Materials & Design

Simulation and Modeling

Manufacturing

Life Cycle Assessment

Srikanth Pilla, Ph.D.

Department of Automotive Engineering Department of Materials Science and Engineering

Rigid Structural Composites Foams

!! Enhanced weight reduction !! Enhanced recyclability !! Shorter cycle times (min 15-20 sec less than conventional injection molding) !! Dimensional stability & Reduced sink marks !! Lower processing temperatures and pressures (energy efficient) !! Potentially improved properties !! Environmentally benign blowing agents such as N2 and CO2

Microstructure Near Surface Cavity Cross Section

Microstructure Near Core Supercritical Fluid (e.g., N2 or CO2) High Back Pressure (8-20 MPa)

Rapid Pressure Drop in Nozzle or Gate Special Reciprocating Screw Triggers Cell Nucleation Single-Phase Polymer-Gas Solution

Flexible Composite Foams

Polymer Process Simulation: MuCell Technology

Surface results of Cell Size and Cell Density at the end of Filling/Packing
Source: Moldex3D

MuCell Simulation: Cell Analysis (Quantitative)

>!N2/LDPE

Source: Moldex3D

Thermoset Structural Composites Processing

Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding

Heated Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding

UV Curing of Laminated Composites

Integrated Long/Short-Fiber, Thermoset/Thermoplastic, Injection Molded Composite Structures & Foams

Composite Component Manufacturing
Microstructure Near Surface Cavity Cross Section Microstructure Near Core Supercritical Fluid (e.g., N2 or CO2) High Back Pressure (8-20 MPa) Rapid Pressure Drop in Nozzle or Gate Special Reciprocating Screw Triggers Cell Nucleation Single-Phase Polymer-Gas Solution

High-speed Production

Foam injection molding (for skin)

!! Enhanced weight reduction !! Tailored (multi) functionality !! Primary structural components

Stochastic Based Multiscale Modeling & Design

AL C S O E

CR MA

TIME

Lightweight Design LENGTH

Simulation: Composites Sandwich Structure Optimization Process

Source: Schmueser et al.

Polymeric Nanocomposites

Plastics Recycling
Plastic pellets are fabricated with and without SCF
Non-SCF Melt-temperature Melt-pressure SCF used SCF content 194C 480-520 psi N/A N/A SCF 167C 480-520 psi Carbon-dioxide 7 ml/min

At same melt-pressure, we were able to reduce the melt-temperature by 27C using SCF assisted process

Polypropylene Recycling Using SCF

Life Cycle Assessment

Materials

Disposal

Manufacturing

Use

Packaging & Distribution

Assembly

Life Cycle Assessment

LCA refers to the process of compiling and evaluating the inputs, outputs and the potential environmental impacts of a product system throughout its life cycle (cradle to grave) Life Cycle Assessment Framework Goal and Scope Definition

Inventory Analysis

Interpretation

Impact Assessment

8 : Ofce (419) 320-1 u! e: .ed l i n b o s o m M cle @ A L SPIL

Srik (864) 283-72161!

! a l l i P 6! anth

Thank you!