26th April 2013, The Japan Carbon Fiber Manufacturers
Association
The Japan Carbon Fiber Manufacturers Association (JCMA) commenced in 2006 constructing a pilot plant in an eco-park located in Ohmuta City, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan to carry out its own R&D program of “Establishing Recycling Technology of Carbon Fiber” receiving a financial aid thereto from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. JCMA had carried out the R&D at the pilot plant since 2009 receiving assistances from the city and the prefecture. JCMA successfully completed as of March 2012 the pilot plant R&D for establishing intended basic technical knowledge relating to recovering carbon fiber out of disposed industrial carbon fiber composite and recycling the thus recovered fiber. Major targets of the R&D were reducing contamination of composite residue in recovered carbon fiber, controlling of length of the recovered fiber, removal of metallic contaminants out of the recovered fiber, and many other essentially important technical objectives. Two bodies responsible for carrying out of the R&D program, Recycle Committee and Under Committee for Feasibility Study of Recycling, were dissolved.
So as to further refine thus developed basic recycling technology of carbon fiber, the three registered members of JCMA, Toho Tenax (Headquarter: Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo), Mitsubishi Rayon (Headquarter: Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo), and Toray (Headquarter: Chuo Ward, Tokyo) reached agreement April 2012 to newly jointly organize Carbon Fiber Recycling Technology Development Body, and to let the organization further continue the R&D activity concerned based on the pilot-plant-stage basic technical knowledge.
