a s ucce s s . Sigmate x has now purchas e d a ne w machine
that is s uitable for characte ris ing and we aving the tape mate rials and will continue to de ve lop the s e mate rials .

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Manufacture NCF Mate rial

The s live r produce d by Tils ate c did not have e nough s tre ngth to be us e d dire ctly on the NCF machine and ne e de d pre -
proce s s ing to allow trans fe r acros s the be d. The me thod of cons olidation us e d a be lt pre s s to form a s he e t of mate rial
which can the n be place d on the be d of the machine at diffe re nt angle s . In this ins tance a 60:40 cons olidate d mate rial
was manufacture d on the NCF to provide +/-45 de gre e mate rial. This initial s ample was the n furthe r proce s s e d to
unde rs tand the proce s s ing parame te rs re quire d for s ample production. The Unive rs ity of Manche s te r provide d the
facility of a hot pre s s capable of achie ving the pre s s ure and te mpe rature e xpe cte d to proce s s the fabric.

The mate rial was laye re d in 6 s e parate laye rs of 150 gs m pe r laye r s live rs to make a total Fabric we ight of 900gs m.
The mate rials we re pre s s e d at a te mpe rature of 260C for 1 hour at a pre s s ure of 10 Bar. The re s ultant mate rials ,
although cons olidate d had s ignificant dry s pots and the through thickne s s bonding was poor.

Subs e que ntly furthe r trials we re carrie d us ing 8 laye rs at +/-45 de gre e s out at highe r pre s s ure of 50 Bar and at a
highe r te mpe rature of 290C. The cycle time was re duce d from 1 hour to 15 minute s and the re s ultant mate rial had
good cons olidation. Te s ting s howe d that although the re appe are d to be good cons olidation, unde r te s ting the mate rial
had high poros ity.

Pre pe g analys is
Analys is of CF/matrix fibre ble nds
It was obs e rve d that the PA66 matrix fibre s had acte d as a carrie r of the non-crimpe d carbon fibre s during carding
proce s s the re by giving cohe s ion to the commingle d mas s , which e nable d the production of the was te carbon fibre /PA66
(wCF/PA66) continuous s live r with line ar de ns ity 6-7g/m. SEM image s of s live r s pe cime ns s howe d that the CF fibre s
we re uniformly commingle d/ble nde d with the matrix fibre s and re as onably we ll aligne d with the s live r axial le ngth.

Analys is of Non-crimpe d fabric (NCF) pre pre gs

Biaxial non-crimpe d fabrics (NCF) we re produce d from the s live rs and tape s for both the rmoplas tic and the rmos e t
compos ite applications . It was me ntione d in D2.4 re port that the NCF pre pre gs we re produce d by the continuous
place me nt of the s tabiliz e d s live r s he e ts in a +45o/-45o lay-up protocol and s titch-bonde d with a PA66 filame nt yarn of
55dte x. The nominal we ight of the NCF pre pre g produce d was 40010g/m2.

Two type s of NCF pre pre gs we re produce d as follows :

i. NCF the rmoplas tic compos ite pre pre g. This pre pre g contains 50% CF and 50% PA66 the rmoplas tic polyme r fibre s .
The PA66 polyme r fibre s will me lt and form the polyme r matrix.
ii. NCF the rmos e t compos ite pre pre g containing up to 70% CF or mixture of CFs with Aramid fibre s . Additional re s in is
re quire d to make compos ite parts

It can be me ntione d he re that the NCF was found to be highly formable and could be us e d in many comple x compos ite
s hape s .

Conve rs ion of the rmoplas tic fabric pre pre gs into compos ite s

A 3 mm thick laminate was fabricate d us ing an 8-ply s tack of the biaxial (+45o/-45o) noncrimpe d fabric pre pre g, whe re
the fabric plie s we re cros s -laid in a manne r which re -orie ntate d the +45/-45o fibre inclination and produce d a [0/90o]
layup. Hot compaction, 280oC te mpe rature and 50bar pre s s ure for 15min was us e d to cons olidate the NCF as s e mbly.
The high pre s s ure (50bar) was us e d to compre s s the bulky s tack of the dry NCF plie s to obtain full cons olidation.

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Fabrication of the rmos e t compos ite us ing noncrimpe d fabrics

Thre e type s of the rmos e t laminate s we re fabricate d us ing two type s of e poxy re s ins : LTM217 and MTM57. Se mi-cure d
e poxy re s in films we re us e d in both cas e s . The re s in films we re applie d to the fabric to produce laminate s containing
55% re s in (by vol.) in final laminate s . The bi-axial (-45 /+45) NCF fabrics we re cut for a 0/90 lay up and 6 plie s of fabric
we re us e d to obtain 3 mm thick laminate s . The CF-AF-MAPP tape pre pre g (dis cus s e d in D2.4 re port) was laid up 0/90 to
obtain a balance d s tructure .

