Recently, Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical, in collaboration with Shanghai Petrochemical Research Institute and Shanghai Engineering Co., Ltd., successfully tackled the key technology of wet T1000 grade high-performance carbon fiber and achieved mass production, marking a milestone breakthrough for Sinopec in the field of high-performance carbon fiber. This high-performance carbon fiber can be used in high-end fields such as aerospace, embodied intelligence, low altitude economy, and future industries, providing core strategic material support for the development of key areas in China.
Carbon fiber has superior performance and is known as the "king of new materials" and "black gold". Its density is less than a quarter of steel, but its strength is 7 to 9 times that of steel, and it has corrosion-resistant properties. Carbon fiber is divided into two types according to the specifications of the fiber bundle: large fiber bundle and small fiber bundle. K is commonly used in the industry to represent the fiber bundle specification (1K means 1000 single filaments). 24K and below are small bundle carbon fibers, with finer bundles, more balanced performance, and higher precision, suitable for high-performance scenarios such as aerospace and high-end equipment; 48K and above are large fiber bundles of carbon fiber, with higher single line production capacity and lower cost. They are the core materials supporting large-scale applications in industrial fields such as wind power and energy storage. T represents the tensile strength grade, and the larger the value, the higher the strength.
In October 2022, China's first 48K large fiber bundle carbon fiber national production line was put into operation at Shanghai Petrochemical; In September 2025, Shanghai Petrochemical released a new product of 60K large fiber bundle carbon fiber, filling the gap in the domestic market. While the industrialization of large fiber bundles of carbon fibers continues to break through, Shanghai Petrochemical is launching a charge towards the key core technology of high-performance small fiber bundles of carbon fibers. In April 2023, Shanghai Petrochemical successfully achieved mass production of 24K carbon fiber products. In August of the same year, all performance indicators of high-performance carbon fiber products reached SCF55M1 (T800 level), and the entire production process was completed. In October 2025, we successfully developed and prepared a complete set of T800 grade carbon fiber wet process technology using sodium thiocyanate, filling the global gap with our independently researched and developed technology.
Since the beginning of this year, Shanghai Petrochemical has continuously tackled technical bottlenecks such as raw wire performance and micro defects through research and equipment transformation and optimization. The high-performance carbon fiber developed and mass-produced this time is a 12K small bundle, which is composed of 12000 single fibers per bundle. The diameter of each single fiber is equivalent to one tenth of the diameter of a human hair, but it has excellent mechanical properties. The tensile strength of the single strand bundle exceeds 6.5 GPa and the tensile modulus exceeds 300 GPa, which is equivalent to pulling a medium-sized truck weighing about 10 tons.
The tensile strength of the mechanical properties can reach 6500 megapascals, which is about 18% higher than the original T800 level. It also has high strength and high modulus, which is basically consistent with the international leading level. ”Du Yongqian, the manager of the 3rd Carbon Fiber Factory of Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Carbon Fiber Division, introduced that due to the use of wet process technology, the surface of the carbon fiber formed has a certain roughness, which is more advantageous in subsequent applications.
Du Yongqian said that this technological breakthrough has further enriched and improved the spectrum of Sinopec's carbon fiber products. T1000 grade small bundle carbon fiber has achieved mass production, complementing the strategic advantages of large bundle carbon fiber. At present, Sinopec has the production capacity of nearly 20 types of carbon fiber products with different fiber bundle specifications such as 3K, 6K, 12K, 24K, 48K, 60K, etc. The product performance covers general and high-performance levels, and can be used in various scenarios such as aerospace, high-end manufacturing, wind power, transportation, sports and leisure. By the end of 2025, Sinopec has applied for 868 patents in the field of carbon fiber and its composite materials, ranking first in the country and third in the world in terms of patent applications. It has been granted 417 patents and has completed 4 PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) applications.