Eric Euchler

Eric has a BSc and MSc in sports engineering from TU Chemnitz. He was a scientific assistant at TU Chemnitz, and chair of polymer engineering at Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research Dresden (IPF), in the department of mechanics and structure. From 2017 to 2020 he undertook his doctorate at TU Dresden, in the faculty of mechanical science and engineering. His engineering doctorate thesis (with Prof. Wiessner) was on the characterization of the deformation and failure behavior of rubbers subjected to constrained tensile loading. Since 2021, Eric has led the mechanics of elastomeric materials group in the elastomer research division at Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research Dresden (IPF).

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Presentation

Advanced predictive testing of rubber vulcanizates

Advanced testing of rubbers is essential for lifetime predictions. By considering realistic geometries and application-oriented loading conditions, laboratory data can be linked to real-world product performance. For rubbers, the material’s resistances against crack initiation and propagation are of high importance. A better understanding of the structure-properties relationship considering process and loading histories can be achieved by the coupling of methods, e.g. by studying the damage evolution under fatigue supplemented by structure analysis using x-rays. Ideally, predictive laboratory tests balance accuracy, productivity and efficiency while providing new mechanistic insights and modeling opportunities of rubbers for future applications, e.g. tires for e-vehicles.