Scientists discover a new way to recycle carbon fiber

researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, US, have developed a way to recycle carbon fiber material known for its lightness and strength - and also to be used widely in the automotive and aerospace industry.

In other words, everything goes very fast nowadays has a little of the compound that, unlike aluminum, steel and plastics, did not have a recycling process easier.

The team led by Professor Jerry Qi, applied a solvent and alcohol could dissolve the resin - that is used to form and hardness to the carbon fiber - the broken parts, separating elements and allowing both the fibers and the resin itself they are reused. "I believe that this method already has an immediate application in the industry, with many economic and environmental benefits," said Kai Yu, one of the researchers involved. "The polymer serves as a matrix is interlaced, like rubber, so it is simply not possible to melt it; It is difficult to separate it to obtain carbon fibers, which is the most valuable part ". The team focused on a specific type of carbon fiber using an epoxy resin called "Vitremer". According to Yu, the compound has dynamic links that can be altered structure without losing its integrity under certain conditions. Alcohol in the case, has small molecules that participate in this network and changes the reactions, resulting in the dissolution of Vitremer. The researchers believe that the recycling process is simple and straightforward enough to handle much of thousands of tons of material that is discarded in the United States and Europe every year. "It's very easy to do, then there is no limit to the question of scale or size," concludes Yu.