Periodic Reporting for period 1 - d-CFRPs (Developing high-performance recycled carbon fibre reinforced plastics with tailored mechanical, fracture and fatigue properties using state-of-the-art nano-modification technology)
Okres sprawozdawczy: 2019-09-02 do 2021-09-01
Carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRPs) have been expended used in multiple industries, including aerospace, automotive and wind energy sectors. Accordingly, the amount of carbon fibre waste has grew significantly in the recent years, that caused serious social concern about the environment pollution caused. For this reason, turning CFRP waste into a valuable resource is vital for sustainable use of carbon fibres. The overall aim of this project was to explore routines for effectively utilising the good mechanical properties of the discontinuous and random distributed rCFs and hence facilitating sustainable use of carbon fibres.
The work of this project can be divided into two main sections: 1) the use of recycled carbon fibres for the interlayer toughening of carbon fibre/composite; and 2) enhancing interlaminar and intralaminar fracture properties of recycled carbon fibre/PPS composites with improved fibre/matrix adhesion. The results of this project have demonstrated that (1) rCF mats and commingled rCF/PPS mats are attracting candidates for interlayer toughening of carbon fibre composites. Their toughening performance are comparable to the other state of the art toughening interlayers; (2) The intralaminar and mechanical properties of rCF toughened PPS composites can be notability enhanced by UV-irradiating the commingled rCF/PPS mats. Overall, routines for effective uses of rCFs have been explored and two journal articles concluding the results of these results are currently under preparation. Additionally, this project has also contributed to the development and validation of a fatigue test method for CFRPs towards standardisation, together with leading researchers from European Structural Integrity Society Technical Committee 4 (ESIS-TC4).
This experimental study has two main novelties when compared to the state of the art: (1) This work has proposed to use rCF mats for interlayer toughening of carbon fibre composites. The results demonstrated that the toughening performance of rCF products are comparable to the other state of the art interlayer materials. Hence, it explored a new routine for the use of recycled carbon fibres, potentially in the structural and semi-structural applications; (2) a UV-treatment method was proposed to treat the surface of commingled rCF/PPS mats, that obviously improved the adhesion between the PPS matrix and the rCFs. This technique offers a potential to tailor the mechanical and fracture properties of rCF composite by adjusting the rCF/matrix adhesion. Overall, these experimental studies explored the potential of using rCFs for the development of high-performance carbon fibre composites, and hence facilitate the recycling of carbon fibres. This can contribute to a sustainable development of the carbon fibre industry.