Undergraduate Research Opportunities

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Synthesis of smart materials for polymer additive manufacturing

Project Description:

In acoustics, it has been proven that by introducing the number of interfaces that a material contains, the higher the damping power of the material contains. This is utilized in acoustic foams, as when sound travels from the matrix into an air pocket, loss in energy is observed. In polymer science, when working with block copolymers, they have the ability to self-assembly into various geometries depending on factors such as volume fraction and block length. By harnessing this natural phenomenon, it is possible to introduce these nanoscale interfaces into the polymer, allowing the absorption of high frequency sound waves. Keeping the volume fraction of both blocks constant and instead changing the block lengths, it is also possible to tune the desired damping frequency. Depending on the identity of the polymers used, these synthesized materials will be turned into filament and subsequently printed with to fabricate parts with this intrinsic damping. Once printed, these parts can be tested in impedance tubes to measure the absorption properties across a wide range of frequencies.

Faculty Name and Email:

Vincent Torres vxt23@psu.edu

Research Area(s):

Polymer chemistry/material science

Number of Available Positions:

2

Project Start Date:

Fall 2026

Remote or In-Person or Hybrid?

In-person (lab-based)

Estimated Time Commitment:

8

Potential for Summer Research Continuation:

Yes

Potential for Research Credit (496/497) or Independent Study:

Yes

Required Courses or Skills:

Lab experience

Preferred Student Background:

Material science