Together with companies from the plastics industry and universities (including the University of Leoben, Graz University of Technology, Technical University of Vienna), the roughly 100 highly qualified employees of F & E are working on projects for innovative plastic solutions from automotive, aerospace and packaging, to solar and photovoltaic applications). An important aspect of all research activities of the PCCL is the strong orientation on the performance and functionality of the polymer products in the technical application.
The scientific approach focuses on systematic experimental investigations – whether in the functionalization of surfaces, in extrusion experiments or also in mechanical characterization – and advanced simulation and modeling tools. All levels of the process chain of the final product are covered: from the production and molecular structure of polymers, through the processing technology to the property spectrum of the final product.
This is made possible by a multidisciplinary network of competent research partners, in addition to the own laboratories of the PCCL, there are also specialized laboratories for polymer chemistry, technics for plastics processing and materials testing laboratories.
In the area of “Plastics for Solartechnik”, the PCCL deals with the development, modeling, optimization and characterization of polymer structural and functional materials for active and passive solar-thermal and solar-electric systems.
The main focus is the development of structure-property correlations and the description of the aging and failure behavior of polymer materials with special optical properties (spectral selective and thermotropic polymer films) thermal properties (solar absorber and phase change materials) electrical properties (encapsulation materials and active layers for the photovoltaic) mechanical properties (encapsulation materials for photovoltaics and solar thermal absorber materials)
Products & Services
R&D: Solar thermal
Solar
R&D Solar heating; photovoltaics
Plastics for the encapsulation of solar cells, aging, reliability and life-time modeling, material characterization and selection
Smart Windows and Façades
Overheating protection, synthesis and characterization of thermotropic coatings, application in facades, collectors and windows.
Lightweight
Plastics and composites for light construction applications in energy-efficient (electric) vehicles
