Cost analysis done for the project say that carbon fibre sells for around $15 per pound in the United States, and the team, which includes researchers from Penn State, the University of Virginia and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, in collaboration with industry partners Solvay and Oshkosh, wants to reduce that to $5 per pound by making changes to the complex production process. A lower production cost will increase carbon fibre’s potential applications. Further, the team’s research may lower the cost of producing other types of carbon fibres, some of which sell for up to $900 per pound today.

Currently, most carbon fibres are produced from a polymer known as polyacrylonitrile, or PAN, and it is pretty costly. The price of PAN makes up about 50% of the production cost of carbon fibres.

Małgorzata Kowalik, researcher in Penn State’s Department of Mechanical Engineering

PAN is used to create 90% of carbon fibres found in the market today, but its production requires an enormous amount of energy. First, PAN fibres have to be heated to 200-300 degrees Celsius to oxidize them. Next, they must be heated to 1,200-1,600 degrees Celsius to transform the atoms into carbon. Finally, they have to be heated to 2,100 degrees Celsius so that the molecules are aligned properly. Without this series of steps, the resulting material would lack its needed strength and stiffness.

The team reported in a recent issue of Science Advances that adding trace amounts of graphene to the first stages of this process allowed the team to create a carbon fibre that had 225% greater strength and 184% greater stiffness than the conventionally made PAN-based carbon fibres.

The flat structure of graphene helps to align PAN molecules consistently throughout the fibre, which is needed in the production process. Further, at high temperatures, graphene edges have a natural catalytic property so that the rest of PAN condenses around these edges.

With the new knowledge gained from this study, the team is exploring ways to further use graphene in this production process using cheaper precursors, with a goal of cutting out one or more of the production steps altogether, thereby reducing costs even more.

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The DDF method automates dry fibre pre-forming, prepreg pre-forming or press moulding into a single-step process speeding up the takt time involved in part making. Solvay says its DDF technology will also cut down on labour costs and processing times due to the two diaphragm layers preventing the need for tool preparation and cool down between mouldings. The diaphragm itself can act as a protective layer for painting and bonding operations.

Solvay R&I team has achieved a key milestone in the industrialization of composites, developing and building a line that illustrates the vast possibilities and increased rate capabilities that automation brings to both the automotive and aerospace industries. The huge market interest we are receiving is a testimony to our team’s vision for the future of the composites industry Carmelo Lo Faro, President of Solvay Composite Materials Global Business Unit

During the event, the company shared its industrialisation strategy before presenting its DDF technology and unveiling the new demonstrator line which will be used to develop, de-risk and validate the suitability of the technology for customers’ applications.

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These materials, which address the need to reduce costs, CO2 emissions, and improve the production process and fuel efficiency of next-generation commercial aircraft, will be based on SGL Carbon’s large-tow IM carbon fibre and Solvay’s primary structure resin systems.

The agreement encompasses both thermoset and thermoplastic composite technologies. It builds on Solvay’s experience in supplying composite materials to the aerospace industry and SGL Carbon’s expertise in high-volume carbon fibre manufacturing.

By combining SGL’s carbon fibre expertise in our newly developed, unique 50K IM fibre with Solvay’s resin formulation, both partners are aiming to develop an advanced aerospace material system. Dr. Michael Majerus, spokesman of the management board of SGL Carbon

Composite materials for aerospace applications represent a multi-billion-dollar market that is expected to grow strongly in the coming decade. Solvay and SGL Carbon are uniquely positioned to develop solutions to address the needs of this market.

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The company is investing heavily in thermoplastic composites technology development and has joined the research centre based in the Netherlands as a tier 1 member, which grants Solvay access to the centre’s research and the ability to steer on fundamental development activities, which are complementary to Solvay’s internal research such as forming and over-moulding, cost-effective manufacture of large structures, material performance and sustainability.

The ThermoPlastic composites Research Center (TPRC) is a consortium of industrial and academic members active in the thermoplastic composites industry. We believe in thermoplastic composites as the material for lightweight manufacturing in large volumes. Our primary aim is to enable more widespread use of thermoplastic composites by eliminating technological barriers.

Solvay’s research and innovation experts will work hand in hand with the TPRC on selected projects where we see joint benefits. Solvay and the TPRC are both committed to increasing the adoption of TPC by the aerospace and automotive industries and our membership will strengthen our ability to contribute to industry developments Dr Jim Pratte, Senior Research Fellow for Solvay Composite Materials Global Business Unit

Solvay recently opened a Product Development Center in Alpharetta USA and Customer Engagement Center in Brussels which will work closely with the TPRC as we start engaging in joint collaboration projects.

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The Product Development Center in Alpharetta, Georgia, in the United States will be dedicated to the development of next-generation thermoplastic composites while the new centre in Brussels, Belgium will focus on customer collaboration providing virtual engineering technology, allowing for the simulation of advanced parts and systems as well as the minute analysis of the characteristics of materials; the rapid prototyping of complex small to mid-sized parts; as well as the advanced mechanical testing and validation of the materials.

