CF
Thornel Mat VMC
Cytec ? Aerospace Standard
Manufacturer page / TDSDescription
Cubed mat (~0.5x0.5x1 in), enhances stiffness, thermal & electrical conductivity
Comparative overview
Carbon fiber — Standard-modulus carbon
Strengths: Best-established balance of specific stiffness, strength, availability and cost within structural carbon fibers.
When to use: Select for general aerospace, automotive, industrial, sporting and woven/prepreg applications when ultra-high stiffness is unnecessary.
Key tradeoffs: Lower strength/stiffness than premium grades; brittle, electrically conductive and susceptible to galvanic coupling with metals.
Qualitative ratings (1–10 scale)
| Relative cost | 6/10 — Moderate–high — widely available industrial/aerospace PAN carbon; mid-range within the advanced-fiber market. |
|---|---|
| EM transparency | 1/10 — Very poor — conductive carbon gives very poor RF transparency. |
| Temperature / fire resistance | 6/10 — Good — non-melting, but air oxidation and polymer-matrix limits prevent a high fire score. |
| Impact / penetration resistance | 5/10 — Moderate — moderate strain and high strength; generally below glass/aramid/UHMWPE for damage tolerance. |
| Electrical / thermal conductivity | 7/10 — High — electrically conductive with moderate, grade-dependent axial thermal conductivity. Stored axial thermal conductivity: 0.41 W/m·K. |
| Specific tensile strength | 2/10 — 2/10 | 700.0 kN·m/kg | Product TDS |
| Atmospheric durability | 9/10 — Excellent — carbon fiber is intrinsically resistant to UV, moisture and salt exposure; long-term laminate durability is usually governed by sizing, matrix, galvanic coupling and interfaces rather than the fiber. |
| Sustainability (CO₂e) | 5/10 — 19.85 kg CO₂e/kg fiber — High emissions — data quality: High |
Technical properties
| Tensile strength | 1400.0 MPa |
|---|---|
| Tensile modulus | 170.0 GPa |
| Density | 2.0 g/cm³ |
| Filament diameter | 13.0 µm |
Applications and processing
dispersion reinforcementMolded parts