Brainfood @ Noon: Die JCF Lunchtalks

Scientific Exchange at lunchtime on every first friday of the month!

Our next Lunchtalk Sessions, always from 12 - 13 PM:

and many more to come!

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Next Session

Polymers@Noon

This November we are collaborating with the GDCh Oligos to dive deep into the latest trends in Polymer Research!

Date: 07. November 2025

Time: 12 PM

Via Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/95550842944?pwd=GC4ZKOd8k0wrm5TVujYxWBj61Nb1SK.1

Anna-Lisa Poser, Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research, University of Postdam

"The Shape Memory Effect in Polyurethane Foams"

Polyurethane foams are widely used in modern society and are found in products ranging from mattresses and upholstery, insulations and even in cleaning sponges. However, their high volume is obstructive, as it requires a lot of space for transportation and storage. An alternative can be on-site production of the polyurethane foam, but that poses severe occupational health and safety risks due to the handling of isocyanates, which can cause respiratory irritation and long-term health issues, including cancer.[1]
Shape memory polymers (SMPs) offer an innovative way to address these challenges. As “smart materials”, SMPs respond to an external stimulus, such as temperature, electric current or moisture, by performing a shape change.[2] The shape change is induced by a previous thermomechanical treatment, a so-called “programming step”, which consists of 1. heating above the phase-transition temperature (glass or melting transition temperature), 2. loading, 3. cooling below the phase-transition temperature (glass or crystallization transition temperature) and 4. unloading. The material then changes shape from the “programmed shape” back to the original shape. This process is referred to as one-way shape memory effect (1W SME). Some materials even allow for an actuation between two semi-stable states, which is called a two-way shape memory effect (2W SME).[3]
Our recent work implemented both the 1W SME and the 2W SME in polyester urea urethane foams (PEUU foams) creating innovative solutions, especially focusing on the building industry.[4] Additionally, we introduced FOIM (FOIl + foaM), which can be compressed to a translucent foil and recover to a foam with a remarkable recovery ratio of 99.5 %, resulting in a height-increase of 1600 %.[5]
Research on SMP PEUU foams facilitates innovation not only by advancing its functionality but by promoting safer production practices and sustainability.

[1] A. Munn, Annals of Occupational Hygiene 1965, 163.
[2] T. Pretsch in Konstruktionspraxis (Hrsg.: H. Böse), Vogel Communications Group, Würzburg, 2023, S. 227–259.
[3] a) T. Pretsch, Polymers 2010, 2, 120; b) A. Lendlein, S. Kelch, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2002, 41, 2034.
[4] a) M. Walter, F. Friess, M. Krus, S. M. H. Zolanvari, G. Grün, H. Kröber, T. Pretsch, Polymers 2020, 12; b) M. Walter, K. Lengsfeld, D. Borschewski, S. Albrecht, P. Kölsch, T. Pretsch, M. Krus, S. Lehmann-Brauns, Buildings 2022, 12, 2236.
[5] A.-L. Poser, T. Pretsch, Macromolecular Rapid Communications 2025, 46, e2401103

Thanks to our previous speakers!

07 October 2025: Electrochemistry 

Franziska Kühling (Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg)

"New Insights on the Fundamentals of Bipolar Electrochemistry"

Alena Neudert (Universität Bayreuth) 

"Hybrid all-Fe Redox Flow Battery: Coupling Theory and Experiment"