Mechanical recycling of carbon fibre reinforced polymers. Part 1: influence of cutting speed on recycled particles and composites properties

ABSTRACT

Scientific advances and technological requirements to develop carbon fibre-reinforced polymers (CFRP) with excellent strength-to-weight ratios led to the high consumption of CFRP composites. The mechanical recycling of CFRP is a simpler, more economical, and environmentally responsible solution for effectively recovering this structural material that contains epoxy resin and carbon fibre. CFRP laminates were placed on a Computer Numerical Control (CNC) and milling cutting at 1100, 1800, and 2500 rpm. The recovered CFRP particles were mixed with acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) using the melt intercalation approach. Recovered CFRP particles increased the molecular mobility and reduced the thermal stability of ABS. The main differences between the ABS and the composites were a more pronounced necking region in the ABS than in the composites and a notable reduction in strain. The strain of the ABS was 27.58%, while in the composites, it was 4.29, 4.02, and 3.51%, depending on the cutting speed. Thus, ductility decreased up to 87% in the composites. This work’s successful CFRP mechanical recycling method provides epoxy powder, individual carbon fibres, and CFRP particles, opening a research field of great economic and environmental relevance in developing new materials.

KEYWORDS:

• ABS
• carbon fibre
• polymer composite
• mechanical recycling
• thermal properties
• mechanical properties

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the support of Tecnológico de Monterrey, and Consejo Nacional de Humanidades Ciencias y Tecnologías (CONAHCyT). Additionally, they want to acknowledge the technical support provided by Centro de Ingenieria y Desarrollo Industrial (CIDESI) Querétaro for the support in the experiments.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Author contributions

Conceptualisation, E.A.F.-U., C.Z.-P. and V.A.G.-C.; methodology, C.V.-L., C.Z.-P. and V.A.G.-C; validation, C.V.-L., C.Z.-P., M.B., E.A.F.-U and C.D.T.-Q.; formal analysis, C.V.-L., C.Z.-P. and E.A.F.-U; investigation, C.V.-L., C.Z.-P. and V.A.G.-C; resources, E.A.F.-U and C.D.T.-Q.; data curation, C.V.-L., C.Z.-P. and V.A.G.-C; writing – original draft preparation, C.V.-L., C.Z.-P., E.A.F.-U and C.D.T.-Q.; writing – review and editing, C.V.-L., C.Z.-P., M.B, E.A.F.-U and C.D.T.-Q.; supervision, C.Z.-P., M.B, E.A.F.-U and C.D.T.-Q.; project administration E.A.F.-U and C.D.T.-Q.; funding acquisition, E.A.F.-U and C.D.T.-Q. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Data availability statement

The data presented in this study are available on request from the corresponding author.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Consejo Nacional de Humanidades Ciencias y Tecnologías (CONAHCyT) under [grant number: 1238912], Tecnológico de Monterrey under [grant number: A01209044], and Institutional project CIDESI ‘Mechanical recycling of carbon fiber reinforced polymers technology’ under [grant number: QID027].

Notes on contributors

Carolina Vega-Leal

Carolina Vega-Leal is an Innovation and Development Engineer graduated from the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM) Campus Querétaro. She is currently studying a Master’s degree in Science Engineer at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education. She has participated and won second place at the 4th International Congress of Chemistry, Energy and Environmental Sustainability “Dr. Mario Molina Henriquez”. Among its main interests are the automotive industry and the aeronautical industry. Her dream is to add value to the recycling of end-of-life composite materials used in Formula 1.

Cecilia Zárate-Pérez

Cecilia Zárate Pérez Nanotechnology Engineer from the Technological University of Querétaro (UTEQ) of the state of Querétaro Mexico with a Master’s Degree in Science and Technology with a specialty in Design and Development of Mechanical Systems from the Center for Industrial Engineering and Development (CIDESI) of the same state. She has participated in student mobility to the Ivy Tech Community College in Lafayette, Indiana, United States and to the Madrid Institute of Advanced Studies in Getafe, Spain. She is currently part of the advanced polymers and biopolymers research group at CIDESI. She is an accredited test analyst specialized in materials characterization as well as training oriented in extrusion material processing. Her main interests are focused on the circular economy and the reincorporation of polymers into value chains.

Victor A. Gomez-Culebro

Victor A. Gomez-Culebro is a Mechanical Engineer from the Technological Institute of Tuxtla Gutiérrez (ITTG) of the State of Chiapas. M.C and T Víctor Gómez Culebro has a Specialty in Mechatronics Technologist and a Master’s Degree in Science and Technology from the Center for Industrial Engineering and Development (CIDESI) in the city of Santiago de Querétaro. He currently works as a Project Engineer at CIDESI in the composite materials laboratory in the vacuum assisted infusion (VARI), resin transfer molding (RTM) and AUTOCLAVE manufacturing processes. He has worked on projects such as: Torque Shaft for applications in turbines, CubeSat type nanosatellites, Bio-laminates, and aircraft interior research project.

Manuel Burelo

Manuel Burelo received his Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Universidad Juárez Autónoma de Tabasco, México. A master’s degree in Materials Sciences and Engineering and Doctor’s degree in Chemical Sciences from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM. He received the Santander University Scholarship for young professors and researchers in 2018, the Agilent Technologies 2019 scholarship for developing research techniques, and the award for the best doctoral thesis in polymer science and engineering by the Mexican Polymeric Society (SPM) in 2020. He has published 13 articles in indexed journals (h-index =7). He has the Mexican Researcher Certification (SNI) from CONAHCYT, Mexico. Dr. Burelo is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute of Advanced Materials for Sustainable Manufacturing at the Tecnológico de Monterrey, Queretaro, Mexico. His research lines are synthesis and characterization of bio-based polymers, polymer degradation, recycling, and sustainable chemistry in polymers and materials.

E. A. Franco-Urquiza

E. A. Franco-Urquiza is an aeronautical engineer and Ph.D. in polymers from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) in Barcelona, Spain. Dr. Franco worked as a UPC research professor from 2005 to 2014. He has two Postdoctoral stays at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies (UTIAS) in Canada. He is a member of the SNI level 2, has published over 50 indexed articles, and supervised 10 postgraduate theses. He leads the “advanced polymers and bio composites” research group at CIDESI, contributing to developing and acquiring infrastructure to attract projects in polymers and composites in coordination with academia, industry, and government. His main academic interests are the reuse of polymer composites and the development of intelligent polymers.

Cecilia D. Treviño-Quintanilla

Cecilia D. Treviño-Quintanilla earned her B.S in Chemical Engineering from the Tecnológico de Monterrey in Monterrey. Dr. Treviño starts her graduate studies in the Tecnológico de Monterrey. She had to have a research stay at Rice University in Houston, Tx., where she was working on research in material science and the latest on nanotechnology. As part of her PhD studies, she stays at the University of Houston where she was trained in Materials Science. At the same time, she was working as an intern in the Research Center of Total Petrochemicals & Refining USA. Currently Dr. Treviño works as a full-time researcher of the Institute of Advanced Materials and Sustainable Manufacturing of the Tecnológico de Monterrey as Core Researcher of the Advanced Polymers Research Unit. With different projects on additive manufacturing of composites materials, biodegradable composites, thermal modeling, and degradation of polymers. Dr. Treviño is a member of the National System of Researchers (SNI). She has collaboration with different research centers in Mexico as CIDESI and CINVESTAV. She has conducted research with the sponsorship of Total Petrochemicals and Refining USA. She is working in collaboration with the Southwest Research Institute on the chemical degradation of industrial rubbers.