1
Carbon Fiber Composites
Low Cost Materials &
Manufacturing Options
George Husman
Zoltek Companies, Inc
.
September 13, 2012
2 Toray, 19000 Zoltek, 14000 Toho, 13900 Mitsubishi, 13000 all others, 37600 All China Hexcel Formosa SGL Cytec AKSA Others
2011
Estimated CapacityTotal = 97,500 metric tonnes
Source: High Performance Composites, March 2012
Carbon Fiber Markets
2011 – 2020
Estimated Demand2011 Total = 45,800 metric tonnes 2020 Total = 153,680 metric tonnes
Source: High Performance Composites, March 2012
• Wind Energy is largest market for carbon fiber
• Energy and Industrial markets dominate
• Should the Automotive forecast be higher??
0 10000 20000 30000 40000 50000 60000 70000 80000 wind energy consumer products aerospace automotive other industrial Total 45,800 92,490 153,680 2011 2015 20203
Automotive Applications
Carbon UD Carbon Steel Aluminum Fiber Composite
Strength (MPa) 4150 ~ 2200 ~ 690 ~ 415 Modulus (GPa) 245 ~ 132 ~ 207 ~ 69 Density (g/cc) 1.81 ~ 1.54 ~ 7.8 ~ 2.7
Why use carbon composites? • high strength & stiffness • low density
light weight vehicles
What is needed for broader automotive use of Carbon Fiber Composites? • Lower cost carbon fiber & intermediate products
• High throughput / low cost manufacturing technologies • Design know-how
- crash safety and performance prediction - design for manufacturing
Carbon Fiber Cost
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 Typical Aerospace Fiber Prices Typical Commercial Fiber Prices Future Commercial Fiber Prices $ / KG5
Zoltek / Weyerhaeuser / U.S. Dept. of Energy Project
- Lignin / PAN polymer blend precursor
- renewable source material (up to 45%)
- lower cost material, lower energy, lower CO
2- commercial product in 2013
Lower Cost Carbon Fiber Development
Precursor fibers from Zoltek Pilot Spinning Line
% Lignin Content 0 15 20 25 35 45
Project Targets
- Cost = $11.00 / kg - Strength > 1725 MPa - Modulus > 172 GPa - Elongation > 1%Current Results
- Cost ~ TBD - Strength ~ 2800 MPa - Modulus ~ 210 GPa - Elongation ~ 1.3%6
Low Cost Manufacturing
• Broader acceptance of carbon fiber composites for automotive
applications requires low cost / high throughput manufacturing processes
• Technology centers like the Magna – NRC Composite Centre of
Excellence and Fraunhofer – Gesellschaft and equipment manufacturers
like Krauss Maffei are working together with materials suppliers to
develop these needed technologies
• Manufacturing Processes:
Thermosetting Polymers
-
prepreg compression molding-
resin transfer molding (RTM)
-
wet pressing-
sheet molding compound (SMC)Thermoplastics
-
direct thermoplastic compounding / injection & compression molding-
thermoplastic sheet thermoforming7
Continuous Fiber / Thermosetting Matrix Processes
Prepreg Product
RTM Preform
Prepreg compression molding and resin transfer molding (RTM) are
currently used processes for low volume automotive applications
While these result in high structural efficiency composites, they have major drawbacks:
- high intermediate product costs - slow cycle times / low throughput - high scrap
Substantial improvements are needed to achieve broader use of these processes: - faster curing polymer systems
- advanced preforming concepts - automated tow & tape placement
8
Low Cost Carbon Fiber Sheet Molding Compounds
Magna Exteriors and Interiors recently
introduced the first carbon SMC product made with low cost commercial carbon fiber.
Typical SMC Composites Properties:
Carbon Fiber Glass Fiber
Tensile Strength = 200 MPa 140 MPa
Tensile Modulus = 30 GPa 13 GPa
Specific Gravity = 1.41 gm/cc 1.80 gm/cc This provides excellent potential for light weight structural applications.
Advantages:
• low cost product
• mold flow process for complex shapes • net shape molding; near zero scrap • light weight structures
• use of existing molding facilities & know-how
Complex parts molded by Magna
9
Direct Compounding / Injection Molding
Complex Front End Module Demonstrated at Krauss Maffei Comparative carbon
and glass fiber parts
Advantages:
• No intermediate product costs
• High production rates ~ 60 second cycle times • Net shape / complex parts; near zero scrap
• Potential for low cost / light weight complex structures • Additional development to achieve better fiber length retention will result in much higher properties
10
Carbon Thermoplastic Tapes
Thermoplastic Tapes
Can be used as the main reinforcement or as
localized reinforcement for injection or
compression molding applications.
Potential Parts
Seat Backs, Front Ends, Bumpers, B-Pillars, etc.
Strategic placement
Localized areas in combination with
injection or compression molding
produces a low cost, structurally
optimized composite structure
11
Carbon Thermoplastic Structural Sheets
Zmat Thermoplastic Sheets
ZMat is a random orientated fiber mat
comprised of 25mm long, unsized
Panex® 35 fibers for use in a wide variety
of composite applications.
Impregnated with PP, PA, or other polymers, ZMat thermoplastic
sheets can be used in thermoforming processes and in association
with other thermoplastic processes such as injection molding to
produce highly efficient thermoplastic structures.
12
