Assessment of the anisotropy development of mechanical properties of pitch-based carbon fibers

Abstract

Carbon fiber XN-P9 derived from anisotropic pitch was heat treated at different temperatures (2000, 2500, and 3000℃) and the mechanical properties of those single filament in various directions were tested with some methods we have developed. The anisotropy of the mechanical properties of those pitch-based carbon fibers was evaluated to be developed by heat treatment. As a comparison, the properties of carbon fiber XN-05 derived from isotropic pitch were also tested. The ratio of the longitudinal tensile modulus to the shear modulus of XN-05 fiber was approximately 3. In contrast, for pristine XN-P9 fiber, the longitudinal tensile modulus was more than nine times greater than the shear modulus, and the difference between these moduli increased with the elevating heat treatment temperatures. It was suggested that the anisotropy of mechanical properties of pitch-based carbon fibers was developed by heat treatment. In compressive deformation in the transverse direction to the fiber axis, a yielding and a softening was clearly observed with the elevating heat treatment temperature. The effect of anisotropy development on the span-length dependence of flexural modulus obtained from the three-point bending test of the single filament was assessed.