Application of graphene enhanced foam materials for noise damping in vehicles

Important results from the project

Noise suppression is a significant issue in the automotive industry. The sound absorbing materials that are used in the automotive industry consists primarily of polyurethane (PU) foams. However, low frequency noise performance, as well as mechanical and thermal properties are still problematic. In this project, we developed a thermally conductive graphene based porous material for noise damping in vehicles. The results are very promising, showing significant improvement compared to existing technology and the technology will further be developed and optimized.

Expected long term effects

Few studies on the literature shows that the use of graphene on foam materials boosts the acoustic efficiency on the lower frequency, but when graphene flakes is applied on a PU foam, the low frequency efficiency can be combined with a high temperature resistant material, creating a new and innovative solution for noise control. The results of our materials are very promising, showing significant improvement on low frequency noise performance, as well as mechanical and thermal properties.

Approach and implementation

The most important part is to combine the property of two different materials in the composite materials. We need to keep the porous structure of graphene and also crushed it in designed size. Surface property is important for the distribution of graphene flakes inside the PU foam. We tried many methods to modify the surface of flakes.