How Tenax Next™ enhances the sustainability of carbon fibers without compromising performance
29. September 2026 |
Sustainability and high performance are often seen as competing priorities. With our Tenax Next™ product line, we aim to reduce the C02 footprint of our carbon fiber production, advance circular material concepts and maintain the performance standards our customers rely on.
Our carbon fiber products enable lightweight, durable and high-performance applications across industries like aerospace, automotive, marine and civil engineering. Their production, however, is energy-intensive and relies on fossil-based feedstocks such as mineral oil. With more and more industries working towards sustainability targets, the pressure to reduce the environmental footprint of materials is increasing.
In our Sustainability Report for 2025, we outline the measures we are taking across our operations, from energy efficiency and renewable electricity to circular feedstocks and new material concepts. Our Tenax Next™ brand is an important part of this transformation.
Combining Circularity with Performance and Quality
Our Tenax Next™ brand introduces different circular material approaches into our carbon fiber portfolio while building on the quality and performance standards established for Tenax™ materials
All of our Tenax Next™ products are developed and supplied according to the well-known quality standards of EN ISO 9001 (Quality Management), EN 9100 (Quality Management Systems — Requirements for Aviation, Space and Defense Organizations) and the National Aerospace and Defense Contractors Accreditation Program (Nadcap). In addition, we selected our Tenax Next™ R2S P513 6mm short carbon fiber for our first Digital Product Passport (DPP), providing greater transparency and traceability of relevant product and sustainability data across the value chain. Rooted in the European Green Deal and the Circular Economy Action Plan, it enables customers to integrate verified material data into their own sustainability reporting and compliance processes.
How can a more sustainable material deliver the same performance?
When talking about more sustainable materials, one question comes up time after time: can they deliver the same level of performance? In industries where safety, reliability and long-term durability are critical, there is little room for compromise. For this reason, Tenax Next™ products are designed to combine reduced environmental impact with the technical performance required for demanding applications. Based on circular feedstock, our products enable a potential of up to 35 % CO₂ reduction compared to conventional carbon fiber products while maintaining the tensile strength and stiffness required for demanding applications.
For manufacturers, the benefits of Tenax Next™ extend beyond material performance and sustainability. Our materials are designed to be integrated into existing manufacturing environments, enabling companies to pursue more sustainable material solutions without the need for fundamental changes to component design or production processes.
What makes our Tenax Next™ products special?
The Tenax Next™ portfolio combines different approaches to circularity, including the use of circular feedstocks, in-house manufacturing residues and recycled carbon fiber. Another important aspect of Tenax Next™ is traceability. By working with materials from our own production streams and applying certified processes, we can provide transparency throughout the value chain.
To ensure credible sustainability claims we established our production and supply system based on ISCC PLUS certrification. This enables the sourcing of certified sustainable building blocks for PAN production and the gradual increase of certified material content across the portfolio.
Which products are currently available in our Tenax Next™ line?
The first product we launched under the brand was Tenax Next™ HTS45 E23 24K, a filament yarn with a significantly reduced CO2 footprint that maintains excellent processability, high performance and fulfills the growing demand for more sustainable high-performance materials for automotive, aerospace and industrial applications.
One year later, we introduced an expanded Tenax Next™ product line at JEC World 2026. The current portfolio comprises different materials spanning filament yarn, pelletized carbon fiber grades and a thermoformable non-woven composite. Our pelletized carbon fibers Tenax Next™ R2S P513 6mm and Tenax Next™ R2M P513 6mm are manufactured from repurposed loose fiber materials. By using production byproducts, we can conserve valuable resources while maintaining high performance requirements. Our newest development is the thermoformable non-woven Tenax Next™ R3S F/D-C21A200L which is made from recycled carbon fibers in combination with flame-retardant polycarbonate to enable rapid thermoforming and automated press molding.
By expanding the Tenax Next™ portfolio, we aim to give manufacturers more options for reducing the environmental impact of carbon fiber applications while meeting their specific technical and manufacturing requirements.