Bachelor thesis or Master thesis
Classification of your research:
Foamed plastics make an important contribution to sustainability and resource efficiency. Due to their insulating and damping properties, foam films are used, for example, as insulating materials in battery systems for electric vehicles (image) or in the construction sector as edge insulation strips or as impact sound insulation. Flammable, combustible physical blowing agents such as isobutane are mainly used in the manufacture of foam films. Inert propellants such as carbon dioxide (CO2) or nitrogen (N2) are a sustainable alternative. However, these have a low solubility in plastic melts, which limits the foam quality. The use of innovative, sustainable propellant mixtures made from e.g. CO2 and N2, the processing properties of the material can be specifically adapted by utilizing synergy effects in order to achieve lower foam densities and more homogeneous foam structures. At the same time, the use of combustible, flammable physical blowing agents can be dispensed with.
The interactions between process parameters (melting temperature, mold pressure, cooling, etc.), blowing agent formulation (type and quantity of co-propellants) and foam properties (waviness, cell morphology, surface) have not yet been sufficiently researched. In particular, the solubility of the blowing agent in the melt has a major influence on the cell structure. By developing suitable formulations and processes, foam films are to be produced using sustainable blowing agent mixtures.
© GVI/KÖNIG METALL, IKVObjective:
The aim of your work is to investigate the process control and foam properties with different blowing agent formulations and process settings. The aim of your thesis can be individually adapted to the scope of a Bachelor’s or Master’s thesis.
Your task:
- You carry out research in the field of physical propellant mixtures
- You examine the rheological properties of the melt using different blowing agent formulations
- You carry out foam extrusion tests and evaluate different process settings and blowing agent formulations with regard to their resulting expansion behavior and foam properties
- You analyze the foams produced in terms of cell size, cell homogeneity and cell density
Your profile:
Preferred study programs
- Mechanical engineering / industrial engineering, specialising in mechanical engineering
- Automation technology
- General mechanical engineering
- Computational Engineering Science (CES)
- Materials science
- Industrial engineering, specialising in materials and process engineering
- Environmental engineering
About the working group:
In the “Foam Extrusion” working group, we deal with topics such as sustainable blowing agent systems, process development and the processing of alternative materials such as bioplastics.
If you are interested or have any questions on this topic, please feel free to contact me. You are welcome to contact us by phone or e-mail.