Towards sustainability in composites - a radical technique for reducing waste in the composites supply chain

自20世纪70年代以来，拼接技术在传统纺织业中得到了广泛的应用。随着使用碳纤维等材料的结构复合材料的出现，情况开始发生变化。用这些纤维制造接头--通常又重又脆--20年来击败了所有的接头制造商。这些问题中的许多现在已经被英国公司Airond解决了，新形式的拼接器已经在市场上站稳了脚跟。一个主要的问题仍然存在；在某种程度上，被大肆吹嘘的复合材料行业的“绿色”资质是一个神话。该行业使用的许多材料既昂贵又耗能，浪费现象比比皆是。此外，用来粘结复合材料的树脂通常是令人不快的石化化合物，因此，报废纤维的回收既复杂又昂贵。公平地说，业界认识到减少废物和回收是主要优先事项，并正在积极寻找解决方案。在这种背景下，拼接技术的改进有可能对复合材料市场的可持续发展做出革命性的贡献，而不是进步性的贡献。在复合材料中，非常强调产品生命周期结束时的纤维回收。这种方法虽然有价值，但似乎从错误的方向解决了问题。总是需要相对高科技、复杂的解决方案来进行报废回收，但真正改变行业的是从源头上减少仍处于原始状态的废弃或降级纤维的数量。该项目涉及到一种系统的设计，该系统将在生产过程开始时保护复合材料中使用的外来纤维。如果商业化，这种设计可能是朝着创建一个更有效率、更有道德的行业迈出的第一步。

Splicing technology became well-established in the traditional textile industry from the 1970s. The picture began to change with the emergence of structural composites, using materials such as carbon fibre. Making splices in these fibres -- usually heavy and brittle - defeated all splicer manufacturers for two decades. Many of those problems have now been solved by a British company, Airbond, with new forms of splicers now well-established in the market.One major problem remains; the "green" credentials of the much-vaunted composites industry are, to some extent, a myth. Many of the materials used in the sector are expensive and energy-hungry, and waste is rife. Moreover, the resins used to bind the composites are usually unpleasant petrochemical compounds, so that end-of-life recovery of fibre is complex and expensive.To be fair, the industry recognises that waste reduction and recycling are major priorities, and is actively seeking solutions. In this context, there is potential for improvements in splicing technology to make a revolutionary -- rather than evolutionary - contribution to sustainability in the composites market sector.In composites, there is much emphasis on fibre recovery at the end of a product's life. This approach, though worthy, seems to be addressing the problem from the wrong direction. There will always be a need for relatively hi-tech, complex solutions for end-of-life recovery, but a real industry-changer would be the reduction, at source, of the amount of fibre which is discarded or downgraded while still in its pristine state.This project relates to a design for a system which will conserve the exotic fibres used in composites at the beginning of the production process. If commercialised, this design could be the first step towards the creation of a more efficient, more ethical industry.