The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy awarded a $2,150,000 Cooperative Agreement under the Conservation Research and Development program (CFDA 81.086) to Washington State University (WSU) on August 1, 2024. The objective of this project is to research and develop a pilot-scale upcycling protocol for recycling carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) waste into new automotive components. The project aims to create an eco-friendly, energy-efficient, and cost-effective process for recovering and reusing CFRP materials.
As part of this Cooperative Agreement, WSU is collaborating with the University of Wyoming to construct a 100-L pilot-scale reactor system for catalytic recovery of recyclable carbon fiber and chemical intermediates from CFRP waste. The University of Wyoming will evaluate the performance of this pilot-scale system, study the thermodynamics and kinetics of the catalytic recovery process, and conduct a life-cycle analysis. The findings from this project are expected to help advance the commercialization of sustainable CFRP recycling technologies.