With widespread adoption of carbon fibre in making light energy-efficient vehicles, the problem of properly disposing of them at the end of the vehicle’s lifespan becomes apparent. To this end, Boeing and BMW have collaborated to jointly research carbon fibre recycling  – ways to reclaim and reuse the material to make new products. Over at Australia’s Monash University, a novel method of arranging graphene in a cork-like structure unlocks its suitability for use in applications ranging from aerospace to tissue engineering. Read more

BMW, Boeing collaborate to recycle carbon fibre

13 Dec 2012:

The BMW Group and Boeing have signed a collaboration agreement to jointly research carbon fibre recycling.

In addition, the engineering giants will look to share manufacturing knowledge and explore automation opportunities.

The companies have been pioneering the use of carbon fibre in their products and recycling composite material at the point of use and end of product life is essential to both.

In combination with the SGL Group, BMW has constructed a carbon fibre plant in Moses Lake, Washington state.

Boeing and BMW will share manufacturing process simulations and ideas for automation at the location.

Herbert Diess, board member at BMW, said, ‘Boeing for us is a suitable partner for a collaboration in the field of carbon fibre.

‘Boeing has many years of extensive experience using carbon fibre in the field of aviation, while the BMW Group has earned a significant competitive advantage through its use of special manufacturing methods for series production of carbon fibre parts. Through this cooperation we can merge know-how between our industries in the field of sustainable production solutions.’

Larry Schneider, Boeing vice president of product development, added, ‘This collaboration agreement is a very important step forward in developing the use and end use of carbon fibre materials.

‘It is especially important that we plan for the end of life of products made from carbon fibre. We want to look at ways to reclaim and reuse those materials to make new products. Our work with the BMW Group will help us attain that goal.’

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Cork the Key to Unlocking the Potential of Graphene

Science Daily

Dec. 4, 2012 — Scientists have taken inspiration from one of the oldest natural materials to exploit the extraordinary qualities of graphene, a material set to revolutionise fields from computers and batteries to composite materials.

Published December 4 in Nature Communications, a  Monash University study led by Professor Dan Li has established, for the first time, an effective way of forming graphene, which normally exists in very thin layers, into useful three-dimensional forms by mirroring the structure of cork.

Graphene is formed when graphite is broken down into layers one atom thick. In this form, it is very strong, chemically stable and an excellent conductor of electricity. It has a wide range of potential applications, from batteries that are able to recharge in a matter of seconds, to biological tissue scaffolds for use in organ transplant and even regeneration.

Professor Li, from the Department of Materials Engineering, said previous research had focused mainly on the intrinsic properties and applications of the individual sheets, while his team tackled the challenge of engineering the sheets into macroscopically-useable 3D structures.

“When the atomic graphene sheets are assembled together to form 3D structures, they normally end up with porous monoliths that are brittle and perform poorly,” Professor Li said.

“It was generally thought to be highly unlikely that graphene could be engineered into a form that was elastic, which means it recovers well from stress or pressure.”

The researchers used cork, which is lightweight yet strong, as a model to overcome this challenge.

PhD student, Ling Qiu, also from the Department of Materials Engineering, said modern techniques have allowed scientists to analyse the structure of such materials and replicate nature’s efficient design.

“The fibres in cork cell walls are closely packed to maximise strength and individual cells connect in a honeycomb structure which makes the material very elastic,” Mr Qiu said.

Using a method called freeze casting, the researchers were able to form chemically modified graphene into a 3D structure that mimicked cork. The graphene blocks produced were lighter than air, able to support over 50,000 times their own weight, good conductors of electricity and highly elastic — able to recover from over 80 per cent deformation.

“We’ve been able to effectively preserve the extraordinary qualities of graphene in an elastic 3D form, which paves the way for investigations of new uses of graphene — from aerospace to tissue engineering,” Professor Li said.

“Mimicking the structure of cork has made possible what was thought to be impossible.”

Source: www.sciencedaily.com