Characterization of Fiber Dust Resulting from Recycling of Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Thermoplastics (CFRP) and Their Cell Toxicity ()
Affiliation(s)
1Kunststofftechnik Paderborn, University Paderborn, Paderborn, Germany.
2Institute for Prevention and Occupational Medicine of the German Social Accident Insurance, Institute of the Ruhr University Bochum (IPA), Deutsche Gesetzliche Unfallversicherung e.V. (DGUV), Bochum, Germany.
3Laboratories of Chemistry and Physics, Institute of Occupational and Social Medicine, Justus-Liebig-University Giessen, Giessen, Germany.
4Institute of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, Justus-Liebig-University Giessen, Giessen, Germany.
ABSTRACT
Carbon fiber-reinforced
thermoplastics (CFRP) have excellent specific strength and rigidity,
which has made them a popular material for lightweight construction. The
growing demand for fiber-reinforced plastics (FRP) leads to the problem of the
sustainable handling of FRP at the end of their life cycle. The aim of the
research project was to gain knowledge about the shredding of FRP concerning
the optimal machine and process design of the shredding process and the
possible formation of harmful, inhalable dust fractions and WHO fibers.
Toxicity should be investigated at the cellular level. The investigated
shredding parameters influence the amount and length of fiber dust produced,
both when shredding with a cutting mill and when shredding with a single-shaft
shredder. In all investigations, an increasing rotational speed leads to an increase
in the fiber dust mass or the fiber concentration. The proportion of short,
respirable fibers increases, but raising the speed does not lead to a further,
significant shortening of the fibers. A reduction in feedstock size leads to a
slightly reduced mass of fiber dust in the ground material. A reduction in the screen size also leads to an increase in fiber dust mass and concentration. There was no
recognizable cytotoxicity in the relevant concentration range up to 500 μg/cm2 and no significant induction of cell migration. This indicates minor flammable
effects of the dust formed after inhalation. The biological data indicate that
the WHO fibers produced by shredding are only
a minor health hazard. Formally, the detected carbon fiber (CF)
fragments meet the fiber definition of the legislator. However, carbon fibers
currently have no specific limit value.
Share and Cite:
Tölle, L. , Monsé, C. , Rosenkranz, N. , Haibel, N. , Walter, D. , Bünger, J. , Hopp, M. and Westphal, G. (2022) Characterization of Fiber Dust Resulting from Recycling of Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Thermoplastics (CFRP) and Their Cell Toxicity.
Journal of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering,
10, 1-16. doi:
10.4236/msce.2022.107001.
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