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| Issue date:27/05/2010 |
| ATA Journal for Asia on Textile & Apparel - May 2010 Issue |
| Source:Journal for Asia on Textile & Apparel |
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| Aerospace taking the bulk of CFRP accounts for no more than 5% of total consumption in Europe and the USA, and just 1% in Asia at present. But those low percentages conceal the very high cost, Adrian Wilson reports |
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| Several thousand carbon fibres are twisted together to form a yarn |
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The use of carbon fibre as the basis for composite parts in aircraft has grown from representing 10% of the body twenty years ago to over 50% in the latest superplanes, the Airbus A380 and Boeing's Dreamliner. In addition, the US military is using more carbon fibre than ever before in its aircraft and many other items of equipment.
Carbon fibre is a material consisting of extremely thin fibres of around 0.005-0.010 mm in diameter and composed mostly of carbon atoms. The carbon atoms are bonded together in microscopic crystals that are more or less aligned parallel to the long axis of the fibre. This crystal alignment makes the fibre very strong for its size.
Carbon fibre is also used in sports equipment and racing cars, and in recent weeks a number of significant announcements have been made that are poised to drive forward carbon's use in the next-generation of consumer motor vehicles.
Carbon fibre production and textile applications
Carbon fibre is usually produced by either of two manufacturing processes, which is based on pitch (coal tar and petroleum products), or on polyacrylonitrile (PAN).
Current global capacity for pitch-based carbon fibre is estimated at about 3,500 metric tons per year, and global use for PAN-based carbon fibre is increasing rapidly, according to the University of Tennessee Space Institute in the United States.
PAN-based carbon fibre is often used for higher end applications, such as aerospace and sporting equipment industries. For instance, higher-quality fishing rods, golf club shafts and tennis rackets are now made of carbon fibre to make use of its lightweight, high rigidity and other properties. Major producers of carbon fibre include Toray (Japan), Toho Tenax (subsidiary of Teijin) (Japan), Zoltek Corporation (US), and SGL Carbon (Germany).
A number of machinery builders also serve this particular segment include Oerlikon Textile (e.g. Barmag), Harper International Corp (US), and Aiki Riotech Corporation (Japan). |
Crystal alignment strengthens carbon fibre
Several thousand carbon fibres are twisted together to form a yarn, which may be used by itself or woven into a fabric. Carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP), which is the basis of the parts used in planes, cars and sports equipment, consists of the fibres or fabrics in combination with plastic resins to provide a high strength-to-weight ratio material.
The density of carbon fibre is also considerably lower than the density of steel, making it ideal for applications requiring low weight, and has ensured its continuing success in aerospace applications.
Increasingly complex shapes can now be produced as a result of the latest CFRP technologies |
However, at around US$10,000 per ton, carbon fibre is very expensive and this cost has so far prohibited it from entering the consumer vehicle market to any great extent. Carbon fibre is very strong when stretched, but weak when compressed or exposed to high shock - it is extremely difficult to bend, for example, but will crack easily if hit with a hammer.
To obtain an endless carbon fibre with a high carbon content of more than 97%, there are two processes - PAN-based carbon fibres made from a multi-filament PAN precursor - poly acrylonitrile - and PITCH-based carbon fibres from a PITCH precursor that is coal or oil tar.
Carbon fibres are also broken down into specific families of small or light tow, with below 24,000 filaments, and large or heavy tow with above that number.
Three Japanese groups - Toray, Teijin Toho Tenax and Mitsubishi - account for around 80% of the production of small tow worldwide, with all three now having factories in the US, Europe and Japan and manufacturing their own PAN precursors.
SGL, headquartered in Wiesbaden, Germany, was the first company to produce large or heavy tow PAN-based carbon fibre over 25 years ago. For large or heavy tow products, the PAN precursor is usually bought from a third party. Other key manufacturers include Cytec Industries, Hexcel Corporation and Zoltek.
According to the Japan Carbon Fiber Manufacturers Association (JCFMA), the use of carbon fibre in commercial aircraft began in 1940. Since then, the substance has been increasingly used in various forms of CFRP to reduce total aircraft weight.
Sporting goods manufacturers began to use carbon fibre in such items as fishing rods, tennis rackets, golf club shafts, skis and surfboards in the 1970s, because of its high tensile strength.
Carbon, however, because of its high price, only accounts for a small percentage of the total amount of composites produced and consumed, with much cheaper glass fibre sufficing for most applications in industries such as transportation and construction.
According to just-released figures from JEC Composites, some 8 million tons of composites are now consumed each year, with a value of 60 billion euros.
However, aerospace - which is taking the bulk of CFRP - accounts for no more than 5% of total consumption in Europe and the USA, and just 1% in Asia at present. But those low percentages conceal the very high cost.
Critical technological element in superplanes
According to Airbus forecasts, the number of passenger aircraft in service will double from 10,838 in 2003 to 21,759 in 2023.
The world's airlines are expected to take delivery of 17,328 new passenger and freighter aircraft over the next 20 years, equating to average annual deliveries of 866 aircraft.
The number of frequencies offered on passenger routes will also more than double, while the average seats per aircraft will increase by 20% from 181 to 215.
The emergence of the successful low-cost airlines in recent years means that two thirds of new deliveries will be single-aisle types in size categories from 100 to 210 seats.
But by 2023, the world's airlines will also be operating 1,262 very large passenger aircraft and 996 large freighter aircraft. Over half of the world fleet of very large passenger aircraft will be operated by the airlines of the Asia-Pacific region.
