Decomposition of GFRP in Nitric Acid and Hydrogen Peroxide Solution for Chemical Recycling

Abstract

Decomposition of Glass Fiber Reinforced epoxy resin cured with amine in nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide solution has been investigated. After specimens were immersed in above solutions for a specific time, glass fiber could be separated from matrix resulting from the decomposition of matrix resin. The chemical structures and molecular weight distributions of the decomposed products were analyzed by FT-IR and size exclusion chromatography (SEC). When nitric acid was used, the resin was mainly decomposed into 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (picric acid) and quasi-monomer. In the case of hydrogen peroxide, the backbone of resin was broken into monomer and dimer, or peracetic acid, depending on immersion time. On the other hand, glass fiber exhibited low corrosion resistance to nitric acid, while it was hardly degraded in hydrogen peroxide. Based on analyzing the decomposed products and observing the degradation of glass fiber, the chemical recycling method on GFRP was proposed.