Formulation Development and Durability

Many polymers achieve their full efficiency and applicability in longtime application areas only with effective additives. Through additives, polymers can be developed conform to their specification by purposefully configuring surface properties, morphology and polymer architecture. High performance stabilizers, this meaning anti-oxidants and light-stability agents, guarantee long-lasting properties even under challenging conditions. For the development of formulated polymer systems the department “Formulation Development and Durability” combines analytical and physical measurement methodology in the research groups “Additives”, “Interface Design”, “Material Analytics” and “Morphology and Dynamics”.  Material safety and reliability (fatigue, aging, flammability, health hazards), failure characteristics and resource efficiency are essential areas of research. Furthermore the focus lies on the development of analytical methods for high performance polymers, fracture mechanics of multiphase resin-systems, also under influence of different media, the examination of the kinetics of reactive processes, the control of interfacial surface properties, especially of filled and reinforced systems, and the development of plastic additives from the synthesis unto long-term testing (stabilization, flame protection, plastics modification).

• Chemical composition and functionality analysis of polymers
• Determination of molecular weight of polymers
• Sorting by chemical composition and functionality
• Synthesis of (block-)copolymers and additives
• Formula development
• Dynamic mechanical analysis
• Thermal properties
• Ultrasound measurements
• Electrical and electro-active properties
• Weathering and aging
• Flammability properties
• Imaging techniques

• Automotive
• Transportation
• Construction Industries
• Electronics
• Resources / Raw Materials / Chemistry