Dispersibility optimization of short carbon fiber suspension for the preparation of carbon fiber aligned mat reinforced composites

There is significant interest in the reuse of reclaimed carbon fiber (rCF) due to its economic potential and the minimization of environmental impact. However, the sub-optimal state of short rCF adversely affects its reuse value. In this paper, short rCF was aligned using wet alignment technology and the dispersibility of short carbon fiber (SCF) suspension was investigated, along with virgin carbon fiber (vCF) and rCF aligned mat reinforced epoxy (EP). The results show that the main factors that affect the dispersion rate (γ) are the HEC content, CF length, CF content and ultrasonic power, in diminishing order of magnitude of impact. The HEC content was positively correlated with γ, and the CF length and CF content negatively correlated with γ. When the ultrasonic power was less than 50%, it was positively correlated with γ, and higher than 50%, it was negatively correlated. This work suggests that the dispersibility optimization of SCF suspension to obtain well aligned rCF mat offers a possible strategy to obtain an improved quality form of rCF.