Trash to treasure for a carbon-rich component of bitumen?

摘要

Carbon fibre – carbon atoms bonded together to form a long chain — is a modern material of choice in structural design, prized for bicycles, wheelchairs, buses, and electric vehicles, products that require strength and durability while remaining lightweight. The predominant precursor for carbon fibre is polayacrylonitrile[1] – or PAN. To a lesser extent, carbon fibre is also made from petroleum pitch. Could it also be manufactured from petroleum waste products, including asphaltenes from Alberta bitumen? That question sparked the Carbon Fibre Grand Challenge sponsored by Alberta Innovates and the Clean Resource Innovation Network to accelerate carbon fibre development via this alternative pathway.