carbon fiber

noun

Updated on: 24 Apr 2018

Definition of carbon fiber

: a very strong lightweight synthetic fiber made especially by carbonizing acrylic fiber at high temperatures; also : a material made from such fibers embedded in a resinous matrix

a high-performance automobile with a carbon fiber body

Recent Examples of carbon fiber from the Web

There was also attractive low-gloss metal and carbon fiber trim around the vents and controls.

— mark phelan, Detroit Free Press, "Review: 2018 Jaguar Sportbrake makes station wagons cool again," 19 Apr. 2018
Mold it, cure it under high heat and pressure, and the process produces a wood-like material that’s lighter than carbon fiber, stronger than steel, moldable like plastic, and carbon negative.

— liz stinson, Curbed, "Eero Saarinen Tulip chair replica shows potential of sustainable ‘wood-like’ material," 19 Apr. 2018
The problem: During maintenance at Hill Air Force Base, maintainers discovered an unacceptable amount of corrosion where an exterior carbon fiber panel fastened to the F-35 airframe.

— kyle mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "The F-35 Is About To Get Cheaper. Now Here's the Bad News.," 12 Apr. 2018
They may be made of aluminum but also composite materials such as plastics and carbon fiber.

— jeff barker, baltimoresun.com, "Wood bat or metal? New youth baseball rule tries to settle the debate. But it's expensive.," 6 Apr. 2018
This is the second race of the young season with drivers adjusting to LED data screens on their carbon fiber steering wheels.

— elton alexander, cleveland.com, "IndyCar 2018: Live scoring, TV, live streaming, updates for Phoenix Grand Prix," 6 Apr. 2018
Last year, McLaren had revenues of about £650 million and invested £140 million in new models and the capability to manufacture carbon fiber chassis in Sheffield, in central England.

— stanley reed, New York Times, "McLaren’s Formula One History Drives It on the Streets," 5 Apr. 2018
Both cars were designed from the ground up to be electric vehicles, and both make extensive use of composites and carbon fiber.

— jonathan m. gitlin, Ars Technica, "A Bimmer with a battery: The 2018 BMW 530e hybrid," 3 Jan. 2018
Porsche’s chase for pounds even drove it to replace the anti-roll bars and their connective hardware with carbon-fiber pieces (saving 11.9 pounds) and to swap the shift paddles and some steering-wheel trim for carbon fiber (saving 0.5 pound).

— alexander stoklosa, Car and Driver, "Weissach Package Lightens 2019 Porsche 911 GT3 RS, Your Bank Account," 28 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'carbon fiber.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.