R&D on Low-Cost Carbon Fiber Composites for Energy ... · PDF fileR&D on Low-Cost Carbon Fiber...

32
R&D on Low-Cost Carbon Fiber Composites for Energy Applications Cliff Eberle Technology Development Leader Carbon & Composites Oak Ridge National Laboratory Presented at Carbon Fiber R&D Workshop July 25 26, 2013

Transcript of R&D on Low-Cost Carbon Fiber Composites for Energy ... · PDF fileR&D on Low-Cost Carbon Fiber...

R&D on Low-Cost Carbon

Fiber Composites for

Energy Applications

Cliff Eberle

Technology Development Leader

Carbon & Composites

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Presented at

Carbon Fiber R&D Workshop

July 25 – 26, 2013

2 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

ORNL is DOE’s Largest Science and

Energy Laboratory

2 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

$1.65B budget

World’s most intense

neutron source

4,400 employees

World-class research reactor

3,000 research guests annually

$500M modernization

investment

Nation’s largest

materials research portfolio

Most powerful open

scientific computing

facility

Nation’s most diverse

energy portfolio

Managing billion-dollar U.S. ITER

project

3 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Discovering and Demonstrating

Advanced Materials for Energy

4 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Advanced Manufacturing

R&D Ecosystem for Technologies

5 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

ORNL Develops Composite

Technologies across Applications

Gas Centrifuge Vehicle Technologies

Wind Turbines

• Motor/Generator

• Power Electronics

• Lightweight Materials (e.g., composites)

• Sensing and Measurement Science

• Modeling and Simulations

• Systems Engineering, etc. Figures from wikimedia, http://cardisplayreviews.blogspot.com/2012/11/gm-hy-wire.html, & http://exportcontrols.info/centrifuges.html

6 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Why DOE Cares About Composites

Source: Transportation Energy Data Book, 31st Edition (2012)

US Petroleum Production and Consumption

7 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Source: Transportation Energy Data Book, 31st Edition (2012)

US Cost of Oil Dependence

Why DOE Cares About Composites (2)

8 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Carbon fiber potential in 5 years at 50% of current price

Source: Lucintel, ACMA

Composites 2012

Potential automotive market is huge

for low-cost carbon fiber

Global automotive production by car type

Expected vehicle

production Expected use of CF in cars

Demand for CF at 50% of current price (pounds)

Market for CF at 50% of current

price ($M)

6,000 100% 1.3 million $7M

600,000

10% 101.2 million $506M

4 million

92 million 1% 202.4 million $1,012M

Total 97 million 305 million $1,525M

Super cars

Super luxury cars

Other/regular cars

3 current global CF demand for all applications; 10B lb potential automotive demand at full market penetration

Potential to reduce US petroleum demand by 2-3 Mbpd (~10-15%)

Luxury cars

9 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Enable deployment of low-cost technology in high-volume applications

– Low-cost raw materials

– Low-cost fiber manufacturing processes

– High-rate, robust composites manufacturing processes

Develop and transition to industry technology with significant impacts on U.S. and global energy security

Carbon Fiber and Composites

at ORNL

Maximize impact through industry

partnerships

10 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

ORNL Carbon Fiber Mfg R&D Capabilities

Precursor evaluation system

Pilot CF conversion line

Materials development, processing, and characterization

from nanoscale to semi-production scale

Energy efficient processing - Unique facilities

Multi-scale characterization

Mesh Belt Furnace

Robotic preformer

Microwave-assisted plasma carbonization

Melt spinning Advanced oxidation

Carbon Fiber

Technology Facility

11 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Conventional PAN Conversion

Typical processing sequence for PAN –based carbon fibers

Major Cost Elements Precursor ~ 50% Conversion ~ 40% Other ~10%

• Automotive targets $5 - $7/lb, tensile 250 ksi, 25 Msi, 1% ultimate strain

• Hydrogen storage targets 25% cost reduction for tensile 700 ksi strength, 33 Msi modulus

• ORNL is developing technological breakthroughs for major cost elements

12 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Low-Cost PAN Precursor

Textile PAN and/or melt spun PAN

Estimated 20% - 30% cost reduction vs. conventional PAN

Textile PAN tensile mechanicals > 500 ksi strength and > 30 Msi modulus

Now developing higher strength version of textile PAN (> 600 ksi strength requirement)

