Thanks, Rob. The source is a mix, since they are carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Generally speaking, one could divide plastics into two different classes depending on their end apps' usage characteristics and how strong, tough and durable the materials must be: consumer goods, water bottles, packaging, etc., such as PET, vs what are called durables. Engineering-grade plastics are a subset of durables and CFRPs are durables.
Good question, Beth. Part of the timing has to do with me--I'm finding and noticing these announcements because I'm interested in them (and new to this beat).
But it looks like at least some of these trends were already in progress when I ran across the information. For example, the recycled bridge materials have been around for awhile, and I recently came across another vendor doing something similar to Axion's product. OTOH, recycling carbon fiber reinforced composites is pretty new. As to macro-trends, research has been going on for some time on recycling of plastics in general, and I think it's just taken as long as it's taken for the technologies to mature and able to deliver some results.
Nice article, Ann. In recycling the carbon fibers, what products are they coming from? Are they from industrial products or consumer products? You mentioned that the volume of nonbiodegradable carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics is growing. Does this include products such as plastic water bottles?
It seems that the carbon fiber industry is starting earlier than most in working or recycling their products. This is a good trend. What makes us more efficient makes us better off.
Ann: It seems a lot of your recent posts have focused on pretty significant advances in the manufacturing and development of recycled materials, particularly on the composite front. I definitely applaud the effort and I'm wondering, is there any sort of macro trend driving this flurry of activity--a why now moment, perhaps?
For 3D printing to make the jump from rapid prototyping to manufacturing, engineers will need to find easier ways to move products from their CAD screens to their printers.
Gigabit and PoE are two networking technologies moving ahead in tandem as industrial users power remote Ethernet devices such as IP security cameras at 1,000 Mbps over existing CAT5 cable.
New versions of BASF's Ecovio line are both compostable and designed for either injection molding or thermoforming. These combinations are becoming more common for the single-use bioplastics used in food service and food packaging applications, but are still not widely available.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 5
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
For industrial control applications, or even a simple assembly line, that machine can go almost 24/7 without a break. But what happens when the task is a little more complex? That’s where the “smart” machine would come in. The smart machine is one that has some simple (or complex in some cases) processing capability to be able to adapt to changing conditions. Such machines are suited for a host of applications, including automotive, aerospace, defense, medical, computers and electronics, telecommunications, consumer goods, and so on. This radio show will show what’s possible with smart machines, and what tradeoffs need to be made to implement such a solution.
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