Researchers aim to make soft, elastic material more tear-resistant
Soft materials like rubber or silicone tear easily under tensile stress. In a project funded by the European Research Council (ERC), researchers from Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg are looking for ways to make such materials more stable. In a current study, they have shown that it depends, at least partly, on how stable the crosslinked bonds are between the polymer molecules. If the crosslinks are too loose, this is just as detrimental to stability as if they are too strong. The study also used complex computer simulations. Read more …