Marc Alvin Lim 10813586 Section EI

March 24, 2011 CIVMATL

CARBON FIBER REINFORCEMENT

I.

INTRODUCTION Brief History Carbon-fiber was invented by the famous scientist named Thomas Edison in the late 1800s. Though the early fibers didnt have the same tensile strength as they do today, he used it as filament for the early light bulbs due to its ability to endure or tolerate heat and was ideal for conducting electricity. Also, unlike the materials used today to make these fibers such as the petroleum-based precursor, Thomas Edisons fibers were made out of cellulose-based materials such as bamboos, cottons, etc. wherein carbonization takes place when the bamboo that is used is heated and baked to very high-temperatures in a controlled atmosphere. This heating method is known as pyrolysis wherein the products of such methods are capable of resisting fire and enduring high temperatures of heat. (HJ3, 2008) It was around the late 1950s that the high tensile strength of these carbon-fibers was discovered and used. It was later on that the materials used were replaced by polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and pitch which were found to be more effective than the old materials. (HJ3, 2008) The modern type of carbon-fiber is somewhat similar to steel with respect to its tensile strength but weighs a whole lot lighter than that of steel. Carbon-fiber weighs only a fraction of the weight of steel but still retains the same tensile strength of steel or in some cases, even higher strengths. Also, another important attribute of carbon-fiber is its inelasticity wherein it plays an important role in reinforcing rigid structures. (HJ3, 2008) That being said, its elasticity can still be changed by making a few adjustments making the carbon-fiber more elastic or inelastic depending on the desired properties.

General Use/Purpose Carbon-fibers are derived from two precursor materials: (1) PITCH (2) and PAN. PITCH based carbon-fibers are stiffer and they also have a higher thermal and electrical conductivity. Although they are found to be stiffer than that of the PAN based, the PAN based carbonfibers are the ones mostly used in the fields of Civil Engineering, Aerospace applications, sporting equipments, automotive, etc. simply because PITCH based have mechanical properties which are found to be lower than that of the PAN based. PAN based carbon-fibers have high tensile strength whereas the PITCH based only have fair to good tensile strength. (Kelly, 2011) Carbon-fiber is usually used in aerospace, civil engineering, military and motorsports. This is due to its low density resulting to its light weight, strength similar or even greater than steel, and its low thermal expansion. It is used in many different purposes since by simply altering its weave patterns and placing in more layers of carbon-fiber it can be made stronger and stiffer for certain purposes such as safety.

It is also very useful to motorsports such as in F1 racing, kayak racing, bicycle racing, etc. because of its light weight wherein it uses up less fuel or less energy making it fuel efficient and making it less heavy thus less energy is needed for the locomotives to move and making them move a whole lot faster. (Discovery Communications, 2011)

Figure 1.0 Car made of Carbon fiber components (Discovery Communications, 2011) Recent studies and experiments now also tell us that it can be used in music instruments such as the violin, guitar and cello. In the past the music instruments would regularly be made up of wood but in other foreign countries carbon-fiber is now being used as its main component the body, knobs, etc excluding of course the strings which are still made up of their regular components and properties. Other applications include the use of carbon-fiber in laptops, baseball bats, tennis and badminton racquets, etc. (Illstreet, 2009)

Figure 1.1 Sony VAIO Laptop made of Carbon Fiber (HardwareSphere, 2011)

Figure 1.2 Baseball Bat made of Carbon Fiber (Youtube, 2011)

Figure 1.3 Cello made of Carbon Fiber (Youtube, 2011) Generally, carbon-fiber is a very versatile material wherein it can be used in many fields and purposes depending on how people would use it. The uses of carbon-fiber are not limited to the things mentioned early. In the future, it will be more widely spread and used and might even replace the steel material that we use today.

Other Carbon-Fiber Products and Usage: Types Filament Specifications A yarn constituted of numerous number of fiber: twisted, untwisted, twisted-anduntwisted Major Usage Resin reinforcement material for CFRP, CFRTP or C/C composites, having such usage as Aircraft/Aerospace equipment, sporting goods and industrial equipment parts Staple Yarn A yarn made of spinning of staples Heat Insulator, Anti-friction material, C/C composite parts Woven Fabric A woven sheet made of filament or staple yarn Resin reinforcement material for CFRP, CFRTP or C/C composites, having such usage as Aircraft/Aerospace equipment, sporting goods and industrial equipment parts

Braid Chopped Fiber

A braided yarn made of filament or tow

Resin reinforcement material particularly suitable for reinforcement of tubular products

A chopped fiber made of sized or nonsized fiber

Compounded into plastics/resins or portland cement to improve mechanical performances, abrasion characteristic, electric conductivity and heat resistance

Milled

Powder made by milling fiber in a ballmill etc.

