Simultaneous Thermal Analysis Apparatus

• Subject Area: Materials Engineering
• Term: Funded in 2019
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 427936412

Almost all of the running and planned research activities carried out at the Chair of Ceramic Materials of the University of Bayreuth include investigations of the pyrolysis behavior of organic and preceramic, especially of silicon-based polymers. In particular, the characterization of the crosslinking and pyrolysis behavior as well as the determination of the ceramic yield, depending on the temperature and the atmosphere, are of greatest interest. In conjunction with the exact knowledge of the nature and amount of gaseous compounds split off, it is possible to comprehensively elucidate the processes taking place during crosslinking and during pyrolysis. This knowledge in turn allows the targeted and tailor-made synthesis of new or modified commercially available polymers and the resulting ceramics or carbons for special applications such as matrices for ceramic fiber composites, ceramic fibers, polymeric and ceramic coatings or as a binder for various particles for the processing of monolithic ceramics. In order to meet the complex requirements of the required analytics, the requested thermal balance (TG) has to offer comprehensive possibilities to elucidate the crosslinking and pyrolysis behavior of a wide variety of polymers as well as the decomposition of ceramic materials or oxidation processes in detail. In addition to the basic functions such as the differential thermal analysis (DSC) and the determination of the mass balance during pyrolysis and the ceramic or the carbon yield up to temperatures of 1600 ° C, the equipment should in particular allow a complementary analysis of the cleaved gases by means of infrared and mass spectroscopy. This combination allows the analysis of both the IR-active and IR-inactive gases released during crosslinking, pyrolysis and oxidation reactions. Since, above all, organic polymers in very narrow temperature ranges split off large amounts of gas mixtures during pyrolysis, it is important that these mixtures can be separated and analyzed by means of gas chromatography. In addition, the release of larger amounts of gas should allow feedback of the gas chromatography with the thermobalance to interrupt the temperature rise of the TG and slow down the gas release. Setting appropriate thresholds would thus also allow gas separation and analysis for larger amounts of gas. This combination of equipment features of a TG / DSC apparatus is not available at the University of Bayreuth. TG / DSC equipment is required for almost all projects carried out at the Chair of Ceramic Materials and has the highest utilization rate of all equipment. Therefore, an automatic sample changer of up to 20 samples is provided, so that samples can be measured out side of working hours and the sample throughput can be significantly increased

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: Simultane Thermische Analyse-Apparatur
• Instrumentation Group: 8660 Thermoanalysegeräte (DTA, DTG), Dilatometer
• Applicant Institution: Universität Bayreuth
• Leaders: Professor Dr.-Ing. Walter Krenkel, until 1/2021; Professor Dr.-Ing. Stefan Schafföner, since 2/2021