Carbon Fiber Reclamation

The worldwide demand for carbon fiber is expected to grow from 88 million pounds in 2010 to over 200 million pounds by 2018. With this growth come some challenges and opportunities:

1.     How do we decommission aircraft and other vehicles without placing a burden on the environment and our limited resources for land-fills?

2.     How do we make transportation vehicles lighter, more fuel efficient, more affordable and help reduce our dependence on foreign oil?

3.     How do we do the right recycling job by using affordable “green” recycling technologies?

To date many techniques, pyrolysis and fluidized beds to mention a few, have been used to reclaim carbon fibers. The results have been mixed for quality and/or the associated reclamation costs.

The need to decommission vehicles and equipment containing carbon fiber composites continues to grow, while the demand for ever lighter and more energy efficient products increases. All this needs to be accomplished while maintaining good Stewardship practices for the environment.

Carolina Filters' Research Team, using commercially available equipment and processes, has taken carbon fiber composite structures all the way back to distinct individual fiber structures.

The Carolina Filters Research and Development Goals:

• Remove the carbon fiber encapsulating material while minimal degradation to the original carbon fiber physicals

• Reclaim carbon fiber using "green" processes that are free of additives, other than heat and water
  
  
• Bridge the historical gap for costs and physical properties between virgin carbon fiber and reclaimed carbon fiber