Boom time for carbon fibre recycling

The high price of carbon fibre, coupled with a steep increase in its use in the aerospace and automotive industries, is driving the rapid growth in carbon fibre recycling which has attracted the involvement of some major players such as Boeing, Dell, BMW, Toyota and Hitachi. But some issues – such as shredding prior to treatment – remain to be taken care of.

‘Carbon fibre is still an exotic fibre, but its use will grow spectacularly in the next 20 years,’ predicts Bruno Douchy, sales director of Procotex, a Belgium-based company that recycles carbon fibre through its French subsidiary Apply Carbon.

The drive for fuel efficiency is accelerating the use of carbon fibre in the aerospace and automotive industries because it is much lighter and stronger than aluminium or steel.

Some aircraft consist already of more than 50% carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer (CFRP), such as the new Airbus A350 XWB. It is used in 104 models of car, like the BMW i3 and i8 and also Ford’s Shelby GT350R Mustang, as well as in a range of other products varying from wind turbines and satellites to drones and sports goods.

Demand to double

Global demand for these fibres is expected to double to 120 000 tonnes between 2016 and 2030, and many carbon fibre producers are currently expanding their capacities; for example, Hexcel is spending US$ 250 million on a new production plant at Roussillon in France.

However, up to 30% of carbon fibre is wasted during production or cutting and trimming operations to manufacture products. Also, products that contain carbon fibre are already reaching their end-of-life stage, such as the Boeing 777s and Airbus A320s which comprise up to 20% carbon fibre by weight.

Worldwide, carbon fibre is being recycled by well over a dozen companies that have been founded in the past 20 years. Most of these businesses are located in the USA, Europe and Japan, including America’s Carbon Conversions, Hadeg of Germany, ELG Carbon Fibre of the UK and Japan’s Takayasu.

In 2014, the annual recycling capacity of these companies was estimated at between 3500 and 5000 tonnes but the figures could already be much higher given the rapid development of this industry.

Recycling driver

The most important drivers for recycling carbon fibre are ‘its value and the ever-increasing amount of waste’, according to Ingrid Ahlborn, managing director of Hadeg. A kilogram of recycled carbon fibre is valued at around US$ 15 while the price of virgin carbon fibre is US$ 24-30.

Producing recycled carbon fibre requires one tenth of the energy needed for virgin material. Hence, there is great interest among carbon fibre manufacturers and end users in recycling it. UK-based Sigmatex, a manufacturer of carbon fibre textiles for the aerospace and automotive industries, is recycling its own dry carbon fibre production scrap into non-crimp fabric.

Meanwhile, Airbus has set a target of recycling 95% of its carbon fibre waste by 2020-25, with 5% recycled back into the aerospace sector.

This year, the Composite Technology Center subsidiary located at Stade in Germany will begin preparations for serial production of an aircraft interior sidewall panel made out of recycled carbon fibre.

Advanced collaboration

The most advanced collaboration is between BMW and SGL. These companies set up a joint venture in 2008 known as SGL Automotive Carbon Fibers, which has a plant at Wackersdorf in Germany and supplies carbon fibre materials to BMW. The plant recycles carbon fibre scrap from the production of BMW’s i series vehicles at other facilities.

‘We have reuse processes in place for all carbon fibre waste arising from production,’ points out Steffen Aumann, head of the BMW Group Competence Centre for Recycling. Recycled carbon fibre is used in vehicle components, such as the roof of i3 electric drive and i8 plug-in hybrid cars. In total, 10% of the CFRPs used in BMW i series vehicles is recycled material.

‘Recycling this material should become economic following the introduction of BMW’s i3 and i8 cars,’ according to Aumann. ‘When today’s cars made from carbon fibre come back for recycling from 2025 onwards, we will have industrialised carbon fibre reuse.’ (...)

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