Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research IAP
Chemists, physicists, engineers and technicians of Fraunhofer sites in Teltow and Wildau are developing highly crosslinked polymers (thermosets) for all applications with particular reference to aviation, IT-technology and instrumentation.
Today, our work is particularly focused on lightweight composites and on micro as well as optoelectronics: new (nano-)materials, prepregs, core materials, laminates, all kinds of fiber reinforced materials, sandwich structures, bistable displays, integrated optical devices and barrier layers.
The application of our thermosets is in the field of adhesives, coatings, varnishes, binders, inmolds and gelcoats, castings, foams, prepregs, Resin Transfer Moulding (RTM) and pultrusion. The following properties can be designed into these resin systems: high flame retardancy, high fracture toughness, minimum volume shrinkage upon curing, fast and latent curing at a time, disbonding ability (e.g. with adhesives), barrier properties against water vapor and oxygen, adjusted thermal coefficient of expansion, adjusted refraction index, rework and recycling ability. As those properties are often in contrast to each other, we focus particularly on the combination and optimum balance of material properties like high Tg (glass transition temperature) along with high fracture toughness in a single system, just to mention an example.
We are developing polymer systems along the whole supply chain, beginning with the monomers up to the finished part. We synthesize monomers and prepolymers including or not one or more of the following: coreactants, flame retardants, tougheners, fillers or modifiers. Subsequently, we take efforts to ensure the processability of the systems and manufacture first prototype parts, mainly in close cooperation with our customers. We characterize the finished parts and work on quality assurance criteria. As a result, we are providing thermosetting polymer systems in any developmental stage as agreed between us and our clients. Those stages can be the reactive resin system itself, fiber reinforced materials, sandwich structures or any other demonstrator part that has been agreed upon.
