Functionalized Innovative Carbon Fibers from 'green' raw materials

The EU project 'FIBRALSPEC' will come to an end in 2017 after four years of successful research cooperation.

After more than five (5) decades of research, carbon fibres and their composites have reached maturity and they are not a “high-end” costly solution for low rate production. A growing industry with a multitude of applications has been established and the need on new precursors that not derive from petroleum has been revealed. EU states need also to be independent of the current supply chain on the availability of carbon fibres in the future.

“Within FIBRALSPEC we want to produce carbon fibres from ‘green’ raw materials and manufacture composites incorporating our fibres using environmentally friendly techniques. Specifically, we want to replace existing carbon fibre precursors with low-cost raw materials such as lignin or cellulose from sustainable sources of wood or cotton”, project coordinator Prof. Dr. Costas A. Charitidis says.

FIBRALSPEC Consortium and National Technical University of Athens will host the FIBRALSPEC final conference and workshop, which will take place on 29th November 2017 in Athens, Greece.

Within the framework of the FIBRALSPEC project important innovations such as Supercapacitors based on Carbon Nano Fibers for next generation energy storage devices, new prototypes and semi-industrial production lines have been designed, tested and delivered.

During the FIBRALSPEC final conference and workshop the latest developments on carbon fibers and composites will be discussed. The aim of the workshop is to inform and engage industry with the latest developments in carbon fiber research.

The workshop will offer presentations from the FIBRALSPEC project as well as other EU projects which form a cluster of projects (CARBON FIBRES & ADVANCED HIGH PERFORMANCE COMPOSITES CLUSTER-CFPC) on the topic of carbon fibers supported by the EC, as well as presentations from leading researchers in the field.

During the workshop open discussions will encouraged between industry and the research community in dedicated sessions to explore the future needs of industry and the future direction of research in the area of carbon fibers and composites.

MAIN ACHIEVEMENTS within FIBRLASPEC
• Green carbon fibres precursors based on lignin and blends.
• An automated continuous stabilization line (for oxidation treatment of carbon fibres precursors).
• Naprofiling and nanomodification of carbon fibres using nanoparticles produced from plant raw materials.
• A prototype of Operational Mechano-Electro Spinner.
• Protocols for analyzing fiber/matrix interface mechanical behavior with a fast, local, non-destructive method.

Participation is free of charge, but registration is mandatory. The deadline for the registration is: 30th October 2017.

Source: http://cordis.europa.eu/event/rcn/152000_en.html?isPermaLink=true?WT.mc_...