Compounded into plastics/resins or rubber to improve mechanical performances, abrasion characteristic, electric conductivity and heat resistance

Felt, Mat

A felt or mat made by layering up of staple by carding etc. then needle-punched or strengthened by organic binders

Heat insulator, base material for molded heat insulator, protective layer for heat resistance and base material for corrosion-resisting filter Housing etc. of OA equipment taking advantages of electric conductivity, rigidity and lightness in weight

Compounds

A material for injection moulding etc. made of mixture of thermo-plastics or thermo-setting resins added by various additives and chopped fiber and then being compounded

Table 1.0 Carbon Fiber Products and Usage (JCMA, 2009)

II.

MANUFACTURING PROCESS

Figure 2.0 Simplified Carbon Fiber Manufacturing Process, PAN-based (JCMA, 2009)

Acrylonitril is basically the raw material needed for manufacturing carbon-fiber, although, in some cases this raw material is already in powdered form. This raw material undergoes a process called Polymerization wherein the acrylonitril plastic powder is mixed with another different kind of plastic such as methyl arylate and is reacted with a catalyst to form the Polyacrylonitril plastic. (Zoltek Corp, 2011) The Polyacrylonitril plastic then undergoes the next step in the process called Spinning wherein the plastic is spun into fibers with the use of several different methods such as (1) the plastic is mixed with certain types of chemicals and is then pumped through tiny jets towards chemical baths where the plastic coagulates or thickens and then solidifies forming into acrylic fibers. (2) The plastic mixed with chemicals is heated and is pumped through tiny jets into specially-made chambers, allowing the solvents to evaporate, leaving the solid acrylic fibers behind. This step or process is very important in manufacturing carbonfibers because this is where the internal atomic structures of the fiber are formed. The fibers are then washed and stretched to the desired diameter in order to help align the molecules within the fiber and provide the basis for the formation of the tightly bonded carbon crystals after carbonization. (Zoltek Corp, 2011) The last step in PAN precursor fiber formation is the application of a finishing oil to prevent the tacky filaments from clumping. The white PAN fiber then is dried again and wound onto bobbins. (Gardner Publications, Inc., 2011) The next step is called the Oxidation wherein the fibers pass through heated chambers. While in other cases, the fibers pass over hot rollers and through bodies of loose materials suspended by a flow of hot air. In this process the acrylic fibers are heated with air for around 30 minutes to an hour or two with temperatures reaching around 200 to 300 degrees Celsius. This causes oxygen molecules to stick to the fibers and rearrange their atomic bonding patterns creating a more fire-resistant and a more dense material. Also, in other cases, the heated air is already mixed with certain gas chemicals which would accelerate the stabilization. Though this may sound easy to do but stabilizing the chemical reactions are very hard and complex to handle and would involve several procedures. A part of this would be controlling the overheating done by the fibers themselves since during the reaction the fibers produce their own heat which might cause the overheating of the fibers. (Zoltek Corp, 2011) Once the fibers are stable and ready, they are placed inside a furnace filled with gas mixtures that do not contain any oxygen. They are then again heated but to a higher temperature of around 1000 to 3000 degrees Celsius, more or less (depending on the usage and desired design), for several minutes. And since there is no oxygen inside the furnace, this allows the fibers to be heated in high temperatures without the fibers burning. As the fibers are heated, they lose different kinds of non-carbon atoms together with a few carbon atoms such as carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, hydrogen, water vapour, and such. The remaining carbon atoms then form tightly bonded carbon crystals that are aligned paralled to the long axis of the fiber. This process is called Carbonizing or Carbonization. (Zoltek Corp, 2011) After the carbonization process is done, treating the surface is the next step wherein the fibers are placed and submerged in different types of gases such as air, carbon dioxide or in other cases, different types of liquid such as nitric acid. Also, the fibers can be coated electrolytically by making the fibers

