Description of the RI

The Laboratory of Polymer Engineering is part of the Department of Polymer Engineering For several decades, its staff has been involved in polymer engineering education, research, development, and innovation at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Budapest University of Technology and Economics. They have achieved outstanding results in the processing technologies of both thermoplastic and cross-linked polymers and their composites, in the determination of rheological properties, optimization of processing parameters, simulation and modeling of technological processes, development of new materials, and design of new polymer products and molds. The Department has a well-equipped laboratory of 1500 square meters, with facilities that are outstanding even by international standards. The Department is committed to quality research and development and innovation, as evidenced by its ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 quality and environmental management system certification, which is unique among Hungarian university departments, and its status as a NAH-accredited testing laboratory.

The R&D and innovation activity of the Department of Polymer Engineering is reflected in the 20 national and international research projects currently in progress, as well as the 35 active PhD students. The scientific activities of the Department are also supported by two MTA research groups (MTA-BME Composite Technology Research Group, MTA-BME Lendület Lightweight Polymer Composites Research Group). The staff of the Department are authors of 40–50 scientific international journal articles per year. The Department publishes the international journal Express Polymer Letters (http://www.expresspolymlett.com) with an impact factor of 4.161 (2020). The Department of Polymer Technology places great emphasis on cooperation with national and international companies, as is demonstrated by the 40–50 successful expert and R&D collaboration projects with companies in the Department and its Laboratory every year.

The Department of Polymer Engineering pays special attention to the continuous development of its infrastructure, which is illustrated by the fact that several pieces of new and state-of-the-art technological and testing equipment are purchased every year, thanks in large part to grant funding. The equipment in the Laboratory of Polymer Engineering meets a wide range of small-scale expert and large-scale R&D needs in the plastics, composites and rubber industries.

Activities and Services

The Department of Polymer Engineering is involved in teaching, research, development and innovation in all aspects of polymer engineering. The Laboratory of Polymer Engineering has an outstanding range of machinery and equipment for the development, production and testing of polymers and their composites, complemented by a wide range of simulation tools. The wide range of technological equipment includes equipment for the production of raw materials (single and twin-screw extruders, internal mixers, etc.) and product manufacturing (extrusion, single and multi-component injection moulding, T-RTM, autoclave, additive manufacturing (3D printing), etc.), complemented by standard and custom-developed production molds for the equipment. The laboratory uses modern materials testing methods (static and dynamic mechanical, rheological, morphological, microscopic, metrological) to test raw materials and products. Standard tests, including those accredited by the NAH, are complemented by specific test methods developed in-house.