Military use of advanced polymer matrix composites (PMC)â€"consisting of a resin matrix reinforced by high-performance carbon or organic fibersâ€"while extensive, accounts for less that 10 percent of the domestic market. Nevertheless, advanced composites are expected to play an even greater role in future military systems, and DOD will continue to require access to reliable sources of affordable, high-performance fibers including commercial materials and manufacturing processes. As a result of these forecasts, DOD requested the NRC to assess the challenges and opportunities associated with advanced PMCs with emphasis on high-performance fibers. This report provides an assessment of fiber technology and industries, a discussion of R&D opportunities for DOD, and recommendations about accelerating technology transition, reducing costs, and improving understanding of design methodology and promising technologies.

Carbon Composites: Composites with Carbon Fibers, Nanofibers, and Nanotubes, Second Edition, provides the reader with information on a wide range of carbon fiber composites, including polymer-matrix, metal-matrix, carbon-matrix, ceramic-matrix and cement-matrix composites. In contrast to other books on composites, this work emphasizes materials rather than mechanics. This emphasis reflects the key role of materials science and engineering in the development of composite materials. The applications focus of the book covers both the developing range of structural applications for carbon fiber composites, including military and civil aircraft, automobiles and construction, and non-structural applications, including electromagnetic shielding, sensing/monitoring, vibration damping, energy storage, energy generation, and deicing. In addition to these new application areas, new material in this updated edition includes coverage of cement-matrix composites, carbon nanofibers, carbon matrix precursors, fiber surface treatment, nanocarbons, and hierarchical composites. An ideal source of information for senior undergraduate students, graduate students, and professionals working with composite materials and carbon fibers, this book can be used both as a reference book and as a textbook.

Conventional synthetic materials, like metals, ceramics or glass, are usually isotropic substances, and their suitability for structural applications is achieved by morphological design and combination in the macroscopic scale. However, in modem engineering this is often not acceptable. As an alternative, the use of non-homogeneous, anisotropic materials, with significant stiffness and strength only in the directions these mechanical properties are really needed, can lead to enormous material (and weight) savings. This is the case of multiphase systems called composite materials. In these composites, different material parts are added and arranged geometrically, under clearly designed and controlled conditions. Usually, a structure of fibers provides strength and stiffness and a matrix helds them together, whilst providing the geometric form. Carbon fibers are among the high-performance fibers employed in these advanced structural composites, which are profoundly changing many of today's high technology industries. New research and development challenges in this area include upgrading the manufacturing process of fibers and composites, in order to improve characteristics and reduce costs, and modifying the interfacial properties between fibers and matrix, to guarantee better mechanical properties. The interdisciplinary nature of this "new frontier" is obvious, involving chemistry, materials science, chemical and mechanical engineering. Other topics, which more often are treated separately, are also important for the understanding of the processes of fiber production. Carbon filaments is one such topic, as the study of their mechanisms of nucleation and growth is clearly quite relevant to the production of vapour-grown carbon fibers.

An excellent overview of industrial carbon and graphite materials, especially their manufacture, use and applications in industry. Following a short introduction, the main part of this reference deals with industrial forms, their raw materials, properties and manifold applications. Featuring chapters on carbon and graphite materials in energy application, and as catalysts. It covers all important classes of carbon and graphite, from polygranular materials to fullerenes, and from activated carbon to carbon blacks and nanoforms of carbon. Indispensable for chemists and engineers working in such fields as steel, aluminum, electrochemistry, nanotechnology, catalyst, carbon fibres and lightweight composites.

Composite Materials, Volume 3: Engineering Applications of Composites covers a variety of applications of both low- and high-cost composite materials in a number of business sectors, including material systems used in the electrical and nuclear industries. The book discusses the utilization of carbon-fiber reinforced plastics for a number of high-volume products; applications in road transportation; and the application of composite materials to civil aircraft structures. The text also describes the engineering considerations that enter into the selection and application of materials, as well as the composite applications in existing spacecraft hardware and includes projected applications for space vehicles and systems. The application of materials to military aircraft structure; the components applicable to personal and mass-transit vehicles; and composites in the ocean engineering industry are also considered. The book further tackles composite materials or composite structures principally found in buildings; composite uses in the chemical industries; and examples of fiber-glass-reinforced plastic components in key end-product markets. The text also looks into the most commonly employed molding techniques, mechanical and physical properties of various fiber glass-reinforced thermosets and thermoplastics, the resins and fiber-glass reinforcements available, and code information. The chemical, physical, and mechanical properties and application information about composites in the electrical and nuclear industries; and the potential high-volume applications of advanced composites are also encompassed. Engineers and people involved in the development of composite materials will find the book invaluable.

High-temperature ceramic fibers are the key components of ceramic matrix composites (CMCs). Ceramic fiber properties (strength, temperature and creep resistance, for example)-along with the debonding characteristics of their coatings-determine the properties of CMCs. This report outlines the state of the art in high-temperature ceramic fibers and coatings, assesses fibers and coatings in terms of future needs, and recommends promising avenues of research. CMCs are also discussed in this report to provide a context for discussing high-temperature ceramic fibers and coatings.

Most literature pertaining to carbon fibers is of a theoretical nature. Carbon Fibers and their Composites offers a comprehensive look at the specific manufacturing of carbon fibers and graphite fibers into the growing surge of diverse applications that include flameproof materials, protective coatings, biomedical and prosthetics application