China has successfully achieved a key technological breakthrough in wet-process T1000-grade high-performance carbon fiber and realized mass production in Shanghai, according to China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) on Tuesday.
The breakthrough, completed by Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co., Ltd. and Sinopec Shanghai Research Institute of Petrochemical Technology Co., Ltd., will provide core materials support for high-end fields and future industries, including aerospace, embodied intelligence, and the low-altitude economy.
The high-performance carbon fiber is a 12K small-tow product, meaning that each bundle contains 12,000 individual filaments. Each filament has a diameter of only about seven micrometers, about one-tenth that of a human hair, according to Sinopec.
"This time, we have achieved mass production of small tow T1000 carbon fiber. Small-tow carbon fiber and large-tow carbon fiber now form a strategic complementary advantage. At present, we have the production capacity for nearly 20 models of carbon fiber products, which can fully cover various application scenarios such as aerospace, high-end manufacturing, wind power, transportation, and sports and leisure," said Du Yongqian, manager of a carbon fiber plant of the Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co., Ltd.
Carbon fiber has a density of less than one-fourth that of steel, yet its strength is seven to nine times that of steel, while also offering excellent properties such as corrosion resistance and fatigue resistance. It is an indispensable core basic material supporting the development of high-end manufacturing and strategic equipment.
It is projected that by 2030, China's carbon fiber market will exceed 60 billion yuan (about 8.87 billion U.S. dollars).
China achieves mass production of T1000-grade high-performance carbon fiber
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) called for maximum military restraint and full adherence to the localized ceasefire on Friday, after Russian personnel were reportedly injured near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (NPP).
The IAEA said it has been informed that some Russian military personnel were injured during Friday's de-mining phase of the agreed localized ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine.
Earlier on Friday, the IAEA announced the start of a localized ceasefire it brokered on the front line near the Zaporizhzhia NPP, enabling repairs to the plant's crucial power line.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said the restoration of the off-site power line would be an important and positive step for nuclear safety, which is in everybody's vital interest.
"Today, we have been able to agree on the sixth ceasefire, localized ceasefire brokered by us, the IAEA, with Ukraine and the Russian Federation. This will allow experts and technicians from both sides to start very crucial repairs of the Dniprovska line. It's the 750-kilowatt line, the main line that is still standing there," Grossi noted.
The line has been disconnected for more than two months. The Zaporizhzhia NPP had to rely on emergency diesel generators for the electricity it needed to cool its six shutdown reactors in the event of a power outage during military conflicts.
The Zaporizhzhia plant, one of Europe's largest nuclear power facilities, has been under Russian control since March 2022.
Alexey Likhachev, director general of Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom, reported Ukrainian drone strikes on the Zaporizhzhia NPP on Friday afternoon. "Three of our engineers were injured, two of them are in serious condition," Likhachev was quoted as saying by Russian news agency Interfax.
According to the IAEA, the incident is currently being investigated, and the Ukrainian side said it remains committed to the ceasefire.
IAEA chief calls for restraint, adherence to ceasefire near Zaporizhzhia