These 17,328 new passenger aircraft and freighters represent a business volume of approximately US$1.9 trillion at current list prices.
The two superplanes which are currently being built by Airbus and Boeing will contribute significantly to the changing face of global air traffic in the next 20 years, and both, as mentioned, make extensive use of CFRP.
Next phase - electric cars
The next phase for carbon fibre composites looks very likely to be in vehicles, and especially electric ones.
CFRP will cut the weight of electric vehicles by more than half in a few years' time, according to Japan's Teijin, which has just unveiled a super-lightweight electric concept car made with proprietary materials and technologies including polycarbonate resins and bio-derived polyester, in addition to carbon fibre composites.
Weighing only 437 kg, the PU_PA EV (as in "pupa electric vehicle" – a reference to metamorphosis) embodies Teijin's vision of what a vehicle will look like on the market in five to ten years' time.
And in a very significant development, SGL has just announced a joint venture with BMW, to build a new carbon fibre manufacturing plant in Moses Lake, Washington, involving an initial investment of US$100 million.
The plan of the two companies is to manufacture ultra light weight CFRP for use in future vehicle concepts and fibres manufactured at Moses Lake will initially be used exclusively for BMW's Megacity. This new vehicle is set to be launched before 2015 under a BMW sub-brand and will be assembled in Leipzig, Germany.
"The new plant in Moses Lake will be a milestone in the use of carbon fibres for large scale production in the automotive industry," said Robert Koehler, SGL's CEO. "It will be the world's most cost-efficient carbon fibre plant and with BMW we will ensure that carbon fibres play a revolutionary role in lightweight automotive construction."
On display at the JEC Composites show in Paris this April was Lamborghini new Gallardo LP 570-4 Superleggera, which weighs 70kg less than previous models, with improved performance and reduced fuel consumption as a result of its carbon fibre structure |
"The energy demand for producing the carbon fibre will come from environmentally friendly hydropower," added Friedrich Eichiner of BMW's management board. "Lightweight construction is a core aspect for sustainable mobility, improving both fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.
"In using CFRP components in our Megacity vehicle, we will take sustainable mobility a step further. By combining the know-how of SGL Group and our expertise in manufacturing CFRP components, we will be able to produce carbon fibre-enhanced components in large volumes at competitive costs for the first time. This is particularly relevant for electric-powered vehicles such as the Megacity Vehicle."
The production of CFRP involves several work stages. The raw material required, a polyacrylonitrile (PAN) based precursor, will be produced by a joint venture between SGL Group and Japan's Mitsubishi Rayon. In the next step, the facility in Moses Lake will convert the polyacrylic fibres into actual carbon fibres. These will then be processed into lightweight carbon fibre fabrics at a second joint venture site in Wackersdorf, Germany. The CFRP parts and components will be made from these fabrics at the BMW Group plant in Landshut, Germany.
SGL Group and BMW Group have cooperated for many years in the area of carbon fibre composites and have combined their core competencies to industrialise the automotive use of carbon fibres in a joint venture founded in October 2009.
Lower-cost option getting popular
In a parallel development, Zoltek, headquartered in St Louis, Missouri, has announced the formation of a new subsidiary called Zoltek Automotive which will also aim to speed up the development of high-volume applications for lightweight carbon fibres within the automotive industry.
"We have long identified the automotive industry as the biggest single potential user of our low-cost, high-performance carbon fibres," said Zsolt Rumy, Zoltek's chairman and CEO. "The launch of Zoltek Automotive represents a new initiative to more closely align our development activities with the market opportunities we have identified. We have successfully demonstrated our ability to provide high-volume customers with assured long-term supply of carbon fibre at reliable low costs. As a result, we were able to unlock the first big commercial application for carbon fibres – wind energy – producing the largest and most efficient wind turbine blades. The Zoltek Automotive initiative is being established to take the next step in establishing the adoption of carbon fibres by customers in the automotive field.
"The value proposition and regulatory environment for carbon fibre automotive components have never been better, There is a large and rapidly-growing range of applications where these materials are ready to come out of the laboratory and into high-volume production. Our goal at Zoltek Automotive is to match emerging lightweighting opportunities with the right composite designs and manufacturing processes."
The size of the potential market for carbon fibres in the automotive industry is colossal.
In a paper presented at the JEC Composites show in Paris on April 13, Professor Jun Takahashi of the Department of Systems Innovation at Tokyo University's School of Engineering, pointed out that for the production of around 1,000 planes a year, the total amount of carbon fibre required would be 50,000 tons based on an average of 50 tons going into each plane.
However, if even just 100kg of carbon fibres were to be employed in the annual 100 million cars projected soon to be built each year, the demand would be 10 million tons. And the likelihood is that that amount is just the tip of the iceberg.
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| Copyright © Adsale Publishing Limited. Any party needs to reprint any part of the content should get the written approval from Adsale Publishing Ltd and quote the source "ATA Journal for Asia on Textile & Apparel", Adsale Textile English Website - www.AdsaleATA.com. We reserve the right to take legal action against any party who reprints any part of this article without acknowledgement. For enquiry, please contact Editorial Department. |
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| Copyright © Adsale Publishing Limited. Any party needs to reprint any part of the content should get the written approval from Adsale Publishing Ltd and quote the source "ATA Journal for Asia on Textile & Apparel", Adsale Textile English Website - www.AdsaleATA.com. We reserve the right to take legal action against any party who reprints any part of this article without acknowledgement. For enquiry, please contact Editorial Department. |
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