The main advantage of a partnership between research and industry lies in the complementary nature of their approaches. Marc Guerre, a researcher from the P3R team at Softmat and a specialist in vitrimers, collaborated with Safran Tech to improve the insulation of electric motors for the aerospace industry, by using these new materials.
At a time when this sector must address major technological challenges linked to environmental imperatives, innovation has emerged as a key issue. In this context, supporting the aviation of tomorrow means fostering dialogue between fundamental research and industrial realities, with a view to collaborative development. The electrification of the aerospace industry fully illustrates this reality. Whilst offering new prospects, it also raises significant scientific and technological challenges, foremost among which are materials. It is precisely within this context that the collaboration between Safran Tech and Softmat was born.
At the heart of the project are vitrimers, a new generation of materials capable of reorganising their structure when exposed to heat. They could help limit the formation of cracks in the insulating resins of electric motors, whilst improving the reparability and recyclability of strategic components such as copper. This is still an exploratory avenue, but one that opens up promising prospects for the aviation of tomorrow!
To find out more about the origins of this partnership, the complementary strengths that underpin it, the scientific and industrial challenges encountered, and the ambitions it fosters, read the joint interview with Marc and Gérald Lopez, an R&D engineer at Safran Tech.
And look at the ‘FACE CAM’ video interview of Marc on the CNRS Occitanie YouTube channel.