![]() ![]() Many high-performance bicycles use carbon fibre for the ultimate in lightness and strength. ![]() The remaining 10 per cent of carbon fibres are made from rayon or petroleum pitch. Ninety per cent of today’s carbon fibres are made from polyacrylonitrile, which in turn is manufactured from polymers and acrylonitrile – both among the 6,000 useful products that come from petroleum. Of course, carbon fibre just wouldn’t have its superhero powers without a little help from petroleum.Ĭarbon fibre is composed of carbon atoms bonded together to form a long chain. That sheet of carbon can then be laid over a mold and coated in resin or plastic to take on a permanent shape. It’s made of strong crystalline carbon filaments and gets its superhero strength when those filaments are twisted together like yarn, then woven together like cloth. It’s five times stronger than steel and twice as stiff, but weighs two-thirds less.Ĭarbon fibre is basically very thin strands of carbon – thinner than a human hair. You get the point – carbon fibre is everywhere and it’s prevalent because it’s both lightweight and strong. This versatile and common material is used to make airplanes, boats, golf clubs, speakers, missiles, X-ray equipment, wind turbines, bikes, cars, valves, seals, pumps… and it’s even used for surgical repair of tendons and ligaments. And if you think you’ve never met carbon fibre, think again. If there was ever a superhero of man-made materials, it would be carbon fibre. ![]()
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