Combining Pultrusion with Carbonization: Process Analysis and Material Properties of CFRP and C/C

Composites made of carbon-fiber-reinforced carbon (C/C or CFC) are high-performance materials with a wide range of properties, making them especially suitable for the design of thermally and mechanically highly stressed components. As the production process of these high-performance materials is currently still very expensive, new concepts for an economical manufacturing process are required. This paper focusses on an innovative approach that uses the polymer-based pultrusion process for shaping with a subsequent carbonization step to C/C. In this process, carbon fibers (CF) and a phenolic resin were used to manufacture a semi-finished product made of unidirectional (UD) carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic (CFRP) with a fiber volume content of 66%. The C/C composite shows dimensional stability and has a flexural strength of approx. 240 MPa and a flexural modulus of approx. of 135 GPa with an elongation of 1.8%.