Abstract
Preserving the integrity of carbon fibers when recycling carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics (CFRPs) has been unfeasible due to the harsh reaction conditions required to remove epoxy resin matrixes, which adversely affect the properties of carbon fibers. We establish a practicable and environmentally friendly reclamation strategy for carbon fibers. Carbon fibers are recycled from waste CFRPs by an electrochemical catalytic reaction with the assistance of phosphotungstic acid (PA), which promotes the depolymerization of diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A/ethylenediamine (DGEBA/EDA) epoxy resin. The removal rate, mechanical strength, and microstructure of the recycled carbon fibers are analyzed to explore the mechanism of the electrochemical treatment. The influence of three factors—current density, PA concentration, and reaction time—are studied via an orthogonal method. Range analysis and variance analysis are conducted to investigate the significance of the factors. The optimal conditions are determined accordingly. The underlying CFRP degradation mechanism is also investigated.
Highlights
Carbon fibers are new high-performance materials with high tensile strength (2–7 GPa), high elastic modulus values (200–700 GPa), low density (1.5–2.0 g/cm2 ), small linear expansion coefficients, and excellent conductivity, and they exhibit good corrosion resistance to acids and alkali and organic solvents [1,2]
Based on previous studies [38,39], reaction time, current density and phosphotungstic acid (PA) concentration were the significant parameters affecting the efficiency of the carbon fiber reclamation
(Mv − Mr )/Mv t where η is the degradation rate within the reaction time, h−1 ; Mv is the mass of epoxy resin in virgin carbon fibers, g; Mr is the mass of epoxy resin in recycled carbon fibers, g; and t is the reaction time
Summary
Carbon fibers are new high-performance materials with high tensile strength (2–7 GPa), high elastic modulus values (200–700 GPa), low density (1.5–2.0 g/cm2 ), small linear expansion coefficients, and excellent conductivity, and they exhibit good corrosion resistance to acids and alkali and organic solvents [1,2]. To make use of their low weight and high strength, carbon fibers are often combined with polymers to form carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics (CFRPs), which can be used to improve the mechanical and fatigue resistance properties of other materials. As the application of CFRP materials continues to increase, the amount of carbon fiber waste generated becomes staggering [12,13]. For both environmental protection and sustainable economic development, CFRP waste must be recycled [14,15]. The existing CFRP recovery methods mainly include mechanical recovery [16,17], pyrolysis [18,19], fluidized bed method [20,21], super/subcritical fluid decomposition [22,23], etc
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
