Carbon Negative Polymers in Automotive Applications

该项目位于聚合物化学和工程师之间的接口，以开发下一代可持续聚合物。它建立在我们在曼彻斯特大学可持续材料创新中心的努力之上，使用生物基原料作为石油衍生塑料的低碳或负碳替代品。电动汽车（EV）尤其需要与化石燃料脱钩。这个博士生项目与电动汽车制造商Polestar合作。该项目将探索制备可持续聚酯的新框架，特别是用于汽车内饰和外饰的聚羟基丁酸酯和聚碳酸酯。对环境影响的量化将有助于在未来的车辆原型中优先考虑聚合物的规模和试点。重要的是，该项目旨在通过改性聚合物来克服这些可持续聚合物系统中的特定技术挑战，以改善加工性能，同时保持最终产品的机械性能特征（强度，透明度）。该项目由Michael Shaver教授领导，他是一个多元化团队的一员，致力于解决可持续聚合物科学领域的学术和行业挑战。它结合了基础聚合物科学和测试（挤出、耐候、机械和热性能等）和系统可持续性指标（LCA、EIA），帮助开发用于汽车应用的下一代聚合物。

This project sits at the interface between polymer chemistry and engineers to develop the next generation of sustainable polymers. It builds on our efforts in the Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub at the University of Manchester to use bio-based feedstocks as low carbon or carbon negative alternatives to petroleum derived plastics.The need to decouple from fossil fuels is especially true in electric vehicles (EVs). This PhD studentship partners with EV manufacturer Polestar. The project will explore new frameworks for preparing sustainable polyesters, particularly polyhydroxybutyrates, and polycarbonates for automotive applications in car interiors and exteriors. Quantification of the environmental impact will help prioritise polymers to scale, and pilot, in future vehicle prototypes. Importantly, the project seeks to overcome a specific technical challenge in these sustainable polymer systems by modifying polymers to improve processability while maintaining the mechanical performance characteristics (strength, clarity) of the end products. The inclusion bio-based polymers like PHBs will lower the carbon footprint of automotive parts towards a greenhouse gas free future for automotive plastics.The project is under the direction of Prof. Michael Shaver as part of a diverse team addressing academic and industry challenges in sustainable polymer science. It incorporates both fundamental polymer science and testing (extrusion, weathering, mechanical and thermal performance, etc.) and systemic sustainability metrics (LCA, EIA) to help develop next generation polymers for automotive applications.