Nanocomposite Fabrics Production System

**NEW - May 8, 2020

New attachment has been added. Please read the document as it provides important information pertaining to the submission of your proposal.

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May 5, 2020

• The closing date for this challenge has been extended to May 25, 2020 at 14:00 EDT.

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April 14, 2020

Due to the issues surrounding COVID19, we have decided to extend the solicitation closing date until May 8, 2020.

This Challenge Notice is issued under the Innovative Solutions Canada Program (ISC) Call for Proposals 003 (EN578-20ISC3). For general ISC information, Bidders can visit the ISC website.

Please refer to the Solicitation Documents which contain the process for submitting a proposal.

Steps to apply:

Step 1: read this challenge

Step 2: read the Call for Proposals

Step 3: propose your solution here

Challenge title: Nanocomposite Fabrics Production System

CHALLENGE SPONSOR: National Research Council (NRC)

Funding Mechanism: Contract

MAXIMUM CONTRACT VALUE:

Multiple contracts could result from this challenge

The maximum funding available for any Phase 1 Contract resulting from this Challenge is $150,000.00 CAD excluding applicable taxes, shipping, travel and living expenses, as required, for up to 6 months (excluding submission of the final report).

Estimated number of Phase 1 contracts: 2

The maximum funding available for any Phase 2 Contract resulting from this Challenge is $1,000,000.00 CAD excluding applicable taxes, shipping, travel and living expenses, as required, for up to 24 months (excluding submission of the final report). Only eligible businesses that have successfully completed Phase 1 will be considered for Phase 2.

Estimated number of Phase 2 contracts: 1

This disclosure is made in good faith and does not commit Canada to contract for the total approximate funding. Final decisions on the number of Phase 1 and Phase 2 awards will be made by Canada on the basis of factors such as evaluation results, departmental priorities and availability of funds.

TRAVEL:  For Phase 1 it is anticipated that two meetings will require the successful bidder(s) to travel to the location identified below:

Kick-off meeting

Ottawa, ON

Progress Meetings

Two to three design/progress review meetings by teleconference/videoconference

Final Review Meeting

Ottawa, ON

Problem Summary Statement

The National Research Council is seeking a manufacturing process solution that will produce nanocomposite sheets/fabrics comprised of carbon nanotubes and polymer by the roll in order to make the next generation of high-performance multifunctional fabric for fire protection, energy absorption, electromagnetic shielding, etc. 

Problem Statement

The NRC provides R&D services and support to Canadian industry. Through its Emerging Technologies Division, NRC has been engaged in research, development and technology transfer in the area of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and related nanomaterials. The newest generations of lightweight, high performance and multifunctional composite materials involve harnessing the properties of nanomaterials like CNTs, which are very difficult to work with because of self-agglomeration, low wetting capability and other challenges. Presently NRC is conducting studies that will provide data to manufacture and demonstrate a panoply of multifunctional nanocomposite materials, but is lacking a continuous process solution that can generate consistent and homogenous CNT-polyurethane (TPU) fabric sheets for testing different material solutions and support identified commercialization interests for this multifunctional composite material. 

This challenge seeks an apparatus using a new process that will lead to continuous production of CNT-TPU and related slurries, fabric sheets and rolls with width of at least 30 cm and with similar or better mechanical performance to those achieved in small laboratory and batch scale methods.

Desired outcomes and Considerations

Essential (Mandatory) Outcomes

Proposed solutions must be an apparatus that:

