How to Make Carbon Fiber: A Simple Guide

Wat is koolstofvezel?

Koolstofvezel is a strong and light material. It is made of thin strands of carbon. These strands are even thinner than a human hair! Carbon fibre (also spelled this way) is used to make cars, bikes, planes, and sports gear.

“Carbon fiber is five times as strong as steel but weighs much less. This makes it perfect for things that need to be both strong and light.” – Engineering Expert

Why Use Carbon Fiber?

Koolstofvezel has many good points:

• It is very strong
• It is very light
• It does not rust
• It can be shaped in many ways
• It looks cool

This is why many people make carbon fiber parts for cars, bikes, and other things.

What You Need to Make Carbon Fiber

To work with koolstofvezel, you need these tools and materials:

Basic Steps to Make Carbon Fiber Parts

1. Plan Your Project

Before you start with koolstofvezel, you need to know what you want to make. Start with simple shapes. Big or hard shapes can be time-consuming.

2. Make or Get a Mold

De gietvorm is what gives your koolstofvezel onderdelen their shape. You can:

• Buy a ready-made gietvorm
• Make one from wood
• Use an old part as your gietvorm

Neerzetten release wax op jouw gietvorm dus de koolstofvezel will not stick to it.

3. Cut the Carbon Fiber Fabric

Carbon fiber fabric comes in sheets with different weven types. The most common is a keper pattern. Cut the fabric to fit your gietvorm plus a bit more around the edges.

4. Mix the Resin

Epoxyhars is what makes the koolstofvezel hard and strong. Most hars comes as a two-part mix:

1. Pour part A and part B in a cup
2. Mix well but not too fast (to avoid luchtbellen)
3. Use it soon, as it will start to get hard

Be safe! Wear gloves when you work with hars.

5. Wet the Carbon Fiber

Nu komt de natte lay-up stap:

1. Put your koolstofweefsel on a flat spot
2. Use a brush to nat the fabric with hars
3. Make sure all the koolstofvezel gets wet
4. Do not use too much hars – just enough to nat all the vezel

6. Place on the Mold

Zet de nat koolstofvezel op jouw gietvorm:

1. Start from one end and smooth it down
2. Push out any luchtbellen
3. Add more layers if you need a stronger part
4. Each new layer is part of the lay-up

7. Remove Extra Resin

Te veel hars makes your part heavy and not as strong. Use a plastic tool to push out extra resin.

8. Apply Pressure

You need to compress de koolstofvezel as it dries:

• Gebruik een vacuümzak method
• Or use klem and flat boards
• Or try vacuüminfusie voor grote onderdelen

9. Let It Cure

Now you wait for the hars naar genezing:

1. Check your hars box for genezing tijd
2. Most take 24 hours at room heat
3. Keep the part still while it cures
4. Some people use hitte en druk naar genezing sneller

10. Remove from the Mold

Na de hars is fully hard:

1. Take off any wrap or bags
2. Gently pull the finished part from the gietvorm
3. Trim the rough edges
4. Sand any spots that need to be smooth

Soorten koolstofvezel

Niet allemaal koolstofvezel is the same. Here are the main types:

• PAN (made from polyacrylonitrile)
• Pitch (made from oil)
• Rayon (nu minder gebruikelijk)

Most home users work with PAN-based koolstofvezel.

Different Ways to Make Carbon Fiber Parts

There are a few main ways to work with koolstofvezel. Here they are, from simple to hard:

Wet Layup

This is what we just went over. It is the most common way for home users to make carbon fiber parts.

Pre-preg Method

Voor-zwanger of voorgeïmpregneerd koolstofvezel wordt geleverd met hars already in it. It needs to:

1. Stay cold until you use it
2. Be heated to genezing
3. Often needs an autoclaaf (a big hot oven)

This is how many pro carbon fiber reinforced parts are made.

Vacuüm infusie

With this method:

1. The dry carbon fiber fabric is put on the gietvorm
2. It is sealed in a bag
3. Air is sucked out
4. Hars is pulled in to infuse all the vezel

This is good for big parts and can give very strong results.

Making Real Carbon Fiber from Scratch

The steps above show how to work with carbon fiber fabric that is already made. But how does koolstofvezel itself get made? Here is the manufacturing carbon fiber proces:

1. Start with a polymer leuk vinden polyacrylonitrile
2. Pull it into thin gloeidraad strings
3. Heat these strings at high heat without air
4. This turns the strings into koolstof
5. De carbon fiber starts out as single streng vezels
6. Dit zijn woven into a fabric

This needs specialized equipment and is done in factories.

Safety Tips When Working with Carbon Fiber

Working with carbon fiber can be fun but you need to be safe:

• Wear gloves when touching hars
• Wear a mask to avoid breathing koolstofvezelstof
• Werk in een ruimte met een goede luchtstroom
• Keep food away from your work area
• Clean up spills right away

Projects to Try

If you want to learn how to make carbon parts, start small:

1. A simple flat plate
2. A phone case
3. A small box
4. A bike part

As you get better, you can make more complex koolstofvezel onderdelen.

Veelgemaakte fouten om te vermijden

Many people make these mistakes:

• Using too much hars
• Not getting all luchtbellen uit
• Being in a rush during genezing tijd
• Making a part too thin and weak
• Trying a too complex shape for your skill level

How Carbon Fiber Compares to Other Materials

How does koolstofvezel stack up to other engineering materials?

Where Carbon Fiber Is Used

Carbon fibre is used in many places where a lightweight material is needed:

• Lucht- en ruimtevaart parts for planes
• Automobiel racing parts
• Sportartikelen zoals tennisrackets en golfclubs
• Bikes and bike parts
• Medische hulpmiddelen
• Music equipment

Advanced Carbon Fiber Methods

If you get really into koolstofvezel productie, you might try:

• Using a CNC to make precise molds
• Maken hoge prestaties parts with special layup patterns
• Adding other materials to make composite materials
• Using different types of hars leuk vinden polyester resin of thermoset typen

Laatste gedachten

Making things with koolstofvezel can be fun and rewarding. Start simple, be patient, and soon you’ll be making amazing koolstofvezel onderdelen!

De complexity of the part will decide how hard it is to make. With practice, you can make cost-effective en koel finished product items that are both strong and light.

Wilt u meer weten? Bezoek onze composiet op maat page or check out our guide on hoe maak je een koolstofvezelmal.

Ready to start? Get supplies from our koolstoffabriek or learn more about making your own carbon fiber parts.

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