positive terminal and by placing it in a group of electrically conductive materials. Treating the surface of the carbonized fibers is needed simply because the surfaces of the fibers do not stick to the epoxies and other materials that will be used in composite materials. In order to remedy such problems, the fibers are slightly oxidized providing additional oxygen to the surface of the fibers. And because of this, the fibers experience better bonding properties and roughens the surface for better mechanical properties. The surface treatment must be carefully monitored and controlled in order to prevent formings of tiny surface defects such as pits which could cause the fiber to fail or tear apart. (Zoltek Corp, 2011) The last step in manufacturing carbon-fiber is the Sizing wherein coating materials such as epoxy, polyester, nylon and such are used to coat or cover the fibers in order to prevent them from being damaged during the weaving process. The coated fibers are then laced into a cylinder called bobbins wherein it will be placed into a somewhat sewing machine, weaving and twisting the fibers into different shapes and sizes. (Zoltek Corp, 2011)

III.

ADVANTAGES / DISADVANTAGES Advantages "Light in weight, Strong and Durable!" Carbon Fibers are nothing but a 21st century high technology material. The fibers have low specific gravity, exquisite mechanical properties (high specific tensile strength, high specific elastic modulus, etc.) and attractive performances (electric conductivity, heat resistance, low thermal expansion coefficient, chemical stability, self-lubrication property, high heat conductivity, etc.). Those features have been stimulating Carbon Fiber users to develop numerous kinds of applications. (JCMA, 2009) As mentioned above, carbon-fibers are (1) light weight, (2) has high tensile strength (3) is very durable (4) has low specific gravity (5) has low thermal expansion, (6) is resistant to heat and (7) has high electric conductivity. And due to these attributes carbon-fibers are used for many different purposes such as applications in Civil Engineering wherein it is used as reinforcement for structures. It is found as an effective reinforcement measure increasing resistance against earthquakes, especially for bridges. It is also used as reinforcements to the cables used in suspension bridges. (JCMA, 2009) Carbon-fibers are also used as coverings to concrete, increasing the concrete structures durability and strength. Aside from the things mentioned above, other advantages include: (8) no welding required (9) no heavy equipements are needed, (10) its versatile and most importantly (11) it increases the resistance of structures to corrosions. (Foundation Technologies, Inc., 2011) Other advantageous applications of carbon-fiber include its use in automotive/locomotives namely in F1 racing cars. Because of the carbon-fibers light weight and strong material, it is now being used mostly as components for F1 racing cars making them lighter and faster. Other concerns include fuelefficiency as well as our increasing problems in our environment. Clean and environment-friendly cars are now being designed with the use of carbon-fiber, making the cars lighter resulting to the lessening of fuel consumption. (JCMA, 2009)

Disadvantages y IV. Cost expensive

PRECAUTIONARY METHODS The following are the safety precautions in handling of carbon-fiber as stated by (JCMA, 2009): A. Properties 1. As Carbon Fibers are very fine in nature and moreover easily breakable by stretching (by less than 2% elongation), the fibers can easily be made fuzz. Being crushed and shortened in unit length, staple tends to become fly or dusts with ease and dispersed into atmosphere. 2. As most Carbon Fibers have high elastic modulus and is very fine in nature, micro fiber tends to stick to human skins or mucous membranes causing pains or itch. Carbon Fiber users are advised to be careful not to dispose naked skins to the fibers and to take deliberate dusts cleaning measures. 3. As Carbon Fibers have electric conductivity, fly or waste yarn can cause a short-circuit at electric lines. 4. As Carbon Fibers are solid-structured carbon and consequently are hard to be burned. In incinerating Carbon Fiber products wastes, Carbon Fiber users are recommended to carefully collect unburned staple dusts to avoid possible electric troubles. 5. As carbon itself is thought to have good compatibility with human body tissues, Carbon Fibers or composites of the fibers are largely used as artificial human body parts.

B. Handling Precautions Necessary precautions compiled are as follows: 1. Prevention of generating plumage, dust and fly

a. Troubles brought about by handling of Carbon Fibers are mainly caused by fuzz, dusts or fly
generated during the handling of the fibers. As Carbon Fiber staple products are more or less fly-like, local air exhaustion is effective for avoiding any trouble during unpacking, taking out of packing or processing of the material. The identical measures are advisable in cutting down long continuous yarn to produce chopped fiber or in crushing the same to produce milled.

b. If guides rub long continuous yarn in pulling out the yarn from bobbins, fuzz is generated or
fly is generated in the case of breaking of the yarn. Use of less number of guides, use of rolling guides or applying lower tension to the yarn are altogether effective for reducing fuzz, fly or dusts.

c. Making of woven textiles, braid, knit textiles, stitched performs or punch-felts generates fuzz,
dusts or fly as the yarn is stripped off or scrubbed. JCMA would suggest Carbon Fiber users having a local air ventilator working at any time to remove them.

d. The first and foremost thing to be done for securing safety and labour health, and for
accidents prevention as well is frequent dust cleaning and securing of air cleanness. Electric cleaners for household may be short-circuited by dusts. JCMA would recommend using an air ejector type cleaner instead.