Melt spun PAN requires ~ 650 ksi with ≥ 25% cost reduction; recently met 250 ksi / 25 Msi milestone

Textile PAN mechanicals

10-filament, melt-spun PAN tow

Textile PAN precursor

(courtesy FISIPE)

13 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Dow and Ford team up to bring low-cost, high-volume carbon fiber composites to next-generation vehicles

– Reducing weight of new cars and trucks by up to 750 lbs by the end of the decade

– Builds on foundational work at ORNL

– DOE, Dow, Ford, and state of Michigan fund $13.5M research agreement to develop lower cost carbon fiber production process using polyolefin in place of conventional polyacrylonitrile (PAN) as feedstock

– Novel process to reduce production cost

– High-volume commercial launch anticipated outcome

Dow and Ford partner with ORNL to

scale up polyolefin based carbon fiber

14 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Lignin-Based Fibers

Produced ~ 1,500 lb of precursor fibers in web form

Batch stabilized ~ 180 lb of fibers

Developed stretchable single filaments

Demonstrated that lab-scale properties meet requirements for selected “functional” applications

Estimated mill cost ~ $4-5/lb in web form

Melt-blowing lignin fiber web Stabilized lignin fiber mats

15 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Melt Blowing Lignin Fibers

16 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

PAN

68 wt% C

PAN-MA

64-67 wt% C

PE

86 wt% C

Softwood Lignin

E. Adler, Wood Science & Technology, 11, 169 (1977)

Precursor Chemistry

17 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Precursor Status Summary

Precursor Strength

ksi

Modulus

Msi Scale

DOE Requirement

Semi-structural 250 25 Semi-production

Structural (for

pressure vessels) ~650 ~33 Semi-production

Textile PAN > 500 > 30 Multiple continuous large tows

Melt spun PAN 250 25 Spun 10 filaments, 100 ft

Converted 100 filaments, 10 ft

Polyolefin > 200 > 20 Spun 3000 filaments continuous

Converted 3000 filaments, 1-10 ft

Lignin tow ~ 175 ~ 12 Spun 10 filaments, continuous

Converted 10 filaments, 1 ft

Lignin web* ~ 70 ~ 7 Spun 100 lb batches

Converted 10 lb batches

* Lignin web applications are primarily functional

18 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Plasma Stabilization/Oxidation

Atmospheric pressure, nonthermal plasma processing

– Short residence time

– Energy efficient

Updated cost estimate suggests that it reduces oxidation cost by about half vs. conventional oxidation

2X – 3X reduction of residence time for aerospace grade 3k tow

Tensile mechanicals 350 - 450 ksi strength, > 30 - 37 Msi modulus, > 1.0% - 1.4% strain (conventionally carbonized)

Reduced processing temperature

Multiple commodity grade tows have been processed, mechanicals TBD

Commenced processing of textile PAN and lignin chemistries – qualitatively good, too early to report quantified results

Installed 1 tpy scale reactor

19 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Microwave-Assisted Plasma Carbonization

Combined microwave and low-pressure plasma processing

– Short residence time

– Energy efficient

Residence time reduced by 2X – 3X vs. conventional carbonization, property requirements exceeded

Updated cost estimate suggests that it reduces carbonization cost by about one-fourth vs. conventional (potential reduction likely higher if coupled with plasma oxidation)

Modeling electromagnetic field distribution and coupling

Evaluated tow spatial configuration – need to resolve discrepancies between model and experiments

Achieved good energy balance

Currently developing next generation reactor for five large tows (nominal capacity ≥ 1 tpy)

20 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Advanced Post-Treatment

Includes both surface treatment and sizing

Improves short beam shear strength by ~ 40% in vinyl ester resin vs. standard practice

Emphasis on compatibility with commodity resins including both thermosets and thermoplastics

Dry surface treatment is preferred approach

Advanced post-treatment module fabricated for ORNL’s small (~1 tpy) pilot line

1 tpy dry surface treatment module

21 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Composites

Manufacturing

Key expertise / thrusts

– Rapid preforming

– Direct digital manufacturing

– Filament winding

– Fast, energy efficient curing, processing (includes out-of-autoclave)

