The Challenge

 The company develops a number of products which are intended to – or may potentially be required to – perform in particularly extreme conditions. This being the case, it is essential that the materials used in such products are proven to be capable of withstanding a variety of possible environmental conditions, not just in the short term, but also over the longer term, and one of the best ways in which this capability can be confirmed is through accelerated weathering testing.

Thermotex Engineering approached us to conduct accelerated weathering testing on the durability of a fabric material when it was exposed to cycles of freezing and thawing, UVB radiation and high temperature / relative humidity. The aim here was to provide the company with physical evidence of how the fabric coped in those conditions so that it would be in a better position to make a bid for a major project based in Arctic Russia. 

What We Did 

In order to provide the company with the required outcome, our team of materials science researchers developed and employed three different accelerated weathering testing methods. The first method involved taking five samples of the fabric and exposing them to an extended sequence of freeze-thaw cycles in a climatic chamber. The second method took six different samples and exposed them to UVB radiation for 1,000 hours in a QUV accelerated weathering tester. The third method required us to take four more samples of the fabric and expose them to high temperature and relative humidity in a climatic chamber.

 By removing individual samples at certain predetermined times (daily or weekly, depending on the method being used) we were able to provide the company with the precisely weathered materials that it needed to conduct its own damage assessment tests. 

How We Helped

Our accelerated weathering testing of the fabric gave the company a range of samples for each of the three methods used. This allowed Thermotex Engineering to conduct its own in-house tests on those samples and prepare a bid that was backed by hard scientific evidence. This was particularly important for the project in question, as the company was proposing the use of a textile product, whereas most of the competing bidders were proposing the use of glass-reinforced polyester products. 

‘This solution provided us with indicative product testing for unusual characteristics, access to laboratory equipment, and performance of specific tests,’ said Paige Niehues, who is the Commercial and Technical Executive at Thermotex Engineering. ‘This enabled us to generate a testing report which we can use in the future as an indication of our product performance, something which can help to give us an edge over our competitors in the future.’ 

Speaking about the SIP process of problem-solving in general, Ms Niehues added: ‘It was great to have help getting the appropriate testing done and help understanding what we can do for specific testing needs. Through close and consistent contact and clarity of actions for all parties, we were able to successfully complete the project and gain enough information for a successful test completion.’

For further information, please contact us on 0114 225 3500 or meri@shu.ac.uk