Jump to content

Why is carbon fibre so expensive?

Why is carbon fibre so expensive?

FaezClutchless

1,586 views

monthly_09_2011/blogentry-98301-1316865900.jpg

blogentry-98301-1316865153_thumb.jpg

When carbon fibre was introduced in the 1960s, it was poised to not only take on fibreglass, but also a whole host of other materials. Initially used in the aerospace industry, carbon fibre is now used in numerous of other products, notably in automotive parts and accessories. Since it appeared more than 50 years ago and we have been using it for decades, why is this material which is lighter and tougher than steel, still so expensive?

 

Well, apparently, carbon fibre has to go through an expensive process just to manufacture it. Before carbon fibre becomes carbon fibre, it starts as a base material, usually an organic polymer with carbon atoms binding together long strings of molecules called a polyacrylonitrile.

To get the carbon part of carbon fibre, half of the starting material's acrylic needs to be kicked away. "The final product will cost double what you started with because half burns off," explains Bob Norris of Oak Ridge National Laboratory's (Tennessee, USA) polymer matrix composites group. "Before you even account for energy and equipment, the precursor in the final product is something around $5 a pound."

 

blogentry-98301-1316865761.jpg

Forcing the acrylic to shed its non-carbon atoms takes monstrous machines and a lot of heat. The first of two major processing steps is oxidisation stabilisation. Here fibres are continuously fed through 50-100 foot-long ovens pumping out heat in the several hundred degrees Celsius range. The process takes hours and uses up lots of energy.

 

Then the material goes through the carbonisation process. Although the furnaces here are shorter and don't run for as long as the previous step, they operate at much higher temperatures, at 1000 degrees Celsius for the initial step and then another round of heating with even higher temperatures. Just imagine the power bill for these processes and it doesn't end here. Manufacturers also have to deal with the acrylic that doesn't hold on during the heating process. Off gasses (the introduction of harmful chemicals into the environment) need to be treated so as not to poison the environment.

 

blogentry-98301-1316866193.jpg

After all of that, what we get are just strands of carbon fibre. They still need to be arranged into a lattice (criss-cross) in order to take advantage of the material's uni-directional strength. The arranged fibres have to be parallel and stretched evenly, every single one of them. A wavy strand in a lattice will put extra stress on a straight fibre, and that straight one will end up breaking first. To compensate for the possibility of an imperfect weave, manufacturers might thread in ten percent more of the already expensive fibres than is necessary.

 

blogentry-98301-1316865882_thumb.jpg

These strands alone are not what manufacturers need. Carbon fibre is used to reinforce composite materials. They are like steel bars in a block of concrete. Right now carbon fibres work with a thermoset resin. Together they make a composite that can be manipulated to take a certain shape. The problem is that once the resin has been shaped and cured in an autoclave, it cannot be modified without compromising its structural integrity. A small mistake means a lot of waste, including time. Thermosetting takes over an hour, which is a long time considering how fast the automotive industry stamps out body panels.

 

blogentry-98301-1316866109_thumb.jpg

The process of producing a carbon fibre product takes a lot of time and energy which eventually costs a lot of money. Until scientists or experts in this field comes up with a manufacturing process that costs lower and less time consuming, consumers have to bear with the prices of carbon fibre for now.




0 Comments


Recommended Comments

There are no comments to display.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Godzilla Minus One: Surprisingly emotional and poignant

    When one thinks of Godzilla movies, one imagines an oversized amphibious dinosaur generating a terrifying heat ray from its mouth and fighting with other oversized monsters. Meh, nothing special, right? Wrong. Here’s why Godzilla Minus One should be an action movie you should definitely catch. In this version, the timeless clash between monster and man is once again set against the tumultuous backdrop of post-war Japan. But, unlike typical action films that dive headfirst into destruction a

    chrissyc

    chrissyc

    Singapore weather: Rainy or sunny, what’s healthier for you?

    Singapore can be that predictably unpredictable equatorial city, where the skies shift from radiant sunshine to torrential downpour in mere moments. Given how things have been the past few weeks, I’ve subconsciously found myself pondering the impact of this mercurial weather on our health. What does the internet say: Is it the sun-drenched days that truly invigorate us, or do the rhythmic rains offer a more profound rejuvenation? In a city where the climate dances between these two ext

    Curry does not exist?

    Curry. When many of us think of Indian food, we naturally think of curry.  Except, well, 'curry' isn't actually a thing. Not the word, and not even technically the food that we think of.  Many of us probably think of curry as some sort of dish that has a gravy or sauce. But that is in fact a generalisation of a wide variety of Indian dishes, and also a decidedly Western invention intrinsically tied to India's Colonial past. 'Curry' as a word doesn't actually exist in the languages spok

    bobthemob

    bobthemob

    In a hyper-connected world, your physical presence is more important than ever

    The advent of apps and the Internet have revolutionised our ability to connect instantaneously. From social media to video calls to messaging apps, our capacity for real-time communication is unprecedented. However, it seems that the more hyperconnected we are online, the further apart we're growing in real life. Experts' Consensus Doctors, scientists, and specialists have all reached the same conclusion: Staring at our devices causes us to drift further apart – a trend I've obser

    jeresinex

    jeresinex

×
×
  • Create New...