For his master's thesis on the topic of "Upscaling and characterization of electrochemically generated oxide coatings on ferrous materials on a pilot plant scale", Mr. Christoph Zobel, a master's graduate in materials science and a ZVO scholarship holder (Zentralverband Oberflächentechnik e.V. - German Surface Technology Association), received the Schaeffler FAG Foundation's Innovation Award 2021 in the category of master's and bachelor's theses. The thesis was written at the coating center of Schaeffler Technologies AG & Co. KG in cooperation with the Ilmenau Technical University, Department of Electrochemistry and Electroplating, and was completed in January 2021 with the grade "very good".
The content of the work is the development of an electrochemical process as an alternative to hot alkaline burnishing. Significant savings in energy consumption can be achieved by reducing the process temperature. Furthermore, toxic process chemicals can be eliminated, thus increasing environmental friendliness. The process was successfully scaled up from laboratory scale to pilot plant scale. The most important process parameters were identified and narrowed down to concrete ideal values. In addition, in-situ process monitoring was introduced to increase process reliability. The properties of the oxide layers produced were investigated using various analytical methods (including FIB-REM, XPS, XRD, electrochemical corrosion measurement) and were comparable to those of the hot-alkaline black oxide layer. Initial bearing test bench runs showed promising results with respect to coating functionality. The master's thesis lays the foundation for a novel, sustainable burnishing process for rolling bearings and contributes to achieving more climate-friendly production.
Christoph Zobel successfully studied the bachelor's degree program in materials science at the Technical University of Ilmenau from 2014 to 2018 and completed the master's degree program of the same name there in April 2018, which he also completed very successfully in March 2021. During both his bachelor's and master's studies, he completed internships at the globally active automotive and industrial supplier Schaeffler, where he wrote his bachelor's and master's theses. Currently, Mr. Zobel works as a process engineer for surface technology at SCHOTT AG in Landshut.
The Schaeffler FAG Foundation aims to promote science, research and teaching in the scientific and technical field relating to bearing technologies. Awards are given for outstanding scientific work such as master's and bachelor's theses as well as dissertations. The Innovation Award is endowed with a total value of up to 20,000 euros. This year's award ceremony for the Innovation Award 2021 took place on June 15, 2022 in Schweinfurt. The award was presented by Peter Schuster, Managing Director of the Foundation, and Andreas Hamann, Chairman of the Board of the Schaeffler FAG Foundation.
Source: Christoph Zobel, www.schaeffler.com