1. produces exfoliated CNT and CNT-TPU suspensions/slurries:
   1. in a continuous manner for at least 3 hours.
   2. with variable CNT/TPU weight ratios (e.g. 1/1, 1/2, 1/5, 1/10) and at a maximum CNT concentration of 0.5 g/L. 
   3. where the length of CNTs will be a minimum of 1-2 microns.
   4. that can maintain the suspension with limited loss in dispersion quality (CNT/TPU particles in the slurry should occupy at least half of the total volume of the vessel 30 mins after the shear forces used to exfoliate the CNTs are stopped).
2. produces CNT-TPU nanocomposite sheets and fabric by the roll for at least 2 hours in a continuous process from the CNT-TPU slurry. 
3. can produce a minimum of 10 metres of composites/fabric in an 8 hour shift.
4. produces material measuring at least 30 cm in width and not more than 100 cm in width. 
5. produces material where the sheets of fabrics must:
   1. be uniform in composition (measured by thermogravimetric analysis) with a maximum variation margin of 10% over the sheet.
   2. be controllable in thickness (50 μm to 250 μm with 10 % precision). 
   3. have a CNT content in the dry sheet that is controllable in the 10% to 70% range by weight (nanotube weight relative to the total mass of the fabric).
   4. attain the expected mechanical properties, similar to or better than laboratory production, in a reproducible manner. (Properties will be depend on the type of CNT and polymer used. For example, for NC7000™ MWCNTs (Nanocyl SA) and UAF 472 TPU (Adhesive Films Inc.), a Young’s modulus of 1 GPa and 40 MPa UTS at 35 wt % loading with 70 % of strain at break and electrical conductivity in the 2000 S/m to 3000 S/m range).
6. is compatible with water and common organic solvents, including alcohols, acetone, tetrahydrofuran and dimethylformamide. 
7. provides safe handling of hazardous chemicals (OHS&E), flammable solvents and nanomaterials by a trained operator.
8. is compliant with electrical CSA standards (On-site inspection acceptable).
9. is compliant with Class I division 2 environment.
10. has a computerized control interface.
11. has a footprint not more than 2 m by 4 m with height not exceeding 2.4 m.
12. can be disassembled into sections that will fit through a 1 m by 2.1 m opening for installation 

Additional Outcomes

Proposed solutions should:

1. Include a system for recycling the solvents (or solvent mixtures) recovered from the slurry.
2. Include a system to control the temperature at which the CNT-TPU slurry is prepared.

Background and Context

Individual carbon nanotubes (CNTs) possess outstanding intrinsic mechanical properties and functional performance, offering great promise in polymer composites. However, it is still challenging to harness these properties at the macroscopic scale. Achieving proper CNT exfoliation, dispersion, and interface interaction are among the main challenges in the nanocomposites field. High CNT content thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) sheets produced by solution methods developed at NRC, using a combination of good and bad solvents for TPU, have shown great potential and are of interest for a number of applications including improved damage tolerance, electrical properties of laminate composites, self-sensing, heating, electromagnetic shielding, flame resistance, and as new materials for morphing structures. In order to satisfy the application requirements it is essential to manufacture CNT-TPU materials with tailored compositions and consistent, uniform properties.

The use of a solvent/non-solvent combination favors adsorption of TPU on CNTs and enhances surface interaction producing materials with tailorable properties. Moreover, the sheets can be quickly recovered by vacuum filtration. However, poor CNT exfoliation and poor packing of the CNT-TPU modified “fibers” in the final sheet often reduces performance. Bath and tip sonication are usually employed for exfoliation in organic solvents. There are scientific challenges to overcome to achieve increased interfacial interactions by exposing all the available CNT surface and a homogenous and controlled TPU adsorption onto well exfoliated and dispersed CNTs. This challenge is significantly amplified when large volumes are required and the shear forces applied to exfoliate and disperse the CNTs are not effective or could reduce CNT length. Another scientific challenge is to achieve homogeneous deposition and packing of the CNT-TPU modified fibers during solvent removal and drying in order to realize optimal performance and consistent results.

Currently, sonication is employed to exfoliate the CNTs but the slurries are not homogeneous in composition because of agglomeration and non-optimal surface interaction. Moreover, the method is limited by the size of the filtration system (e.g., 30 cm × 30 cm). Currently when larger sizes are required the sheets are seamed together using a hot press, which also affects the performance of the sheets around the joint. Collectively, the processes are inefficient, which poses cost barriers to R&D and commercialization. An efficient production system is required that allows a continuous fabrication while maintaining the material properties and quality. The NRC currently does not have the capacity to develop such solutions; however, conceptually, approaches drawn from the paper making industry or mat casting/rolling could be engineered to address our challenges. The solution would provide a transformative competitive edge to a Canadian manufacturer in addition to enabling Canadian firms to develop new commercial products with unique features.

References - NRC articles of interest:

Y. Martinez-Rubi et al. https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acsami.7b09208

M. Jakubinek et al. https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/abs/10.2514/6.2019-1857

M. Jakubinek et al. https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/abs/10.2514/6.2018-1154

ENQUIRIES

All enquiries must be submitted in writing to TPSGC.SIC-ISC.PWGSC@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca no later than ten calendar days before the Challenge Notice closing date. Enquiries received after that time may not be answered.