Use of X-Ray Structure Analysis to Study the Fine Structure of Carbon and Polyacrylonitrile Fibers.

A procedure for performing x-ray structure analyses that allows data on the fine structure of carbon and polyacrylonitrile fibers to be obtained was described. It was shown that carbon fibers were heterogeneous. Their component composition was determined by the preparation conditions and depended on the orientation angle of the coherent scattering regions relative to the filament axis. The structure of crystalline polyacrylonitrile-fiber components included two types of coherent scattering regions, the average sizes of which differed by an order of magnitude. The change in the fine structure of polyacrylonitrile fibers during thermal stabilization was followed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]