2.

Prevention of hazards to human body Knowing that carbon-fiber yarn is tough, people sometimes try to tear off the yarn. Often, fingers or palms are the once being damaged instead of the yarn.

a. Sticking to skins
Only by soft touching of dusts or fly to skins, one may feel pains or itch. Never try to "rubbing off". As a string of Carbon Fiber is just like a metal fine wire or pin, the dust penetrates into the skins more deeply causing the secondary inflammations. The best way is washing out a local skin by cold or hot water; pouring running water on with a help of soap. Another effective way is to make puffing by a strip of bundle tape or sticking tape. Itchy feeling on skins does usually not stay for long time. The stuck fiber will leave off skins in half a day. Coating protective cream on the skin is also recommendable particularly effective to be protected from high elastic modulus Carbon Fibers.

b. Eyes and throats

The last but by no means least thing is to protect eyes and throats from Carbon Fiber dusts. Workers ought to wear goggles and masks to prevent the dust penetration. In case of bad feeling on the eyes, it is recommended to consult with an eye-doctor immediately.

c. Electric facilities troubles and electric shocks

When airborne fiber penetrates into switches or control equipment, short circuits may take place. JCMA does recommend to keep purging of electric equipment by clean air always going and to insulate connection points of wires and cables by painting or by insulation tapes. When Carbon Fiber processors put electronics equipment or PCs into a room where Carbon Fiber dusts are suspending, do protect these equipment by putting them into plastic boxes and by keeping the boxes pressurized by clean air A yarn string sticking to a plug may cause electric shocks to a human body or shortcircuits at electric lines when the plug is inserted into an electric outlet. Workers ought to wear a pair of protection globes and clean out a plug before putting into an outlet particularly in the case of high voltage lines 200v or higher. JCMA does recommend not to handle Carbon Fibers in a room where glass fiber products for electric insulators are processed.

C. Emergency Care-Taking 1. Eyes After removing contact lenses if any, wash out eyes by clean running water for more than 15 minutes. 2. 3. 4. Skins Wash out by warm or cold running water with a help of soap. A strip of sticking tape also works effectively. Inhalation Wash out mouths immediately under clean fresh air. Swallowing Swallowing large quantity of water and/or vomiting.

D. Handling and Storing 1. Handling Wear protection gears of skins, eyes and throats to prevent them from hazards of Carbon Fiber dusts or fly. 2. Storing Avoid storing under the sunshine and in warm and wet environment. Though Carbon Fiber itself does not deteriorate, packing material, paper rolls and sizing agents degenerate. Some types of Carbon Fiber may be gradually oxidized by atmospheric oxygen under temperature higher than 150 degree C and so generated heat piles up to possibly cause fire.

E. Stability and Reactivity 1. Flammability Though Carbon Fiber is constituted of carbon which is flammable, the fiber itself does not flare up even if ignited by flame or match or gas burners. If heated up higher than 400 degree C together with some fuel, the carbon-fiber slowly burns (oxidized) but stops burning right after the burning fuel are removed. In this aspect, Carbon Fiber is categorized as "incombustible" under the Building Code of Japan. 2. 3. Reactivity Carbon Fiber does not react with any agent except for strong oxidation agents. Others Carbon Fiber has electric conductivity and can cause short-circuits at electric lines.

F. Disposal 1. 2. Carbon Fiber wastes should be regarded as "Industrial Wastes" but not "Household Wastes" and is categorized as "Plastics Wastes". Local governments may have their own local codes by which disposing of Carbon Fiber wastes are governed. 3. 4. Disposing to a landfill is an appropriate disposal method. Incineration by incinerators is not practical, as Carbon Fiber wastes do not burn out in conventional furnaces. Just if thrown into a furnace equipped with an electric dust collector, unburned fine fiber (fly) causes short-circuits troubles.

V.

