Under the guiding principle "From Molecule to Component," Fraunhofer LBF will present its range of services along the entire development chain for technical plastic products. Visitors will learn how to identify material and processing risks early on, shorten development times, and ensure the reliability of their components. The focus will particularly be on solutions for optimizing plastic formulations, using and stabilizing recycled materials, closed-loop recycling, and designing and evaluating durable plastic components.

At the booth, companies can discuss their specific development challenges with Fraunhofer LBF experts, ranging from fluctuating recycled material qualities and demanding flame-retardant requirements to the structural integrity of highly stressed components.

Expertise Across the Entire Development Chain

Today, plastic development presents companies with several parallel challenges. Sustainability goals and the use of recycled materials must be reconciled with high demands regarding processability, mechanical properties, safety, and service life. Fraunhofer LBF helps companies systematically resolve these conflicting objectives.

Our services include material analysis, material selection, additive-supported formulation development, processability evaluation, simulations, aging tests, long-term tests, and structural integrity analyses of components. This allows the material, manufacturing process, and component design to be specifically coordinated.

Visitors to FAKUMA will gain direct insight into how Fraunhofer LBF supports development projects and reduces risks early in the product development process. This helps avoid time-consuming iteration cycles, costly redesigns, and subsequent failures in service.

Exhibit "Circulus": Designing for Recycling and Ensuring Component Reliability

Fraunhofer LBF is showcasing the "Circulus" battery box. It clearly illustrates the institute’s expertise in developing high-performance, durable, and recyclable plastic components.

The battery enclosure shows how requirements related to material selection, design, processing, safety, durability, and recyclability can be integrated early on. Fraunhofer LBF provides support in areas such as material design, the selection of suitable additives, the optimization of processing parameters, and the evaluation of component properties under realistic thermal and mechanical loads.

At the exhibit, visitors can discuss which strategies are suitable for their own applications, such as structural components, housings, electronic components, automotive applications, and products with high service life and recyclability requirements.

Faster Formulation Development – Especially for Recycled Materials

A key focus of the trade show presentation is the efficient development and optimization of plastic formulations. With recycled materials in particular, material properties are often batch-dependent and subject to fluctuations. This can complicate processing, compromise component quality, and lead to increased testing and development costs.

Fraunhofer LBF can quickly test and evaluate numerous formulations, even on a gram scale, using micro- and mini-extruders. Companies benefit from the ability to identify promising combinations of materials and additives early on, before extensive testing on production-scale equipment is necessary. This saves material, time, and costs.

For targeted optimization, the institute also uses online rheometry. This method simultaneously measures shear and extensional viscosity. It allows for precise evaluation of the interaction between additives, material state, and processing conditions. Companies receive reliable data to determine suitable formulations and process windows for their applications.

Combined with AI-supported systems, this approach enables new possibilities for real-time, batch-specific formulation development. Processors and manufacturers who use recycled materials of varying quality, in particular, can respond more effectively to material fluctuations and ensure consistent component quality.

Fraunhofer LBF develops solutions for the following:

• the post-stabilization of recycled materials
• formulations with antioxidants
• PFAS-free processing aids
• chain extenders to compensate for molecular weight loss
• degradation additives
• the targeted adjustment of processing and component properties

Closed-Loop Recycling for Flame-Retardant Plastics

Another key topic at the booth is Closed-Loop Recycling for Flame-Retardant Plastics. These materials are used in electronics, electrical applications, vehicles, cables, and construction products, for example. However, as the use of recycled materials increases, so does the challenge of reliably maintaining flame retardancy, mechanical properties, and processability after multiple processing cycles.

To address this issue, Fraunhofer LBF is researching repair additives, among other solutions. These additives can compensate for molecular weight losses and the associated deterioration in properties. The goal is to close plastic loops while meeting high safety, quality, and functionality requirements.

These findings are being incorporated into the project “HFFR-Up2Cycle – Closed-Loop Solutions for Flame-Retardant Plastics.” In collaboration with Pinfa, the Fraunhofer LBF is developing strategies for closed-loop recycling in electrical, electronic, automotive, and cable applications.

Companies will particularly benefit from a visit to the booth if they:

• want to increase the recycled content in flame-retardant products;
• need to ensure the stability and performance of reprocessed plastics;
• are looking for suitable additive strategies; or
• require robust testing and evaluation methods for their recycled materials.

Well-Founded Component Evaluation and Design for Recycling

Sustainable plastics development does not end with material formulation. The most important factor is how a material behaves in the finished component under real-world operating conditions. Fraunhofer LBF supports companies from the material level through component validation.

A comprehensive fatigue strength database for thermoplastics supports the early and well-founded evaluation of components. It takes into account the influence of material, manufacturing process, geometry, temperature, and loading on fatigue behavior, among other factors. This enables designs to be validated in the initial development phases and allows for the targeted investigation of critical loading scenarios.

Companies can reduce development risks, design components more efficiently, and improve the service life of their products by combining materials expertise, simulation, experimental testing, and fatigue life assessment. Fraunhofer LBF also provides support for issues related to Design for Recycling, or the development of components designed from the outset to enable the highest possible quality of recycling.

Information on individual development issues at the booth

Fraunhofer LBF invites trade visitors to discuss specific product development questions at its booth. Topics of focus include:

• Sustainable and processing-stable plastic formulations
• Recycled material quality and batch-to-batch variations
• Additive formulation and post-stabilization
• PFAS-free processing solutions
• Recycling of flame-retardant plastics
• Structural durability and long-term performance of plastic components
• Design strategies for durable and recycling-friendly products

Contacts at the booth

• Dr. Elke Metzsch-Zilligen, Division Director Research and Development
• Dr. Michael Großhauser, Central Project Acquisition