For the first time in the world, continuous recycled carbon fibre tow has been used to manufacture a composite overwrapped pressure vessel (COPV) in a project involving Steelhead Composites, Vartega and Michelman. It is the first time waste continuous tow carbon fibre towpreg has been reclaimed, recycled, and put back into the manufacturing process.
Steelhead Composites, Vartega and Michelman are all members of the Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI).For the first time in the world, continuous recycled carbon fibre tow has been used to manufacture a composite overwrapped pressure vessel (COPV) in a project involving Steelhead Composites, Vartega and Michelman. It is the first time waste continuous tow carbon fibre towpreg has been reclaimed, recycled, and put back into the manufacturing process.#
The fibre was recycled using Vartega’s patent pending recycling process, sized with Michelman’s Hydrosize 876 fibre sizing, and fabricated by Steelhead Composites. Until this milestone, recycled carbon fibre had been relegated to secondary products or as chopped fibre or filler.
According to Steve Bassetti, Michelman’s group marketing manager for the Industrial Manufacturing Group, “Steelhead and Vartega are amazing companies to work with and this collaborative accomplishment is a true turning point for the industry. The successful fabrication of this COPV clearly illustrates that reclaimed carbon fibre can be efficiently and effectively recycled to produce high quality, OEM products and components.”
Michelman manufactures a versatile line of fibre sizings and resin modifiers that are used by fibre producers and composite manufacturers to produce stronger, lighter and more durable composite parts. The company’s broad portfolio of products allows customers to tailor the surface chemistry of reinforcement fibres to the chemistry of the matrix resin, thereby optimising the interface adhesion between the polymers and fibres.
Michelman’s fibre sizing solutions formulated for use with reclaimed and recycled carbon fibre include Hydrosize U2-04, Hydrosize HP3-02, Hydrosize PA845H and Hydrosize HP-1632. These formulations are compatible with previously sized recycled carbon fibre, typically epoxy, as well as with most common thermoplastic resins such as PA, PP, PC, and high temperature thermoplastics such as PPS and PEEK. (SV)
Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India
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