INSTALLATION Installation of carbon-fiber reinforcement for Civil infrastructure is somewhat very easy to do. The following are the step-by-step procedures for installing carbon-fiber to Civil infrastructures such as concrete walls, concrete pillars, etc. 1. For a concrete wall, measure the length of the wall and divide it into vertical parts. Take note that no segment should be wider than 48 inches as shown below.

2.

Mark these segments on the floor to note the distance. If there are hindrances such as windows, pipes, etc., rearrange the segments and/or increase the parts.

3.

After marking the vertical parts, mark two lines (dotted lines below) at both sides, left and right, of the initial segments having a distance of 4 inches each as shown below.

4.

Before placing the carbon-fiber reinforcement to the i.e. wall, remove the paint and/or sealers that are attached to the wall such as wallpapers, etc. Make the wall as smooth as possible using certain machines, removing bumps and other objects in the way.

5.

6.

Use vacuums and other cleaning material such as brushes to clean the wall from any dirt and dust since having even a small amount of dust may affect the epoxy and/or resin used to stick the carbon-fiber on the wall.

7.

Ready the epoxy to be used and apply to the space on wall prepared beforehand.

8. 9.

Using a trowel, spread and even out the epoxy placed on the wall. Ready the size and length of the carbon-fiber and stick it on the epoxy placed on the wall previously.

10. Using a trowel, scrape the carbon-fiber to even out the epoxy along the wall. If dry spots appear, add a more epoxy and spread evenly. 11. When done with evening out the carbon-fiber, use a lamination plastic to cover the whole length of the carbon-fiber. 12. Use a squidgy or something soft to spread the epoxy as shown from top down filling any areas that may be dry.

13. Allow to cure or dry over night. 14. Remove the plastic 15. FINISH

VI.

COSTS Due to the carbon-fibers versatility wherein it can be used in many different ways, manufacturers have made many different types of carbon-fibers that would suit different types of applications and usages each having their own purpose and strengths such as one type of carbon-fiber may have higher tensile strength properties compared to a different carbon-fiber or it may weigh lighter of heavier depending on where and how the user intends to use it. And because of this, carbon-fiber products have a wide range of cost. The following are the different types of carbon-fiber together with their respective costs and usages.

2.4 Oz Carbon Fiber: 42 Wide $112.00 x 43 = Php4816.00 2.4 Oz Carbon Fiber: 50 Wide $120.00 x 43 = Php5160.00 This lightweight carbon fabric is woven from 1k carbon strands in a .006" thick, 16 x 16 strand/inch. This fabric is most effective in applications where lightweight strength is critical or the part needs to be rigid and thin.

3.5 Oz Carbon Fiber: 42 Wide Plain Weave $120.00 x 43 = Php5160.00 This mid-weight carbon fabric is woven from 1K carbon strands in a 24x24 strand/inch count, yielding a pliable, tight weave fabric.

5.6 Oz Carbon Fiber: 50 Wide Plain Weave $29.50 x 43 = Php1268.50 This plain weave carbon fiber fabric is the standard for most lightweight applications. Wets out easily and conforms to both flat and curved structures.

5.6 Oz Carbon Fiber: 50 Wide 2x2 Twill $29.50 x 43 = Php1268.50 This carbon cloth provides the classic "carbon fiber" weave look for any application. An excellent cloth for lightweight applications with compound curves.

10.8 Oz Carbon Fiber: 50 Wide 5-Harness Satin Weave $48.00 x 43 = Php2064.00 y y y y y Very Pliable Suitable for curved parts fabrication Fewer distortions Easier to use than twill weave Highly decorative three-dimentional finish

5.4 Oz Carbon/Kevlar Fiber: 50 Wide 2x2 Twill $47.00 x 43 = Php2021.00 The Carbon Fiber/Kevlar hybrid offers the stiffness of graphite and the impact resistance of Kevlar in one material. It can be used for boat hulls and aircraft fuselages.

3.7 Oz Uni-web Unidirectional Carbon Fiber $3.75 x 43 = Php161.25 UniWeb is a new and easy to apply type of reinforcement. It consists of a nonwoven sheet of unidirectional carbon fibers that are held in position by a fine spider web of polymer fibrils Iying on the surface. The special polymer used is compatible with epoxy and polyester resins. The fibril or web system that bonds the reinforcement fibers together allows the fabric to be cut easily, trimmed, or slit, giving clean edges with absolutely no fraying. The fibers lie flat and straight, and cannot shift or bunch up as often happens with uni-stitched fabrics. Carbon Fiber UniWeb weighs 3.7 Oz. / Sq. Yd. and is .006" thick.

