Analysis of Investment: Black Gold in the Field of Carbon Materials — — Carbon Fiber

        Carbon fiber is a new material with excellent mechanical properties, which is made of acrylic fiber and viscose fiber by high temperature oxidation and carbonization. Its carbon content is more than 90%. Its diameter is generally 5-7 μm, about one tenth of adult hair, but its strength is 20 times that of steel, and its high temperature resistance ranks first among all chemical fibers. It is the best material for manufacturing high-tech equipment such as aerospace and aviation. There are many raw materials for carbon fiber production, which can be divided into two categories according to its source.      

        One is artificial carbon fiber, such as viscose, artificial cotton, lignin fiber, etc. The other is synthetic carbon fiber, which is purified from natural resources such as petroleum, and then spun into silk after treatment. Synthetic carbon fibers can be divided into graphitized carbon fibers, carbon fibers and pre-oxidized carbon fibers according to the degree of carbonization of the fibers. According to the difference of mechanical properties, it can be divided into general carbon fiber and high performance carbon fiber, and high energy carbon fiber can be divided into high strength, high model, high strength and medium model according to the difference of tensile strength and elastic modulus. In addition, according to the different specifications, carbon fiber can be divided into small tow carbon fiber (24000 root or less) and large tow carbon fiber (48000 root or more). According to the different types of precursor materials, carbon fibers include polyacrylonitrile-based carbon fibers, viscose-based carbon fibers and pitch-based carbon fibers. Among them, polyacrylonitrile-based carbon fibers account for more than 90% of the total carbon fibers due to their simple preparation process and excellent quality and performance of finished products, while pitch-based carbon fibers account for about 8%, leaving less than 1% of viscose-based carbon fibers.

      The production process of carbon fiber industry chain is rich and complex. Specifically, the upstream is a special material for producing carbon fiber; the midstream is an equipment provider in the carbon fiber production process; and the downstream is a product for producing carbon fiber application components. In the whole process from the upstream precursor to the carbon fiber, the carbon fiber can be prepared after a series of processes of polymerization, spinning, pre-oxidation, low-temperature carbonization, high-temperature carbonization and the like. In addition, carbon fiber can be further formed into carbon fiber composite materials by combining with resin, ceramics and other materials.

     The production process of carbon fiber industry chain is rich and complex. Specifically, the upstream is a special material for producing carbon fiber; the midstream is an equipment provider in the carbon fiber production process; and the downstream is a product for producing carbon fiber application components. In the whole process from the upstream precursor to the carbon fiber, the carbon fiber can be prepared after a series of processes of polymerization, spinning, pre-oxidation, low-temperature carbonization, high-temperature carbonization and the like. In addition, carbon fiber can be further formed into carbon fiber composite materials by combining with resin, ceramics and other materials. The upstream raw material is mainly acrylonitrile. Carbon fiber manufacturers produce polyacrylonitrile by polymerization of acrylonitrile-based raw materials, and then spin polyacrylonitrile precursor. The middle reaches are carbon fiber production equipment. Downstream carbon fiber products are widely used. In addition to wind power generation, sports and leisure, transportation, automotive industry, energy, chemical industry, construction and other civil fields, it is also widely used in various fields of national defense industry, and is an indispensable strategic material for military aircraft, rockets, missiles, satellites, ships and other advanced weapons and equipment.   

      The development of carbon fiber started in the 1960s, and then steadily advanced from the 1970s to the 1990s, until the production technology matured in the early 21st century. In the early stage of industry development, carbon fiber was mainly used in military and aerospace, but after more than 50 years of development, its application field has gradually expanded to the industrial field and the general civil field. At this stage, the global carbon fiber market is growing rapidly.