Total re inforce me nt wt. fraction and volume fractions we re calculate d from the de ns ity of the fibre s and re s in in
individual laminate . CF we ight fraction and CF volume fraction we re als o calculate d in the compos ite laminate s us ing the
following formula:
Vc = 1/ [1+ pf/ pm (1/Wc 1)]

Whe re , Vc is total carbon fibre volume fraction in laminate . Wc is CF we ight fraction. Pf and Pm are the de ns itie s of the
CF and re s in, re s pe ctive ly.

Me chanical te s ting of compos ite s

Te ns ile te s ting
The te ns ile prope rtie s of the s pe cime n we re te s te d according to ASTM D3039-08 s tandard. A tabbe d re ctangular
s pe cime n (s e e Fig. 30) was mounte d in the grips of the te s t machine (gauge le ngth 138 mm) and load was applie d to
the s pe cime n at a cons tant rate of s pe e d until the s pe cime n faile d. The ultimate te ns ile s tre ngth of the s pe cime n was
calculate d from the failure load.

Fle xural te s ting

Fle xural prope rtie s of the laminate s we re te s te d according to the BS EN ISO 14125 s tandard. A re ctangular s pe cime n
was cut into 80 mm le ngth and a s pan to thickne s s ratio of 16:1 mm was us e d. Loading was applie d at a cons tant
cros s he ad rate of 5mm/min at the ce ntre of the s pan le ngth. The load applie d to the s pe cime n and the de fle ction we re
me as ure d during the te s t. The fle xural s tre ngth and fle xural modulus we re calculate d.

Compre s s ive s tre ngth

Compre s s ive s tre ngth of the laminate s was calculate d according to the ASTM D695-89 (Boe ing Modification) s tandard. A
tabbe d re ctangular s pe cime n with a 4.8mm gauge le ngth was mounte d in cruciform anti-buckling jig. Load was applie d
through the e nd of the s pe cime n at a cons tant rate (1.3mm/min) of cros s he ad s pe e d until the s pe cime n faile d. The
ultimate load at which catas trophic failure occurre d was us e d to calculate the compre s s ive s tre ngth.

Inte r-laminar s he ar prope rtie s

Inte r-laminar s he ar s tre ngth (ILSS) was according to the ASTM D2344-84 s tandard by us ing s hort be am me thod. The
be am s iz e was 20 mm.

The re ctangular s pe cime n was ce ntrally loade d at 1.3mm/min in a thre e -point be nd fixture until the failure occurre d.
The te s t s upport s pan to s pe cime n thickne s s ratio was 5:1. The ILSS was calculate d.

Re s ults and dis cus s ions

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CF/PA66 the rmoplas tic compos ite s

The fabrication proce dure of CF/PA66 the rmoplas tic laminate s and me thodology of diffe re nt te s ts we re de s cribe d in
s e ction 3 and 5. The NCF compos ite fabricate d contains 4 laye rs of pre pre g in the 0o dire ction and furthe r 4 plie s in 90o
dire ction on [0/90]o lay up. The me chanical te s ts of the NCF compos ite s we re conducte d in 0o dire ction.

The ave rage te ns ile and fle xural s tre ngths we re found to be 255.9MPa and 192.5MPa, re s pe ctive ly. The ave rage te ns ile
and fle xural moduli we re 22.14GPa and 18.01GPa re s pe ctive ly. As the NCF compos ite contains 4 laye rs of pre pre g in
the 0o dire ction and furthe r 4 plie s in 90o dire ction, 50% (i.e . 4 plie s ) of the fibre s in 0o contribute d to both te ns ile and
fle xural prope rtie s .

The ave rage compre s s ive s tre ngth and modulus we re found to be 122.68MPa and 23.6 GPa, re s pe ctive ly. The ILSS was
found to be 15.11 MPa of the NCF laminate s .

It was found that the compos ite pane ls made from the NCF, s howe d no trace s of the s titching thre ads us e d in the
making of the NCF pre pre g. Both the cons titue nt PA66 s taple fibre s in the s live rs and the PA66 filame nt s titching
thre ads on the fabric s urface , that he ld toge the r the fabric s tructure , had me lte d and had diffus e d during cons olidation
of the compos ite pane ls . Howe ve r, the SEM image (50 x magnifications ) obtaine d from the cros s -s e ction of the laminate
s howe d the laminate contains a s ignificant numbe r of voids .