4.7 Oz Uni-web Unidirectional Carbon Fiber $7.50 x 43 = Php322.50 UniWeb is a new and easy to apply type of reinforcement. It consists of a nonwoven sheet of unidirectional carbon fibers that are held in position by a fine spider web of polymer fibrils Iying on the surface. The special polymer used is compatible with epoxy and polyester resins. The fibril or web system that bonds the reinforcement fibers together allows the fabric to be cut easily, trimmed, or slit, giving clean edges with absolutely no fraying. The fibers lie flat and straight, and cannot shift or bunch up as often happens with uni-stitched fabrics. Carbon Fiber UniWeb weighs 4.7 Oz. / Sq. Yd. and is .009" thick.

Carbon Fiber Tissue $14.50 x 43 = Php623.50 Carbon Tissue is an advanced non-woven carbon fiber veil incorporating 100% carbon fibers bonded together in a random fiber matrix. Carbon Tissue is compatible with all epoxy and polyester resin systems. Can be used to provide a smooth covering for bulk carbon composite structures and to add stiffness with minimal weight gain.

Source from: (ACP Composites Inc., 2011)

VII.

REFERENCES HJ3 Composite Technologies. (2008). The history of Carbon Fiber. Retrieved March 12, 2011, from http://www.hj3.com/pages/en/history.htm HJ3 Composite Technologies. (2008). HJ3 composite technologies. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from http://www.hj3.com/index.html Gardner Publications, Inc. (2011). The making of carbon fiber: Composite world. Retrieved March 22, 2011, from http://www.compositesworld.com/articles/the-making-of-carbon-fiber ACP Composites Inc. (2011). New lower prices on carbon fiber woven fabric. Retrieved March 22, 2011, from http://www.acp-composites.com/home.php?cat=251 Foundation Technologies, Inc. (2011). HJ3TM composite reinforcements. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from http://www.foundationtechnologies.com/HJ3.php Discovery Communications. (2011). Types of green vehicles. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from http://dsc.discovery.com/cars/top-10/types-of-green-vehicles/02.html Illstreet. (2009). Uses and applications of Carbon Fiber. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from http://www.carbon-fiber-hood.net/uses-for-cf SubsTech. (2011). Carbon fiber. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from http://www.substech.com/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=carbon_fiber_reinforced_polymer_composites JCMA. (2009). Manufacturing process of Carbon Fiber. Retrieved March 12, 2011, from http://www.carbonfiber.gr.jp/english/

JCMA. (2009). Carbon Fibers special features and its characterizing performances. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from http://www.carbonfiber.gr.jp/english/tanso/03.html JCMA. (2009). Carbon Fiber products and usage. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from http://www.carbonfiber.gr.jp/english/tanso/05.html# JCMA. (2009). Applications to building and Civil Engineering fields. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from http://www.carbonfiber.gr.jp/english/tanso/use03.html JCMA. (2009). Applications to automotive fields. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from http://www.carbonfiber.gr.jp/english/tanso/use04.html JCMA. (2009). Safety precautions in handling of Carbon Fibers. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from http://www.carbonfiber.gr.jp/english/tanso/06.html Zoltek Corp. (2011). How it is made. Retrieved March 12, 2011, from http://www.zoltek.com/carbonfiber/made.php Toho Tenax Co, Ltd. (2011). Manufacturing process of Carbon Fiber (PAN-based) Retrieved March 12, 2011, from http://www.tohotenax.com/tenax/en/products/pro_carbon02.php HardwareSphere. (2011). Sony VAIO X-series Carbon Fiber laptop announced. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from http://www.hardwaresphere.com/2009/09/03/sony-vaio-x-series-carbon-fiber-laptopannounced/ Despatch Industries. (2011). Process and technology solutions for Carbon Fiber production. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from http://www.despatch.com/carbonfiber/ UTSI. (2011). Carbon Fiber production. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from http://www.utsi.edu/research/carbonfiber/CF.htm Youtube. (2011). How its made Carbon Fiber cello. Retrieved March 18, 2011, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_gI3chGtww Youtube. (2011). How its made Carbon Fiber bats. Retrieved March 18, 2011 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRhbYnNTdkg Kelly, V. (2011). Carbon fiber. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from http://www.carbon-fiber.com/