Page 30 - Template Tesis UTM v2.0

Commercial Aerospace
Civil Engineering

Automotive
Value (Million) Marine
Wind Energy

Sporting Goods
Space/Satellite

General Aviation
Military/ Defence

Others
Year

Figure 1.1 Global prepreg market forecast by industry from 2016 to 2021[9]

In the era of globalisation and industrialisation, the major concern is not only

limited to the advanced material development, but also on the environmental aspect.
The growing environmental concerns have caused the increasing demands for

stringent measures to reduce the impact of these materials on the planet and allocating

more time and resources to find efficient recycling solutions. Typically, almost all
composite products were fabricated using synthetic fibres such as glass, carbon and

aramid reinforced thermoset or thermoplastic matrices. Consequently, at the end of
product life manufacturers and end-user faced with disposable method since this

material is non-degradable materials. In regard to the concern on recycling, a team of
academics Universities of Birmingham, UK, or known as Exhume, had collaborated

with industry players to identify the scientific and technical challenges to recycle,

reduce the amount of composite wastes sent to landfills and develop new processes to
recover and reuse valuable fibres and other materials. Subsequently, the Creative Out-

reach for Resource Efficiency (CORE) predicted that by 2025, dumping of composite
materials in landfills would be outlawed. Hence, a new recycling technique, called

solvolysis was invented and been applied in the construction of a racing kayak made
out of recycled carbon fibre [10].

Furthermore, the introduction of natural resources, such as basalt, jute and flax

fibres will reduce the dependency on petroleum source. These natural fibres offer eco-
friendly, biodegradable characteristics, non-abrasive, low cost, lower density and are

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