The acceleration of the composite material industry has led to a breakthrough in the industrialization of carbon fiber tube forming technology

Recently, the manufacturing technology of carbon fiber composite pipes in China has been continuously upgraded. With the improvement of raw materials and optimization of forming processes, the application scale of carbon fiber pipes in sports equipment, medical equipment, industrial equipment, cultural and sports products and other fields has been continuously expanding. Compared with traditional metal pipes, carbon fiber pipes have outstanding advantages such as light weight, high strength, corrosion resistance, and high modulus, gradually replacing traditional components such as aluminum alloys and steel pipes, and driving the comprehensive improvement of downstream related product performance.

Carbon fiber tube is a high-performance component formed by compounding carbon fiber prepreg with epoxy resin matrix. The product performance largely depends on the entire process of laying, forming, curing, and post-treatment. At present, the mainstream production processes in China include four technical routes: coiling, winding, molding, and weaving forming. Different processes correspond to different usage scenarios, balancing cost and mechanical performance.

The coiling process is the most widely used processing method in the industry. During production, carbon fiber prepreg is precisely wrapped around the surface of the metal core mold according to the design angle, and the laying angle, number of layers, and tension are controlled by CNC equipment to ensure the radial and axial mechanical balance of the pipe. After the layer is laid, it is sent to a hot press tank to complete the resin curing under high temperature and pressure environment. This process has high production efficiency, smooth inner walls of pipes, stable dimensional accuracy, and is suitable for mass production of thin-walled circular pipe products such as billiard clubs, fishing rods, and telescopic rods.

The winding process uses continuous carbon fiber bundles to wrap the core mold according to a preset trajectory, which can flexibly adjust the circumferential and axial fiber arrangement. The pipe has excellent resistance to radial pressure and is commonly used for high-pressure pipe fittings and industrial support pipes. The weaving molding process weaves carbon fiber yarn into a tubular fabric and then impregnates it with glue for curing. The pipe has outstanding torsional resistance and stronger impact resistance, but the production cycle is long and it is mostly used for high-end customized components. The molding process is suitable for carbon fiber pipes with irregular cross-sections, relying on molds for shaping and ensuring good consistency in product dimensions, making it suitable for mass production of complex cross-section components.

Curing is a crucial step in determining the quality of carbon fiber tubes. Temperature, pressure, and insulation time need to be strictly matched, as a rapid heating rate can easily cause internal bubbles and delamination; Insufficient pressure can result in uneven resin distribution defects. After curing, slowly demold according to the gradient cooling to avoid bending and deformation of the pipe caused by temperature difference stress. After demolding, the pipes are cut, polished, and surface coated, and then subjected to size, straightness, and strength testing to remove defective products such as bubbles, cracks, and eccentricities.

In the past, high-end large-size and high-precision carbon fiber pipes relied on imports for a long time. With the iteration of domestic equipment, the bottleneck of raw materials and processes has been continuously broken. Domestic carbon fiber tube products not only significantly reduce procurement costs, but also allow customization of pipe diameter, wall thickness, and modulus parameters according to customer needs. Industry analysis indicates that with the release of downstream market demand, carbon fiber pipe manufacturing is developing towards high precision, low cost, and intelligence. Continuous optimization of future processes will further expand the application space of carbon fiber composite materials in more specialized fields.