# Bio-Sourced, High-Performance Carbon Fiber Reinforced Itaconic Acid-Based Epoxy Composites with High Hygrothermal Stability and Durability

## TL;DR

This paper introduces a sustainable, high-performance carbon fiber composite using a bio-based epoxy that outperforms petroleum-based alternatives in durability and hygrothermal stability.

## Contribution

A novel bio-based epoxy resin with high hygrothermal stability is developed to replace petroleum-based resins in carbon fiber composites.

## Key findings

- Green CFRP composites showed excellent dimensional stability under extreme hygrothermal aging.
- T700/EIA-30 retained higher strength and performance after aging compared to petroleum-based CFRPs.
- EIA-based resins demonstrated superior hygrothermal stability and durability over BPA-based resins.

## Abstract

Thermosetting polymers and composites are a class of high-performance materials with significant industrial applications. However, the widespread use of thermosets and their composites generates large quantities of waste and leads to serious economic and environmental problems, there is a critical need in the elaboration of sustainable composite materials. Here, we propose a method to prepare sustainable carbon fiber reinforced composites with different degrees of greenness by blending environmentally friendly EIA with DGEBA in different ratios, and the properties compared with a well-known commercial petroleum-based epoxy resin. The prepared carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites with different degrees of greenness had excellent dimensional stability under extreme hygrothermal aging. After aging, the green CFRP composite T700/EIA-30 has higher strength and performance retention than that of petroleum-based CFRP composites. The higher hygrothermal stability and durability of EIA-based epoxy resins as compared with BPA-based epoxy resins demonstrated significant evidence to design and develop a novel bio-based epoxy resin with high performance to substitute the petroleum-based epoxy resin.