Due to the large void%, the de ns ity of compos ite made from the NCF was me as ure d to be 1.19g/cm3: s ignificantly lowe r
than the calculate d value (1.39g/cm3); the low value indicate s a re lative ly high void conte nt calculate d to be ~14%. The
high void conte nt is mos t like ly due to an ins ufficie nt le ve l of matrix fibre s to impre gnate the CF pre s e nts . The de ns ity
and he nce the poros ity and me chanical prope rtie s of NCF compos ite could be pote ntially e nhance d by:
- optimis ation of matrix fibre s %
- us e of fine r matrix fibre s
- improve d uniformity in fibre mixing

Comparing the re s ults of bi-axial NCF compos ite s ample (fabricate d in this proje ct) with a comme rcially available (Te nax,
Ge rmany, CF/PA12 yarn) compos ite made of s tre tch broke n CF/PA12 commingle UD yarn laminate s in not applicable as
the available mate rial was made from longe r CF (70-90 mm long) commingle d yarns . It is re porte d that the fle xural
modulus of Te nax CF/PA12 UD compos ite (50% CF by vol.) we re 60 GPa, which e ffe ctive ly e quivale nt to 30 GPa in bi-
axial format. Fle xural modulus obtaine d for the bi-axial NCF compos ite was 18.5 GPa for 36% CF by volume which is
e quivale nt to 26GPa for 50% CF by volume . So, it is found that the modulus of NCF compos ite is only 13% lowe r than
e quivale nt virgin Te nax CF/PA12 compos ite with s ame CF volume fraction in s imilar format. This is due to the
s hort/dis continuous wCF us e d in NCF pre pre g in this proje ct and the high poros ity (10%) found in the laminate s als o has
re duce d the me chanical prope rtie s of NCF compos ite .

The rmos e t compos ite s

The fabrication proce dure of e poxy the rmos e t laminate s and me thodology of diffe re nt te s ts we re de s cribe d in pre vious
s e ctions . The NCF e poxy compos ite fabricate d contains 6 laye rs of pre pre g in the 0o dire ction and furthe r 6 plie s in

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90o dire ction on [0/90o] layup. The me chanical te s ts of the e poxy compos ite s we re conducte d in 0o dire ction. The
re s ults obtaine d from diffe re nt te s t are dis cus s e d he re .

By analys ing the te s t re s ults it was found that all thre e NCF/e poxy compos ite s have s imilar te ns ile s tre ngth range s
from 225 MPa240 MPa. The fle xural s tre ngths we re found to be from 362-386 MPa, the compre s s ion s tre ngths we re
found to be from 228-255 MPa and ILSS we re als o found to be from 32-43MPa. The s tre ngths we re found ve ry s imilar in
all s ample s .

Similar tre nds we re als o s e e n on the ir s tiffne s s value s , whe re the te ns ile moduli we re from 15.5 to 19.5 Gpa, fle xural
moduli we re from 15.5 to 18.5 GPa and the compre s s ion modulus we re from 14 to 17.3 GPa, re s pe ctive ly.It was als o
found that us ing of s mall % of PEI with CF has little e ffe ct on the compos ite s prope rtie s

According to a Cyte c mate rials prope rty archive , continuous carbon fibe r 2x2 twill fabric/e poxy compos ite s (55% CF
volume fraction) can re ach te ns ile and fle xural modulus of 64.6 GPa and 61.36 GPa, re s pe ctive ly, which are much
highe r than the 19.5GPa te ns ile s tiffne s s and 18.5GPa fle xural s tiffne s s value s of the NCF e poxy compos ite s . The lowe r
s tiffne s s value s of NCF/ e poxy laminate s we re due to s horte r CFs le ngth and lowe r CF volume fraction in the
laminate s . The ave rage CF le ngth was found to be 40mm and the CF volume fractions we re found to be 28% in
CF/AR/e poxy laminate s and 20% in othe r NCF/e poxy laminate s . More ove r, all the e poxy laminate s we re fabricate s us ing
a film s tacking proce s s , the re fore , re s in infus ion ins ide the bulky fabric laye rs may not have be e n s ufficie nt to fully we t
the CFs re s ulting in poor me chanical pe rformance . Re s in infus ion proce s s has be e n re comme nde d ins te ad of film
s tacking proce s s to achie ve be tte r me chanical prope rtie s from the NCF fabrics in future work.

