ENABLING LOW-COST HIGH-QUALITY CARBON FIBER FROM VARIOUS LIGNINS-PREPARING FOR SCALING UP

This project aims to valorize lignin to improve the economic profitability of lignin producers and contribute to a sustainable and green environment by enabling low-cost lignin-based carbon fibers (CFs) in commercial applications. The research objective of this proposal is to develop a lignin-tailored CF processing technology to demonstrate lab-scale productions of low-cost commercial-grade CFs using various lignins. The objectives include(1) verifying the effectiveness of the controlled CF production method using multiple lignins from different sources;(2) establishing structure-process-properties relationships of lignin and lignin-based CFs;(3) examining the applicability of the structure-process-properties relationships;(4) developing an integrated controlled CF production method to shorten the production time.