– Design and analysis

– Testing, characterization, NDE

ORNL’s Research P4 Machine

Composite Hull Qualified

to 20,000-ft Depth

22 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Energy Efficient Processing

Oxidized tows

Plasma Oxidation

Microwave-Assisted Plasma Carbonization

E-Beam Curing

Microwave Processing

23 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Morphology

Properties

and

(Multi-)

Functionality

10 m 100 m

Source: Hunt et al. Adv. Mat. (2012)

Source: Hunt et al. Adv. Mat. (2012)

IM PAN Fiber HM PAN Fiber HM Pitch Fiber

New Technology Enables Fibers

Tailored with New Functionality

Lignin powder Polyolefin pellets

8 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Ener gy

Polyurethanes, nylons, polyesters

Nylons

Vinyl Esters

24 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Fused Deposition Modeling

Polymer Additive Manufacturing

6061 Aluminum = 102 Nm/g (275 MPa)

Injection Molding = 86 Nm/g (110 MPa)

FDM = 45 Nm/g (70 Mpa)

Specific Strength (Nm/g)

Research Impact Goal

25 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Nanocomposite Material for FDM

Carbon Fiber Composite

• Min Fiber Dia = 5μm

• FDM tip will clog

• L/D is too small

• Need nano-fiber

~10 μm

100-200 nm

26 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

LBCF’s meet performance requirements

for high temperature thermal insulation

Figures courtesy

GrafTech

18” diameter lignin GRITM prototypes

GRI

GRITM insulation in a furnace

for polysilicon production Various GRITM products

machined into shapes.

LBCF is a “drop-in” replacement

for Chinese-sourced isotropic

pitch CF used in GrafTech’s

commercial GRITM product

27 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

High Performance Battery Electrodes

Bio-PowderBio-Carbon

Fiber

High performance battery

electrodes made from

bio-derived carbon fibers

28 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

CF Composites Can Function as Batteries

All alternative powertrain vehicles must be light weight to achieve range metrics

“Structural battery” that stores electrochemical energy in structural composites can significantly extend range

Volvo is funding structural battery development at Swerea Sicomp

Can new carbon fiber functionality enable this radical concept?

Source: Autoblog http://www.dailytech.com/Volvo+Plans+to+Insert+EV+Batteries+Into+Body+Panels/article19723.htm

29 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Courtesy Umeco

Potential low-cost carbon fiber markets

Vehicle technologies Necessary for >50% mass reduction

Wind energy Needed for longer blade designs

Oil and gas Offshore structural components

Pressurized gas storage High specific strength

Energy storage Flywheels, batteries, capacitors

Power transmission Less bulky structures, zero CLTE

Nontraditional energy Geothermal, solar, and ocean

Civil infrastructure Rapid repair and installation, time and cost savings

Non-aerospace defense Light weight, higher mobility

Aerospace Secondary structures

Electronics Light weight, EMI shielding

Thermal management Thermal conductivity

Safety Flameproof

Filamentary sorbents High specific surface area

Common issues

• Fiber cost

• Fiber availability

• Design methods

• Manufacturing methods

• Product forms

30 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

PAN

Polyolefin

Lignin

Building a sustainable carbon fiber

commercialization strategy

Today

1 tpy conventional line

Bench-scale advanced line

25 tpy conventional line

Bench-scale advanced line

~2015

25 tpy advanced line

Resin design

Matrix formulation

Pre-pregging

Weaving

Pre-forming

Molding

Filament winding

Precursor development

Carbon fiber conversion

Composite formulation and manufacturing

processes

End users

Cost and performance specifications

31 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Summary

ORNL program driver is US energy security

New materials and manufacturing technologies can enable cost-effective use of carbon fiber composites to improve energy production, distribution, and use

Reinventing carbon fibers can lead to innovative new functionalities and applications

Transition/deployment strategies include key scaling capabilities, industrial partnerships, and workforce training

32 Managed by UT-Battelle for the U.S. Department of Energy

Acknowledgements

ORNL R&D Team

Academic and industrial partners

DOE-EERE Vehicle Technologies Program

DOE-EERE Fuel Cell Technologies Program

DOE-EERE Advanced Manufacturing Office

ORNL Laboratory Directed R&D Program

ORNL Program Management

Oak Ridge National Laboratory is operated by UT-Battelle, LLC

for the U.S. Department of Energy under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725