A fabrication method of a sheathed yarn includes the following steps: making a core run axially through a sheathing area; winding a sheathing fibre around the core in the sheathing area; and presenting a microelectronic chip fixed onto the core in the sheathing area. A polymer material is present between the microelectronic chip and the core when the sheathing step is performed. The polymer material creeps during the sheathing step to form a protective coating.

The invention is directed to carbon fibers having high tensile strength and modulus of elasticity. The invention also provides a method and apparatus for making the carbon fibers. The method comprises advancing a precursor fiber through an oxidation oven wherein the fiber is subjected to controlled stretching in an oxidizing atmosphere in which tension loads are distributed amongst a plurality of passes through the oxidation oven, which permits higher cumulative stretches to be achieved. The method also includes subjecting the fiber to controlled stretching in two or more of the passes that is sufficient to cause the fiber to undergo one or more transitions in each of the two or more passes. The invention is also directed to an oxidation oven having a plurality of cooperating drive rolls in series that can be driven independently of each other so that the amount of stretch applied to the oven in each of the plurality of passes can be independently controlled.

The invention is directed to carbon fibers having high tensile strength and modulus of elasticity. The invention also provides a method and apparatus for making the carbon fibers. The method comprises advancing a precursor fiber through an oxidation oven wherein the fiber is subjected to controlled stretching in an oxidizing atmosphere in which tension loads are distributed amongst a plurality of passes through the oxidation oven, which permits higher cumulative stretches to be achieved. The method also includes subjecting the fiber to controlled stretching in two or more of the passes that is sufficient to cause the fiber to undergo one or more transitions in each of the two or more passes. The invention is also directed to an oxidation oven having a plurality of cooperating drive rolls in series that can be driven independently of each other so that the amount of stretch applied to the oven in each of the plurality of passes can be independently controlled.

A horizontal heat treatment device continuously subjects an untreated continuous flat object to heat treatment while horizontally transferring the untreated object within a heat treatment chamber. Seal chambers are interconnected to the untreated-object loading opening and treated-object unloading opening of the heat treatment chamber. A passage is connected to an opening of each of the seal chambers, the opening located on the side opposite the heat treatment chamber. The untreated-object passage loading opening interconnected to the untreated-object seal chamber loading opening and the treated-object passage unloading opening interconnected to the treated-object seal chamber unloading opening are the untreated-object loading opening and treated-object unloading opening of the heat treatment device. A pair of gas ejection nozzles are provided at upper and lower positions of the passages. The nozzles eject gas in specific directions, and the nozzle openings have a specific shape, a direction, and a length.

The described incandescent tension annealing processes involve thermally annealing twisted or coiled carbon nanotube (CNT) yarns at high-temperatures (1000 C. to 3000 C.) while these yarns are under tensile loads. These processes can be used for increasing yarn modulus and strength and for stabilizing both twisted and coiled CNT yarns with respect to unwanted irreversible untwist, thereby avoiding the need to tether torsional and tensile artificial muscles, and increasing the mechanical loads that can be moved by these muscles.

The described incandescent tension annealing processes involve thermally annealing twisted or coiled carbon nanotube (CNT) yarns at high-temperatures (1000 C. to 3000 C.) while these yarns are under tensile loads. These processes can be used for increasing yarn modulus and strength and for stabilizing both twisted and coiled CNT yarns with respect to unwanted irreversible untwist, thereby avoiding the need to tether torsional and tensile artificial muscles, and increasing the mechanical loads that can be moved by these muscles.

A method of producing a liquid crystalline polyester fiber includes subjecting a yarn prepared by melt spinning a liquid crystalline polyester to a solid-phase polymerization after applying inorganic particles (A) and a phosphate-based compound (B) to the yarn. The method can optionally include cleaning the liquid crystalline polyester fiber after the solid-phase polymerization.

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a graphene fiber and a graphene fiber manufactured thereby, comprising the following steps: a) preparing a dispersion liquid by dispersing graphene with a surfactant in a solvent; b) preparing a composite fiber by mixing the dispersion liquid with a polymer solution, wet spinning and drying same; and c) removing polymers by heat-treating or treating the composite fiber with strong acid. The graphene fiber manufactured by the method has superior electric and mechanical properties, is flexible, and can be utilized as a storage medium for energy, hydrogen, etc. due to porosity from having a wrinkled structure.

A drawing device for drawing a drawable material, the drawing device comprising at least a pair of tapered rollers each having a taper ratio in a range of 0.035 to 0.50, wherein the taper ratio is represented by ()/2L, where denotes a maximum diameter of the roller, denotes a minimum diameter of the roller, and L denotes a length of a tapered portion of the roller.

A poly(phenylene sulfide) fiber changes little in fiber structure and has excellent long-term heat resistance. Namely, the poly(phenylene sulfide) fiber has a degree of crystallization of 45.0% or higher, a content of movable amorphous components of 15.0% or less, and a weight-average molecular weight of 300,000 or less.