Technical Papers and Presentations

Different types of technologies to recycle carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) waste have been studied, for example: pyrolysis, solvolysis and steam-thermolysis. The steam-thermolysis is a process that combines pyrolysis and superheated steam at atmospheric pressure to decompose the organic matrix of the composite. The waste is introduced into a bench-scale reactor heated at high temperatures under nitrogen atmosphere. A humidity generator is coupled in the reactor gas inlets to provide a flux of superheated steam. A 3D model was built using COMSOL Multiphysics® to better understand velocity and temperature profiles during the steam-thermolysis process within the reactor .