Research and development background and significance: Carbon fiber is a new type of high-strength fiber material with a carbon content of over 95%. Due to its excellent properties such as high strength, lightweight and corrosion resistance, it is hailed as “black gold” and is an ideal material for the application field of equipment lightweighting. The research and development of carbon fiber helps promote the upgrading of related industries and improve product performance.
For instance, in the aerospace field, it can reduce the weight of aircraft and enhance fuel efficiency. In the automotive field, it can achieve vehicle lightweighting and reduce energy consumption, etc.
Research and development history: China’s carbon fiber research and development started relatively late and was once dependent on imports, facing a “bottleneck” problem. In 2005, the CCF-1 grade carbon fiber developed by Guangwei Group passed the acceptance of the national “863 Program” carbon fiber special project, marking the first time that China had its own industrialized carbon fiber. In 2011, Jilin
The 5,000-ton carbon fiber precursor project of the Chemical Fiber Group has been completed and put into operation, setting a precedent for the large-scale production of carbon fiber precursor in China. Since then, domestic enterprises have continuously overcome technical difficulties. For instance, Jilin Chemical Fiber Group has successively developed large-bundle original filaments such as 25K, 35K, 48K, and 50K, thus improving the carbon fiber product system. In 2022, Sinopec
The first domestic production line of Shanghai Petrochemical’s 10,000-ton 48K large-filament carbon fiber project was fed and started up, and qualified products were produced. The performance of the products is comparable to that of foreign products of the same level, and the quality has reached the international advanced level.
Key Technology Research and Development 5
Precursor production technology: The quality of precursor is one of the key factors determining the performance of carbon fibers. The research and development needs to address issues such as unstable viscosity, numerous bubbles and impurities, high spinning fineness, low strength, and excessive fuzz, in order to obtain high-quality polyacrylonitrile (PAN) precursor.
Carbonization technology: The original filament undergoes multiple processes such as oxidation, low-temperature carbonization, and high-temperature carbonization. Under the protection of inert gas, thermal decomposition and thermal polycondensation occur, forming a disordered graphite structure of carbon fibers. Eventually, the carbon content of the product exceeds 90%. During this process, temperature field control and other key technologies are crucial.
Application of Research and Development Achievements 1
In the wind power field, carbon fiber pultruded plates can be used for the main beams of wind turbine blades, making the wind turbine blades lighter and more efficient. The carbon fiber pultruded plates for the main beams of wind turbine blades of Jilin Chemical Fiber Group have a market share of over 90% in the domestic wind power market.
In the field of sports goods: It can be made into badminton rackets, skis, ice hockey sticks, etc. For instance, the related sports goods produced by Jilin Chemical Fiber Group have been put on the market.
In the field of construction machinery, Zoomlion has independently developed the “carbon fiber composite – high-strength Metal Hybrid Structure Technology”. The domestic carbon fiber boom pump truck applying this technology has made its debut, achieving full-chain autonomy of carbon fiber composite materials from raw materials to manufacturing processes, enhancing equipment operation capabilities and reducing production costs.
Future research and development directions: On the one hand, efforts will continue to be made to enhance the performance of carbon fibers, such as strength and modulus, to meet the higher requirements for materials in high-end fields like aerospace. On the other hand, efforts will be made to reduce production costs. By optimizing processes and improving equipment, production efficiency will be enhanced, the application scope of carbon fiber will be expanded, and its large-scale application in more civilian fields will be promoted.
