Grown Carbon Fiber Composites

Vapor grown carbon fiber (VGCF) is the descriptive name of a class of carbon fiber which is distinctively different from other types of carbon fiber in its method of production, its unique physical characteristics, and the prospect of low cost fabrication. Simply stated, this type of carbon fiber is synthesized from the pyrolysis of hydrocarbons or carbon monoxide in the gaseous state, in the presence of a catalyst in contrast to a melt-spinning process common to other types of carbon fiber. 

Compared to PAN and pitch-based carbon fiber, the morphology of VGCF is unique in that the graphene planes are more preferentially oriented around the axis 

While a large body of research has been compiled on VGCF growth mechanisms and the properties of the resulting fiber, very little work has been performed on the properties of composites which are reinforced with VGCF. Essentially, the small quantities of the fiber which has been synthesized, typically in laboratory settings, has not been adequate to support such evaluations. Research efforts at Applied Sciences, Inc. have been motivated by the desire to determine the properties of 

In the fixed catalyst method, the residence time in the reactor may be easily controlled to generate fibers of selected length and diameter, both dimensions which can vary over several orders of magnitude. Most of the physical properties which have been measured for VGCF have been made on this type of fiber. 

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Tibbetts, G. McHugh, J. J. Mechanical properties of vapor-grown carbon fiber composites with thermoplastic matrices. J. Mater. Res. 14, 2871-2880 (1999). 

Tibbetts, G.G., McHugh, J.J. Mechanical properties of vapor-grown carbon fiber composites with thermoplastic matrices , J. Mater. Res. 14(7) (1999), 2871-2880 Kuriger, R.J., Alam, M.K., Anderson, D.P., Jacobsen, R.L. Processing and characterization of aligned vapor grown carbon fiber reinforced polypropylene . Comp. Part A 33(1) (2002), 53-62... 

Patton, R.D., Pittman Jr., C.U., Wang, L., Hill, J.R. Vapor grown carbon fiber composites with epoxy and poly(phenylene sulfide) matrices . Comp. Part A 30(9) (1999), 1081-1091... 

Ting, J.-M. and Lake, M.L., Vapor-grown carbon-fiber reinforced carbon composites, Carbon, 1995, 33(5), 663 667... 

Dasch, C.J., Baxter, VV.J., and Tibbetts, G.G., Thermoplastic composites using nanometer-size vapor-grown carbon fibers. Extended Abstracts, 2Ist lliennial Conference on Carbon, 1993, pp. 82 83,... 

Katsumata,. M. and Endo, M, J.,Epoxy composites using vapor-grown carbon fiber... 

Detailed accounts of fibers and carbon-carbon composites can be found in several recently published books [1-5]. Here, details of novel carbon fibers and their composites are reported. The manufacture and applications of adsorbent carbon fibers are discussed in Chapter 3. Active carbon fibers are an attractive adsorbent because their small diameters (typically 6-20 pm) offer a kinetic advantage over granular activated carbons whose dimensions are typically 1-5 mm. Moreover, active carbon fibers contain a large volume of mesopores and micropores. Current and emerging applications of active carbon fibers are discussed. The manufacture, structure and properties of high performance fibers are reviewed in Chapter 4, whereas the manufacture and properties of vapor grown fibers and their composites are reported in Chapter 5. Low density (porous) carbon fiber composites have novel properties that make them uniquely suited for certain applications. The properties and applications of novel low density composites developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are reported in Chapter 6. 

Ting, J.M. Lake, M.L. and Duffy D.R., Composites based on thermally hyper-conductive vapor grown carbon fiber, J. Mater. Res., 1995, 10(6), 1478 1484... 

Katsumata, M. and Endo, M. J.,Epoxy composites using vapor-grown carbon fiber fillers for advanced electroconductive adhesive agents, J. Mater. Res., 1994, 9(4), 841 843. 

M.L. Shofner, F.J. Rodriguez-Macfas, R. Vaidyanathan, and E.V. Barrera, Single wall nanotube and vapor grown carbon fiber reinforced polymers processed by extrusion freeform fabrication, Composites Part A, 34(12) 1207-1217, December 2003. 

G. G. Tibbetts, Vapor-grown carbon fibers, in Carbon Fibers, Filaments and Composites, J. L. Figueriredo et at, (eds.), Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dortrecht. 73-93 (1990). 

Source Reprinted with permission from Tibbetts GG, Vapor-grown Carbon Fibers, In Figueiredo JL, Bernardo CA, Baker RTK, Huttinger KJ, eds. Carbon Fibers Filaments and Composites, Kluwer, Dordrecht, 74, 1990. Copyright 1990, Springer. 

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