CRADA Final Report for CRADA Number NFE-10-02991 "Development and Commercialization of Alternative Carbon Precursors and Conversion Technologies"
- ORNL
- The Dow Chemical Company
The overall objective of the collaborative research performed by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the Dow Chemical Company under this Cooperative Research And Development Agreement (CRADA NFE-10-02991) was to develop and establish pathways to commercialize new carbon fiber precursor and conversion technology. This technology is to produce alternative polymer fiber precursor formulations as well as scaled energy-efficient advanced conversion technology to enable continuous mode conversion to obtain carbonized fibers that are technically and economically viable in industrial markets such as transportation, wind energy, infrastructure and oil drilling applications. There have been efforts in the past to produce a low cost carbon fiber. These attempts have to be interpreted against the backdrop of the market needs at the time, which were strictly military aircraft and high-end aerospace components. In fact, manufacturing costs have been reduced from those days to current practice, where both process optimization and volume production have enabled carbon fiber to become available at prices below $20/lb. However, the requirements of the lucrative aerospace market limits further price reductions from current practice. This approach is different because specific industrial applications are targeted, most specifically wind turbine blade and light vehicle transportation, where aircraft grade carbon fiber is not required. As a result, researchers are free to adjust both manufacturing process and precursor chemistry to meet the relaxed physical specifications at a lower cost. This report documents the approach and findings of this cooperative research in alternative precursors and advanced conversion for production of cost-effective carbon fiber for energy missions. Due to export control, proprietary restrictions, and CRADA protected data considerations, specific design details and processing parameters are not included in this report.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Advanced Manufacturing Office (EE-2F); USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Sustainable Transportation Office. Vehicle Technologies Office
- Contributing Organization:
- The Dow Chemical Company
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC05-00OR22725
- OSTI ID:
- 1129561
- Report Number(s):
- NFE-10-02991; R&D Project: ED2802000; CRADA Number NFE-10-02991
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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alternative precursors
low cost carbon fiber
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melt spinning
polymers
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