Manufacturing Pitch and Polyethylene Blends-Based Fibres as Potential Carbon Fibre Precursors

The advantage of mesophase pitch-based carbon fibres is their high modulus, but pitch-based carbon fibres and precursors are very brittle. This paper reports the development of a unique manufacturing method using a blend of pitch and linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) from which it is possible...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Polymers 2021-04, Vol.13 (9), p.1445
Main Authors: Aldosari, Salem Mohammed, Khan, Muhammad A, Rahatekar, Sameer
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Brittleness
Carbon
Carbon fiber reinforced plastics
Costs
Crystallization
Ductility
Low density polyethylenes
Manufacturing
Mechanical properties
Molecular weight
Polyethylene
Polymer blends
Precursors
Production methods
Scanning electron microscopy
Tensile strength
Tensile tests
Thermal stability
Thermogravimetric analysis
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Summary:The advantage of mesophase pitch-based carbon fibres is their high modulus, but pitch-based carbon fibres and precursors are very brittle. This paper reports the development of a unique manufacturing method using a blend of pitch and linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) from which it is possible to obtain precursors that are less brittle than neat pitch fibres. This study reports on the structure and properties of pitch and LLDPE blend precursors with LLDPE content ranging from 5 wt% to 20 wt%. Fibre microstructure was determined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), which showed a two-phase region having distinct pitch fibre and LLDPE regions. Tensile testing of neat pitch fibres showed low strain to failure (brittle), but as the percentage of LLDPE was increased, the strain to failure and tensile strength both increased by a factor of more than 7. DSC characterisation of the melting/crystallization behaviour of LLDPE showed melting occurred around 120 °C to 124 °C, with crystallization between 99 °C and 103 °C. TGA measurements showed that for 5 wt%, 10 wt% LLDPE thermal stability was excellent to 800 °C. Blend pitch/LLDPE carbon fibres showed reduced brittleness combined with excellent thermal stability, and thus are a candidate as a potential precursor for pitch-based carbon fibre manufacturing.
ISSN:2073-4360
2073-4360
DOI:10.3390/polym13091445