Plastic Conversion Competence Centre
© M
arc Wallican.be
Kortrijk
Gent
Brussels
Grâce-Hollogne
Kortrijk• plastic product testing and polymer characterisation• filament & yarn extrusion platform• composite & plastic processing platform• additive manufacturing (3D-Printing)
Gent• mechanical & physical characterisation• chemical testing• burning behaviour lab• textile coating & finishing platform
Grâce-Hollogne• physical characterisation• microbiological & cytotoxic assessments• weaving, knitting, braiding & composites platform
Testing Laboratory
Research Centre
Consultancy Services
Training Centre
Filament & Yarn Extrusion Platform
Composite & Plastic Processing Platform
Centexbel-VKC offers a dynamic competence centre and test laboratory to the plastic converting industry. All actors involved in the plastic converting value chain - manufacturers of raw materials and additives, plastic converters, suppliers of processing equipment and recycling companies - are welcome to the open innovation platform and professional services of Centexbel-VKC.
Centexbel-VKC provides services in the fields of material characterisation, failure analyses, product development, process and energy optimisation and new applications of plastics, virgin and recycled polymers, fibre reinforced composites, rubber, coatings, smart materials and bio-based polymers.
Our strategy focuses on confidentiality, professionalism, punctuality, creativity, creation of added value, service, closing the cycle, People, Planet, Profit.
Thanks to its integration in Centexbel, the textile competence centre, Centexbel-VKC guarantees a cross-sector approach in an optimal research environment, where innovation is self-evident.
Freeformer 3D printer
Plastics for the future
Centexbel-VKC actively supports and promotes the “Factories for the future” project, initiated by the Province of West Flanders to provide a platform aimed at structuring and optimising the offer of research and services.
• Technological and environmental consultancy on materials, products, processes, energy, recycling
• Problem solving
• Polymer extrusion / composite & plastic processing platforms
• QA-CER certification system for recycled materials (in cooperation with BQA)
• Seminars, workshops and symposiums
• Dissemination of R&D results & publications
Our services to the industry
Research ThemesSustainable plastics & composites
Bio-based polymers
• Extrusion, processing and functionalisation
Ecological plastic processing
• Ecological alternatives• Energy-efficient curing and functionalisation
Process energy optimisation in the plastic converting industry
• Research, testing, consultation and audits
Recycling
• Identification and characterisation• Optimisation• Bio-based polymers• Thermoplasts• Quality control• Training
Technological know-how
• MATERIALS: (bio)polymers, (nano)additives, smart materials• TECHNOLOGIES: compounding, sorting, extraction• TEST METHODS: chemical analyses, barrier properties, conductivity• PROCESSES: production, assembling, and recycling• END PRODUCTS: multi-layer, foamed, fibre-reinforced, hybrid products• APPLICATIONS: food, automotive, construction industries• ENVIRONMENT and LEGISLATION (e.g. REACH]
Centexbel-VKC supports companies in the implementation of innovative materials and processes
SiRoPAD
TestingTesting facilities & equipment
Physical and mechanical testing (ISO 17025)• Tensile strength and impact behaviour (products & films), resistance to
scratch, abrasion deflection, etc.• These tests are often carried out following the exposure of the samples
to artificial weathering
Artifcial weathering• Accelerated simulation of the detoriating effects of sunlight [QUV-Xenon]
and climatological conditions on materials.
Rheology: Study of flow and deformation of materials under applied forces• Melt Flow Index [MFI]• Rheotens®• Capillary Rheology Meter• Rotational Rheology Meter
Thermal properties• Heat Deflection Temperature [HDT]• Vicat Softening Temperature [VST]• Dynamic Thermo-Mechanical Analyses [DTMA]• Thermogravimetric Analyses [TGA]• Differential Scanning Calorimetry [DSC]
Material identification• X-Ray Fluoresence [XRF and µXRF]• Fourier Transformation IR spectroscopy [FTIR]• GCMS, LCMS: gas & liquid chromatography [HPLC] linked with mass
spectrometry• Inductive Coupled Plasma Spectrometry [ICP]
Microscopic analyses• Stereomicroscope• Scanning Electron Microscope [SEM]
Centexbel-VKC | Etienne Sabbelaan 49 | BE-8500 Kortrijk
phone +32 56 29 27 00 | [email protected] | www.centexbel.be
VAT | BE 0459.218.289 | IBAN | BE 44 2100 4729 6545 | BIC | GEBABEBB
PLA-Glass fibre composite
Monofilament extrusion line