ABSTRACT: Plastic foams, as engineering materials, are widely used in variety of industrial sectors and represent an extraordinary class of materials. Foaming in polymers involves delicate scientific mechanisms and unique morphology transformations. This work explores the influence of rheological properties on polymer foam development in non-pressurized systems.
To understand the complex contributions of rheology on different stages of the foam processing in such systems, visualization studies were conducted using a polymer-foaming microscopy setup. Morphological analysis was used to determine the rheological processing window in terms of shear viscosity, elastic modulus, and melt strength, intended for the production of foams with greater foam expansion and more uniform bubble size distribution.
Biosketch: Maryam Emami is a Ph.D. holder in Chemical Engineering from McMaster University. She received her Master’s in Chemical Engineering from the same institute and her bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering from Sharif University of Technology in Iran.
Her research studies in the “Centre for Advanced Polymer Processing and Design” focused on establishing scientific and engineering foundations for the mechanisms and critical parameters governing the plastic foaming process. The results of her work have been published in 10 journal and conference papers. Her publications reflect her research field in rheology and polymer processing.
She has been a recipient of national and provincial scholarships including NSERC (Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada), and OGS (Ontario Graduate Scholarship), and awards of leadership performance and excellence in research and engineering. She also has seven years of work experiences in the oil & gas consultant companies.