Reclaimed Carbon Fiber Reinforced Automotive Part Using 3-DEP® Preforming Technology on Additive Manufacturing Tool Made with Reclaimed Carbon Fibers

Technical Report · Wed Dec 15 00:00:00 EST 2021

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1855408· OSTI ID:1855408

Stike, Jim ^[1]; Unser, John ^[2]; Lindahl, John ^[3]

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1. Materials Innovation Technologies, Fletcher, NC (United States)
2. Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI), Knoxville, TN (United States)
3. Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

The project focused on how well tools designed and built using reclaimed carbon fiber on the Big Area Additive Manufacturing (BAAM) can be used to manufacture preforms made with reclaimed carbon fibers. The project supported multiple Institute for Advanced Composite Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI) goals: • Enables the use of recycled carbon fibers in two areas: o Tooling material compounded with reclaimed carbon fiber. o Preforms made with recycled carbon fiber (rCF). • Lowers manufacturing costs by producing low cost 3-DEP® preform tooling. • Reduces manufacturing cycle time with quick additive manufacturing techniques. • Produces lightweight automotive components that will increase fuel economy which will in turn reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The project demonstrated a tool made from reclaimed carbon fibers, gathered technical data that will guide optimization of tooling materials, evaluated preforms made with the BAAM printed tool, and developed cost evaluations. This project has been a total success. First the project demonstrated that reclaimed carbon fiber can be compounded and successfully printed in the BAAM equipment. Second preforms were successfully made from reclaimed carbon fiber using a reclaimed fiber printed tool. Third the team successfully printed a molding tool out of reclaimed carbon fiber. Fourth the project went beyond the scope of this phase I project in 3 areas: (1)- Techmer PM compounded rCF in 2 resin systems instead of just one system (2)- Local Motors evaluated and collected data that will support their IACMI 3.6 project (Robert Bedsole, 2017) . (3)- University of Tennessee Knoxville (UTK) molded a part using the reclaimed preform on a molding tool made from printed reclaim fiber.

• Research Organization: Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI)-The Composites Institute, Knoxville, TN (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Energy Efficiency Office. Advanced Materials & Manufacturing Technologies Office (AMMTO)
• DOE Contract Number: EE0006926
• OSTI ID: 1855408
• Report Number(s): IACMI/R004--2022/6.02; PA16-0349-6.2-01
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
Additive Manufacturing
carbon fiber
recycling