Large-tow carbon fiber overcomes the application limitations imposed by high carbon fiber costs through its advantages of efficient production and low cost.
Wide availability and low cost of raw materials: The precursor for PAN-based large-tow carbon fiber can utilize PAN fibers, which are widely available and significantly cheaper than the specialized PAN raw materials required for PAN-based small-tow carbon fiber.
High production efficiency: Compared to small-tow carbon fiber, the greatest advantage of large-tow carbon fiber lies in its ability to significantly increase per-line production capacity under identical manufacturing conditions, thereby achieving low-cost production. Additionally, during the preparation of carbon fiber composites, large-tow carbon fiber offers higher layup efficiency, reducing production costs by over 30%.
The cost-effectiveness of large-towel carbon fiber makes it suitable for large-scale industrial applications: While the PAN precursor used in large-towel carbon fiber is relatively inexpensive, the resulting large-towel carbon fiber exhibits properties close to those of small-towel carbon fiber at a significantly lower price point. Consequently, its cost-effectiveness far surpasses that of small-towel carbon fiber. In the 2020 international market, small-tow products were priced around $20–22 per kilogram, while large-tow products were priced around $14–15 per kilogram. This represents a price reduction of 32%–57% compared to small-tow carbon fiber. ZOLTEK’s large-tow carbon fiber product PANEX33-48K exhibits a strength of 205 MPa and a modulus of 13 GPa; while the strength and modulus of small tow carbon fiber T300-12K are only 107 MPa and 7 GPa, respectively—roughly half those of large tow carbon fiber. This demonstrates that large tow carbon fiber offers superior cost-effectiveness, enabling low-cost production and thereby overcoming the application limitations imposed by the high price of carbon fiber.
The rapid development of wind and hydrogen energy will drive explosive growth in large-towel carbon fiber applications. Wind power development has entered a critical phase: larger wind turbines will significantly boost demand for large-towel carbon fiber, fueled by policy incentives and technological advancements. Energy structure transformation under carbon neutrality: Policy drivers propel rapid growth in wind power. Against the backdrop of global carbon neutrality, worldwide wind turbine installations are expected to accelerate. As governments increasingly prioritize carbon emission reduction, the importance of renewable energy generation has grown substantially. In 2020, global new wind power installations reached 93GW, a 53% year-on-year increase and a historic high. China has explicitly set targets for “carbon neutrality and peak carbon emissions.” CICC’s New Energy team forecasts wind power installations could reach 275GW between 2021 and 2025. Overseas, in January 2021, President Biden signed documents re-committing the U.S. to the Paris Climate Agreement, setting goals for “carbon-free electricity generation by 2035 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.” The European Union has also set a goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. Against this backdrop of global carbon neutrality efforts, wind power installations are expected to see significant growth. Forecasts indicate that global wind power installations could reach 500 GW between 2021 and 2025. The grid parity of wind power depends on the scaling up of wind turbines. To increase power generation, wind turbine blade lengths continue to grow, boosting turbine capacity while also increasing their weight. In recent years, the trend toward larger wind turbine blades has become pronounced. By 2020, blade lengths reached 100 meters (for turbines rated at 6MW or higher), representing an eightfold increase compared to three decades ago. However, while increasing blade size, it is crucial to minimize weight gain while maintaining inherent properties such as corrosion resistance, longevity, and stiffness. Particularly with the accelerated growth of offshore wind power installations in recent years, blades must withstand extreme weather conditions. The traditional material for wind turbine blades—glass fiber—has gradually shown limitations in performance. Large-towel carbon fiber has entered the industry’s focus. Large-towel carbon fiber offers advantages including high strength, high stiffness, fatigue resistance (extending blade lifespan), and corrosion resistance. Coupled with the trend toward larger wind turbines and intensified demands for lightweighting, large-towel carbon fiber is progressively becoming the primary material for wind turbine blades and spars. Compared to traditional glass fiber blades, large-towel carbon fiber blades achieve approximately 30% weight reduction, thereby ensuring the operational performance and energy conversion efficiency of wind turbines. Typically, turbines exceeding 3MW capacity and blades longer than 50 meters require the use of large-towel carbon fiber, driving its steadily increasing market penetration.
The rapid development of hydrogen energy has driven increased demand for large-towel carbon fiber. Hydrogen storage tanks represent a significant new growth area for large-towel carbon fiber demand. Hydrogen storage technologies are advancing on multiple fronts, with high-pressure gaseous storage likely becoming the mainstream approach. High-pressure gaseous storage is expected to dominate in the short to medium term. Current primary hydrogen storage methods include gaseous storage, liquid storage, solid storage, and organic liquid storage. High-pressure gaseous hydrogen storage enjoys broad application; cryogenic liquid hydrogen storage has yet to enter commercial use, primarily serving sectors like aerospace; solid hydrogen storage is gradually commercializing, with magnesium-based storage leading the way. Shanghai Magnesium Energy Technology Co., Ltd. has commenced mass production of magnesium-based solid hydrogen storage materials at internationally advanced levels, positioning magnesium-based storage as a promising future technology direction; organic liquid hydrogen storage remains in the demonstration phase. High-pressure gaseous hydrogen storage is the current mainstream commercial technology. High-pressure hydrogen cylinders have evolved through four generations. With technological iterations, cylinder quality has improved, service life has extended, and both hydrogen storage density and operating pressure have gradually increased. Among these, Type I pure steel cylinders and Type II steel liner cylinders are too heavy to meet mobile hydrogen storage needs, primarily serving fixed applications like industrial processes (metallurgy, steelmaking) and hydrogen refueling stations. The development and adoption of Type III and Type IV cylinders have enabled mobile vehicle-mounted hydrogen storage. Domestic technology for Type III aluminum liner cylinders is relatively mature, making them the mainstream onboard hydrogen storage solution for domestic fuel cell vehicles. Type IV plastic-lined cylinders, with matured technology abroad, represent the international mainstream for vehicle-mounted hydrogen storage. Compared to Type III cylinders, Type IV cylinders offer higher mass-to-hydrogen ratio, lower cost, and superior performance, though they have yet to achieve domestic vehicle-mounted application. Large-towel carbon fiber, with its advantages of low density and high pressure resistance, has become the primary material for Type IV hydrogen storage cylinders.
According to data from the Special Carbon Fiber Division of the Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, carbon fiber costs account for 62%-66% of the total cost in Type III cylinders and 76%-78% in Type IV cylinders. As pressure and model grades increase, carbon fiber usage rises progressively. Under equivalent working pressure conditions, Type IV cylinders exhibit a cost reduction of 7%-11% compared to Type III cylinders. This significant cost difference stems from replacing the metal liner with a plastic liner in Type IV cylinders. Due to the lighter liner material, the mass of Type IV cylinders is primarily concentrated in the carbon fiber, hydrogen storage vessel, and auxiliary systems (BOP). In 70MPa Type IV cylinders, carbon fiber accounts for 62% of the mass.
Overall, China’s large-towel carbon fiber industry is entering a critical growth phase, with focus on achieving large-scale production, cost reduction, and high quality.