Documents published in Scipedia

• New life for aeronautical dry carbon fiber

  A. Calero, T. Blanco Varela, J. Sistach

  Materiales Compuestos (2024). Vol. 08 - COMUNICACIONES MATCOMP21 (2022) Y MATCOMP23 (2023), (Núm. 4 - Sostenibilidad y Reciclaje), 18

  
  

  Abstract

  Our latest generation aircraft are more efficient by design, lighter and emit on average 25% less CO2 than previous generation aircrafts. Lightweight materials like composites have contributed significantly to reach the current emissions levels, like the A350 with more than 50% of structural weight made of composites. However, composites drive also the environmental footprint of the aircraft life-cycle without considering the operational phase, involving currently important drawbacks in terms of energy consumption and waste recycling. The transition towards a composite circular economy needs to be anticipated due to the aviation sector de-carbonization challenge as well as the regulation evolution. This transition will be leveraged by several elements, being the composite recycling one of the most important, due to the need to transform the composite waste from production and end of life into new added value materials. For this, the development of efficient composite recycling technologies to not only recover energy during incineration but also high value recycled carbon fibers and semi-products are needed. This project was focused on the recycling of dry carbon fiber scrap, which can proceed from part production by infusion technologies (e.g. RTM) or from pyrolysis of end of life composite part. The approach was to obtain a non-woven mat from the dry fiber scrap, following a mechanical process, which was, then, fully characterized to identify potential applications in aeronautical field. Different approaches of hybridization of the recycled non-woven fabric with virgin fabric were also evaluated.

  Abstract
  Our latest generation aircraft are more efficient by design, lighter and emit on average 25% less CO2 than previous generation aircrafts. Lightweight materials like composites [...]

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• Re-usage of uncured carbon fiber scrap material

  J. Sistach*, A. Calero, B. López-Romano, M. Ordóñez

  Materiales Compuestos (2023). Vol. 08 - COMUNICACIONES MATCOMP21 (2022) Y MATCOMP23 (2023), (Núm. 2 - Fabricación y Aplicaciones Industriales - Sostenibilidad y Reciclaje.), 39

  
  

  Abstract

  Industrial automated tape layup methods significantly increase the productivity, precision, and efficiency of manufacturing methods for large aerospace parts; however, although they allow reducing scrap fraction compared with manual processes, it keeps being too high, requiring waste management. The scope of the MC4 project, part of Horizon Europe program, is to not only recycle that scrap material, but also to transform it to a completely new, functional part, without the need of adding additional material other than this recycled scrap. This can be achieved by cutting that material into strip shape and reducing it to a specific thickness by means of a compacting process. Those homogenous thickness strips can then be processed using a heated plate press to form it to any needed shape. Mechanical properties will be studied and compared to the original material, to check if this process is suitable for the manufacturing of functional parts. As this method does not separate the original resin and fiber, it avoids the usage of chemicals that can damage the properties of the material and increase the risk and pollution of the process, which is ideal for a recycling process.

  Abstract
  Industrial automated tape layup methods significantly increase the productivity, precision, and efficiency of manufacturing methods for large aerospace parts; however, although [...]

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