GOALI: Manufacturing USA: Energy Efficient Processing of Thermosetting Polymers and Composites

该项目将研究制造塑料和纤维增强复合材料的新方法，这些材料是飞机，汽车和风力涡轮机叶片等结构的关键元件，要求重量轻，强度高。由于加工所需的高温和长时间，目前用于制造这些材料的方法是昂贵的和能量密集的。 从生命系统的发展中汲取灵感，这个多学科的研究项目将产生新的塑料材料，只需要很小的初始能量输入，就可以快速启动整个制造过程，并大大减少对环境的影响。这种新的，更有效的方法具有显着的潜力，以提高美国在复合材料制造的关键领域的经济竞争力。正在开发的节能概念也提供了一个理想的平台，以激励和教育下一代学生，博士后研究人员，企业家，工业和公众对可持续制造的重要性。 基于在经历其组分的反应和扩散的系统中发生的自催化（自蔓延）聚合反应，将开发热固性聚合物、涂料和复合材料的新制造方法。该系统利用能量的放热释放为反应提供正反馈。反过来，这又刺激了进一步的放热能量释放和快速穿过材料的自蔓延反应前沿;这一过程称为前沿聚合。 一旦被触发，反应就以零能量输入进行。 反应波通过材料的自持传播产生了快速制造高性能聚合物和复合材料的全新方法，而无需使用传统的高压釜或烘箱。计划中的研究将导致自蔓延反应的有机化学，机器学习驱动的前沿聚合新单体的设计和合成，前沿不稳定性的多尺度表征和建模，以及制造前沿聚合的控制等方面的科学进步。 该研究目标旨在提高对前沿聚合的基本理解，并将这些知识应用于热固性涂料、纤维增强复合材料和3D打印建筑复杂的增强聚合物的快速高压釜外生产。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Grant Opportunity for Academic Liaison with Industry (GOALI) project will research a new method for the manufacture of plastics and fiber reinforced composite materials, which are critical elements in structures like aircraft, automobiles and wind turbine blades, where light weight and high strength are required. Current methods for manufacturing these materials are costly and energy intensive, due to the high temperatures and long times required for processing. Drawing inspiration from how living system develop, this multidisciplinary research project will result in new plastic materials that require only small initial energy input to rapidly trigger the entire manufacturing process and dramatically reduce environmental impact. This new, more efficient method has significant potential to improve U.S. economic competitiveness in the critical area of composites manufacturing. The energy efficient concepts under development also provide an ideal platform to motivate and educate the next generation of students, postdoctoral researchers, entrepreneurs, industry and the general public on the importance of sustainable manufacturing. A new manufacturing method for thermosetting polymers, coatings and composites will be developed based on an autocatalytic (self-propagating) polymerization reaction occurring in a system undergoing reaction and diffusion of its components. The system uses the exothermic release of energy to provide a positive feedback to the reaction. In turn, this stimulates further exothermic energy release and a self-propagating reaction front that rapidly moves through the material; a process called frontal polymerization. Once triggered, the reaction progresses with zero energy input. The self-sustained propagation of a reaction wave through the material gives rise to entirely new ways of rapidly manufacturing high performance polymers and composites, without the use of conventional autoclaves or ovens. The planned research will lead to scientific advances in the organic chemistry of self-propagating reactions, machine learning driven design and synthesis of new monomers for frontal polymerization, multiscale characterization and modeling of front instabilities, and control of frontal polymerization for manufacturing. The research objectives are designed to improve fundamental understanding of frontal polymerization and to apply this knowledge to the rapid out-of-autoclave production of thermosetting coatings, fiber-reinforced composites and 3D printed architecturally complex, reinforced polymers.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.