Solvay’s new R&I centres in the U.S. and Europe and our recent capacity expansions, complete our infrastructure to support the industrialization of our thermoplastic materials technology. The centres provide state-of-the-art assets and capabilities to accompany our customers in the design, prototyping and testing of parts and allowing for a dramatic acceleration of the time to market of our materials Augusto Di Donfrancesco, member of Solvay’s Executive Committee

Solvay’s composite products help towards lightweight planes and cars, reducing their fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions and allow greater design freedom, thereby reducing the number of parts overall or improving aerodynamics. In oil and gas, they replace metal pipes prone to corrosion.

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The new production line is set to double the production capacity of key raw materials that are used to make carbon fibre reinforced composite products. The new line has won qualification by Boeing to manufacture secondary structures such as wing movable flaps and engine nacelles, as well as interior applications.

The expansion covers the facilities and equipment to convert acrylonitrile monomers into standard modulus carbon fibres. This type of fibre is used to manufacture composite materials which have been pre-impregnated for use in applications on commercial and military planes.

Solvay’s CEO Jean-Pierre Clamadieu said;

Through this strategic capacity expansion we offer our customers greater supply capabilities and contribute to their increased needs for reinforced composite materials to reduce weight and fuel consumption and to reduce assembly costs by integrated part design. For Solvay this production expansion results in greater flexibility to strengthen our growth innovative composite materials and our leading position in the industry.

Carbon fibre composite materials’ durability, strength and fatigue life allow them to increasingly and securely replace metals on aircraft, reducing their weight, noise and CO2 emissions. In addition, composites enable the moulding of multiple sub-components into one assembly part, lowering the number of parts required as well as the assembly costs.

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The total cash consideration will amount to US $5.5 billion, corresponding to an enterprise value of US $6.4 billion and representing a 2015 estimated EBITDA multiple of 14.7x and of 11.7x when considering synergies potential linked to the transaction. The transaction price per share represents a premium of 28.9% compared to the closing price of Cytec on 28th July 2015 and a premium of 26.9% compared to the volume-weighted average closing share price over the last three months. Cytec’s and Solvay’s boards of directors have unanimously recommended the transaction.

Headquartered in New Jersey with 4,600 employees across the globe, Cytec generated sales of US$ 2.0 billion in 2014. It sources almost half of its sales from North America, nearly a third from EMEA and the remainder from Asia-Pacific and Latin America.

Cytec is among the world leaders in composite materials and in mining chemicals. In the fast-growing composite materials sector, which represents two-thirds of its sales, its principal market is primary and secondary structures for aircraft. It is also developing new technological applications for composites in automotive. Cytec is the leader in tailored speciality chemical formulations to enhance mining separation processes.

The proposed acquisition of Cytec marks a major step-change in Solvay’s portfolio upgrade. It is a unique opportunity for Solvay to boost its customer offerings in light-weighting with advanced composite materials in aerospace and automotive, as well as to strengthen its know-how with activities in mining chemicals.

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The partnership will combine 3A’s know-how of industrial process development and high volume fabrication of foams, with Solvay’s high-performance plastics materials. The partners will first build on Solvay’s Radel foam and so-called sandwich materials, used on Airbus A350 and Solar Impulse.

Companies are constantly looking to replace heavier plastics and metal structures, which are more time-consuming to process and expensive to maintain, with speciality foams. Light-weighting applications range from the cabin to ducting and trolleys and help to improve energy efficiency.

Armin Klesing, Global Business Development Manager Aerospace & Composites at Solvay’s Specialty Polymers Global Business Unit said;

Our alliance is a game changer in making high-tech foams available on a large scale. Part makers will benefit from greater flexibility in their designs and from uniting strength and insulation performance at the highest level of fire resistance.

The alliance secures global logistics and regional support through its manufacturing and workshop capabilities worldwide. 3A Composites expects additional foam extrusion capacity in the United States to come on stream 2016 and will continue to service the market with its existing product lines.

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Armin Klesing, business development manager for aerospace and composites for Solvay Specialty Polymers said;

This unique collaboration will bring together two world-class companies focused on meeting the growing global demand for lightweight, stiff, strong, and recyclable composite materials, we’re excited about the composites market and Aonix’s potential to deliver cutting-edge composite systems with significant benefits over conventional epoxy-based systems in high-volume production.

The partnership will focus on the use of Solvay’s high-performance thermoplastics as a matrix as well as over-moulding polymers which are particularly suited for these advanced composite applications due to their strong mechanical properties, superior damage tolerance, and chemical resistance. A key processing advantage is their faster cycle times compared to thermoset systems such as epoxy, particularly in high-volume fabrication. These composites are reinforced with glass fibre, aramid fibre, or carbon fibre.

Aonix offers a range of thermoplastic formulations that are used to create new classes of composite materials with high-volume output and recyclability versus conventional composites. The company accelerates commercial development by performing all formulation, prepreg, prototyping, testing, and validation for the customer.

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