Conclus ion

Bas e d on the re s ults and dis cus s ion above , ke y points may be conclude d as follows :
- A nove l proce s s for producing cos t e ffe ctive rCF/PA66 the rmoplas tic non-crimpe d bi-axial fabric has be e n de ve lope d
to provide a dry-pre pre g. The NCF the rmoplas tic pre pre g (400g/m2) may be cons ide re d as a promis ing mate rial for
lightwe ight compos ite applications . It was found that the rCFs are re lative ly aligne d and we ll dis tribute d/ble nde d with
matrix fibre s . The re fore , good me chanical prope rtie s of NCF the rmoplas tic compos ite s we re achie ve d. Howe ve r, the
prope rtie s may be improve d by us ing fine r re s in fibre s , be tte r mixing of the fibre s and improve d compos ite fabrication
te chnique .
- A nove l cos t e ffe ctive rCF the rmos e t non-crimpe d bi-axial fabric has be e n de ve lope d from was te carbon fibre s but the
NCF the rmos e t fabric pre pre gs contain ve ry lowe r % of CFs . The fabric pre pre gs we re found to be ve ry light in we ight
(300g/m2) and s uitable for any comple x compos ite s hape s . The me chanical prope rtie s of the rCF/e poxy compos ite s
we re als o found to be good on the bas is of the CF% in the laminate s but can be furthe r improve d by incre as ing CF% in
the pre pre gs . It was als o found that the NCF is more s uitable for re s in infus ion proce s s ins te ad of re s in film s tacking
and like ly to provide improve d me chanical prope rtie s .

Finally, it can be conclude d that the both NCFs for both the rmoplas tic and the rmos e t compos ite applications can be
attractive mate rials for compos ite e nd us e rs in many applications as a pote ntial re place me nt for virgin CF and he avy
we ight glas s fibre compos ite s . The NCF production proce s s from was te /re cycle d CFs can be one of the s uitable
proce s s e s to re -us e the was te fibre s into highe r value compos ite manufacture s than thos e curre ntly commonly
e mploye d for was te mate rials .

Pote ntial Impact:

With growth of the us e of Carbon Fibre s incre as ing s ignificantly within Ae ros pace and Automotive s e ctors , was te le ve ls
will als o incre as e . By having a me thod and s upply chain to cre ate ne w mate rials from virgin was te the impact for future

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manufacturing is much improve d. As the cos t of fibre re duce s e ve n furthe r, more wide s pre ad us e of Carbon Fibre is
anticipate d in wide r marke ts . Through the cours e of this proje ct the ability to manufacture a the rmoplas tic carbon with
the matrix alre ady inte grate d in the mate rial has be e n de mons trate d. The opportunity to cre ate a s tructure by jus t
pre s s ing the mate rial re duce s proce s s ing time and als o re duce s the ne e d to us e othe r the rmoplas tic matrix mate rials .
With cycle time s for proce s s ing of mate rials into automotive be ing a primary driving force , it is e xpe cte d that the
mate rials de ve lope d through this proce s s will find us e s whe re s tiffne s s is re quire d and the rmoforming is an option.
The high dry fabric was te le ve ls that are curre ntly be ing de mons trate d in the automotive s e ctor at approximate ly 40%,
could be incorporate d into the mate rials de ve lope d in this proje ct.
By optimis ing the us e of dry fibre was te into the mate rials de ve lope d in this proje ct, the carbon Fibre prope rtie s can be
e xploite d be tte r that crus hing or milling the fibre s . This cre ate s an inte rme diate us e of the Carbon and improve s the
product life cycle , ge tting more from the high cos t fibre . The e ne rgy us e d in the manufacture of Carbon Fibre is high and
by having this additional proce s s , ove rall life time and the re fore e ne rgy cos ts are us e d more e ffe ctive ly.
The dis s e mination activity s urrounds the promotion of the mate rials ope nly at confe re nce s , including JEC Europe , JEC
USA and JEC As ia. A pape r and abs tract is planne d to be pre s e nte d at Compos ite s Innovation 2014.

Lis t of We bs ite s :
Chris McHugh
Te chnical Manage r
Sigmate x (UK) Ltd
Manor Farm Road
Norton
Runcorn
WA7 1TE
Te l No: 01928 570050
Fax No: 01928 570051

Email: chris .mchugh@s igmate x.co.uk

We b: www.s igmate x.com

Simon Havis
Tils ate c
A Divis ion of Sirdar Spinning Ltd
Flans haw Lane
Wake fie ld
We s t Yorks hire
WF2 9ND

Dire ct: + 44 1924 231668

Mobile : + 44 7951 587203
E-Mail: s imon.havis @tils ate c.com
Vis it our we b s ite www.tils ate c.com

Related info rmatio n

Result In Brief Re cycling carbon fibre into ne w products

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Co ntact

Chris tophe r McHugh, (Le ad Engine e r)

Te l.: +44 0 1928 570050
E-mail

Subjects

Environme ntal Prote ction

Last updat ed o n 2015-05-18

Ret rieved o n 2017-08-25

Permalink: http://cordis .e uropa.e u/re s ult/rcn/164422_e n.html

Europe an Union, 2017

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