ELG Carbon Fibre reports that it has started production of a range of nonwoven mats on a new production line specifically designed to process recycled carbon fibers.
The mats are available in widths up to 2.7 m with a wide range of fiber areal weights and are suitable for OEM’ in the transportation sector seeking alternatives to non-recycled carbon fiber for vehicle lightweighting. The new machine can produce a variety of nonwoven materials including 100% recycled carbon fiber mats and thermoplastic blends such as carbon fiber mixed with PP, PA, PPS fibers. To ensure the equipment could accept and process recycled carbon fibers, special adaptations were made to limit fiber loss, breakage and cleaning cycles, and the machine is also able to use reclaimed carbon fibers that have been obtained through pyrolysis of scrap prepreg materials or cured laminates.
The equipment allows extension of its initial capacity of 250 mt/pa to a maximum output of 1000 mt/pa within 9-12 months as customer demand increases. It can produce webs ranging from 100gsm-500 gsm at widths up to 2.7 m and, depending on the final mat thickness, roll lengths will range from 30-50 m.
This story is reprinted from material from ELG, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier.
