Carbon fiber fabrication systems and methods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11746444-B2
Application number	US-202218068342-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 19, 2022
Priority date	Sep 25, 2020
Publication date	Sep 5, 2023
Grant date	Sep 5, 2023

Abstract

Systems comprising a carbon fiber reactor for fabricating carbon fiber, the reactor comprising a receptacle for containing a carbon-metal melt, and a plurality of nozzles through which a plurality of menisci are formed by the carbon-metal melt for contact with a carbon seed to fabricate the carbon fiber; and a heater for heating the carbon-metal melt.

First claim

What is claimed is the following:

1. A system comprising: a carbon fiber reactor for fabricating carbon fiber, the reactor comprising a receptacle for containing a carbon-metal melt, and a plurality of nozzles through which a plurality of menisci are formed by the carbon-metal melt for contact with a carbon seed to fabricate the carbon fiber; and a heater for heating the carbon-metal melt.

2. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a carbon source coupled to the carbon fiber reactor such that the receptacle of the carbon fiber reactor receives the carbon source, the carbon-metal melt comprising at least a portion of the carbon source.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the receptacle has a volume capacity of about 1 mL to about 1,000 mL.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of nozzles comprises about 100,000 to about 50 million separate nozzles.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of nozzles have a diameter of about 1 μm to about 100 μm.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of nozzles have a length of about 1 μm to about 1,000 μm.

7. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a fiber winder to receive fabricated carbon fiber from the carbon fiber reactor.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the carbon-metal melt comprises a carbon source selected from the group consisting a hydrocarbon gas, a hydrocarbon liquid, a hydrocarbon solid, a natural gas, a flared natural gas, a biogas, a pyrolysis gas, petcoke, coal, soot, recycled pure carbon fiber waste, recycled carbon fiber composite waste, a plastic, a recycled plastic, a biomass, organic waste, petroleum, an oil, biochar, a fossil fuel, and the like, and any combination thereof.

9. The system of claim 8 , wherein the carbon source is derived from a pyrolysis reaction of a reaction gas selected from the group consisting of a hydrocarbon gas, a natural gas, a flared natural gas, a biogas, a pyrolysis gas, and any combination thereof.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the heater is selected from the group consisting of an electric heater, and induction heater, a boiler, a heat exchanger, and any combination thereof.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein a source of the heater is selected from the group consisting of tubular heating elements, cartridge heaters, strip heaters, cast-in heaters, and the like, and any combination thereof.

12. A system comprising: a carbon fiber reactor for fabricating carbon fiber, the reactor comprising a receptacle for containing a carbon-metal melt, and a plurality of nozzles through which a plurality of menisci are formed by the carbon-metal melt for contact with a carbon seed to fabricate the carbon fiber.

13. The system of claim 11 , further comprising a carbon source coupled to the carbon fiber reactor such that the receptacle of the carbon fiber reactor receives the carbon source, the carbon-metal melt comprising at least a portion of the carbon source.

14. The system of claim 11 , wherein the receptacle has a volume capacity of about 1 mL to about 1,000 mL.

15. The system of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of nozzles comprises about 100,000 to about 50 million separate nozzles.

16. The system of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of nozzles have a diameter of about 1 μm to about 100 μm.

17. The system of claim 11 , wherein the plurality of nozzles have a length of about 1 μm to about 1,000 μm.

18. The system of claim 11 , further comprising a fiber winder to receive fabricated carbon fiber from the carbon fiber reactor.

19. The system of claim 11 , wherein the carbon-metal melt comprises a carbon source selected from the group consisting a hydrocarbon gas, a hydrocarbon liquid, a hydrocarbon solid, a natural gas, a flared natural gas, a biogas, a pyrolysis gas, petcoke, coal, soot, recycled pure carbon fiber waste, recycled carbon fiber composite waste, a plastic, a recycled plastic, a biomass, organic waste, petroleum, an oil, biochar, a fossil fuel, and the like, and any combination thereof.

20. The system of claim 19 , wherein the carbon source is derived from a pyrolysis reaction of a reaction gas selected from the group consisting of a hydrocarbon gas, a natural gas, a flared natural gas, a biogas, a pyrolysis gas, and any combination thereof.

Assignees

• Palo Alto Res Ct Inc

Inventors

• Desai Divyaraj
• Iftime Gabriel
• Boysen Dane Andrew
• Rivest Jessica Louis Baker

Classifications

• D01F9/1272 Primary

  Methane · CPC title

• B01J23/06

  of zinc, cadmium or mercury · CPC title

• D10B2101/12

  Carbon; Pitch · CPC title

• D01F9/133 Primary

  Apparatus therefor · CPC title

• D01F9/12 Primary

  Carbon filaments; Apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture thereof · CPC title