Voltammetric detection of biological molecules was carried out using chopped carbon fibers produced from carbon fiber reinforced plastics that are biocompatible and inexpensive. Because chopped carbon fibers normally are covered with a sizing agent, they are difficult to use as an electrode. However, when the surface of a chopped carbon fiber was treated with ethanol and hydrochloric acid, it b...

Production of high strength carbon fibers from bio-derived precursors is of topical interest. Recently, we reported on dry-spinning of a partially acetylated softwood kraft lignin to produce carbon fibers with superior properties, but the thermo-oxidative stabilization step required a long time due to a slow heating rate needed to prevent the fibers from being heated too rapidly and sticking to...

In this chapter, we will present the precursors and manufacturing of carbon fibers. Among the precursors used for the production of carbon fibers, polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-based and pitch-based precursors are the most important. A significant amount of work has been done on relating the fiber structure to the properties and translating that relationship into production for either reducing cost o...

S ince 2000, the worldwide market for carbon-fiber-reinforced composite materials (CFRP) has grown from 30,500 to 43,500 tons per year. According to the latest estimates, the demand for carbon fibers will rise to some 1,300,000 tons by 2020 [1]. When preforms are used for manufacturing CFRP parts by the Liquid Composite Molding (LCM) process, up to 40 % waste accrues, resulting in a considerabl...

The mechanical properties of materials in small rod-shaped form are of considerable technological interest since, due to their shape and size, they can exhibit appreciably greater strength relative to corresponding macroscopic forms. For example, the mechanical strength of silicon carbide whiskers systematically increases with decreasing whisker diameter over the 100 to 1 micron range. This phe...

New materials capable of binding carbon dioxide are essential for addressing climate change. Here, we demonstrate that amyloids, self-assembling protein fibers, are effective for selective carbon dioxide capture. Solid-state NMR proves that amyloid fibers containing alkylamine groups reversibly bind carbon dioxide via carbamate formation. Thermodynamic and kinetic capture-and-release tests show...

The characterization of high performance PAN—based carbon fibers is described. The process of conversion of polyacrylonitrile fibers into carbon fibers consists mainly of two sequent steps, namely stabilization and carbonization. The ladder structure consisting of acridone ring (40%), naphthyridine ring (30%) and hydronaphthyridine ring (20%) as shown in Fig.5 was assigned for the chemical stru...

Broader applications of carbon nanotubes to real-world problems have largely gone unfulfilled because of difficult material synthesis and laborious processing. We report high-performance multifunctional carbon nanotube (CNT) fibers that combine the specific strength, stiffness, and thermal conductivity of carbon fibers with the specific electrical conductivity of metals. These fibers consist of...

Carbon-based implant materials are of interest because they are well accepted by the biological environment. Carbon fibrous materials developed in the Department of Special Ceramics of the University of Mining and Metallurgy in Cracow were tested in in vivo studies to determine their influence on the living body. For comparative purposes, different carbon fibers were prepared and subjected to d...

Potentially low-cost continuous carbon fibers are produced from solvated mesophase pitch through a patented meltblowing process. The structural evolution and properties of the fibers are characterized by various analytical methods. The meltblown fibers are continuous fibers which are collected into a fibrous web form, and the diameter of the filaments is attenuated by the flow rate of air strea...