Advanced materials characterization laboratory

Do you need help to know the properties of a material? Don’t know which material to choose for your product or need to change it? Your component has failed and you don’t know why?
In the Advanced Materials Characterization Laboratory we work on the development, characterization and modeling of materials – metals, technical polymers, elastomers and adhesives, paper and cardboard – whose properties play a fundamental role, at the functional level, in the behavior of components. The activities range from the experimental design of the materials, to adapt them to the needs and requirements of their operation in service, to the virtual and experimental modeling, for the evaluation and functional prediction of the components, structures or systems manufactured with them.
We develop knowledge related to the generation of composite materials with polymeric matrix additivated with micro or nanometric reinforcements, whose selection, mixing and processing strategies allow to provide the required properties to achieve a correct performance in service, with the characterization of their physical-chemical and mechanical properties as well as with the development and application of numerical modeling techniques for the analysis of the behavior of the materials, considering their processing and the different service conditions to which they are subjected, which we later use for the prediction of the functional behavior of the component, structure or system.

Equipment

Dynamic and fatigue tests

• INSTRON Universal Dynamic Testing Machine – 25kN, 100Hz, with dynamic extensometer and climatic chamber from -70ºC to 250ºC.

• Universal Biaxial Dynamic Testing Machine – 100kN; 750Nm, 50Hz and biaxial extensometer.

Characterization tests of polymeric materials at different temperatures.

• MTS Universal Static Testing Machine with large displacement for polymer testing – 100 kN, climatic chamber from -70ºC to 250ºC.
• Universal Static Testing Machine ZWICK – 5kN with optical extensometer and climatic chamber from -90ºC to 270ºC.
• Equibiaxial fixture for Instron 8850 Universal Testing Machine with DIC

Static tests

• Universal Testing Machines with high load capacity – 200 kN and 1000 kN and 25 Hz.

Viscoelastic properties of materials

• DMA Metravib 450+: 450N in dynamic mode and 300N in static mode, 1000Hz; 0.001-3mm.

Tribological characterization of materials (micro scale)

• Tribometer PLINT 77: Vertical load 51000 N; Friction force: +500 N; Oscillation frequency: 2.550 Hz; 2 reducers: 1:20 (0.1252.5 Hz) and 1:200 (0.01250.25 Hz); T: -30ºC to +600ºC, Stroke: 0.05 to 15; 15 to 25 mm, 2 configurations: reciprocating and pin-on-disc.
• Long stroke tribometer (PCT Patent/ ES/2010/000189). Vertical load: 501000 N; Friction force: +740 N; Max. speed: 3.5 m/s; Max. acceleration: 4m/s2; Stroke: 501400 mm;

Fatigue crack growth monitoring

• High-speed camera

Temperature monitoring and hot spot determination.

• Infrared camera: [-20º to 100 PC], [0º a 250ºC] and [120 a 900ºC], accuracy +/- 2 ºC.