Elastomers in Critical Environments, and Prevention of Failure - University of Houston
Skip to main content

Why this Program?

Elastomers are soft materials with high extensibility and low modulus. It has also an excellent wear resistance and fatigue properties. Elastomers can perform in very low temperature as well as moderately high temperature. Elastomers are used in many applications in tires, conveyor belts, seals, hoses etc. and in areas where elastomers face critical challenges. Proper understanding of their behavior is required in these applications, without which there can be disaster. No one has forgotten Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, a fatal accident in the United States space program, which was caused by the failure of the rubber seals in a joint in the Space Shuttle's right solid rocket booster. The supersonic jet CONCORDE crash was caused by a metallic strip that punctured a tire on Concorde's left main wheel bogie during take-off. A piece of rubber from the exploded tire hit the fuel tank, leading to a fire.

There are new elastomers in recent years and they are finding new applications. Elastomers are used in many energy applications in the oil and gas industries under extreme conditions and often the failure of elastomers forces replacement of a part or the whole unit, thus delaying the process due to shut down. With changing process conditions and technology, it is absolutely essential to understand the behavior of elastomers in critical conditions. There are challenges even for the existing products like tire because electric vehicles require a different set of specifications. The products specifications are also becoming very stringent these days. Hence, we plan to organize the microcredit course to disseminate the knowledge developed on the subject so far.

Image of wide and long conveyor

Who Should Attend?

The Program has been designed with many groups in mind:

  • Those who are working in the tire and non-tire industries.
  • Those who are working in the oil and gas industries.
  • Those already in the rubber industries are seeing significant changes in recent years.
  • Those who are involved in polymer companies trying to understand the extreme conditions for development of their materials.
  • Those who want to develop a career/business in the field of elastomers in critical areas.
  • Those in the sales and marketing with an engineering degree who would like to get acquainted with the use of elastomers in critical applications.
  • Those who do not have the polymer background, but would like to learn and implement.

The Program will provide new information, new insights, and new skills that one needs to know for new demands. The lectures will be delivered by a team of experts from industry and academia. International participants are also welcome.

To International participants: The course will be online and the lecture period has been fixed from 8:00am to 12:00pm (CST) each day so that interested international participants can participate in the program.

Pricing

COURSE PRICE:

$1,500

EACH

Schedule

The program will take place on November 15, 16 (Wed & Thurs) and November 29, 30 (Wed & Thurs), 2023 from 8:00am-12:00pm, US Central Time with breaks in between. Each day will be 4 hours long, and the program will be available online.

Credentialing Overview

This micro-credentialing program offers an understanding of different elastomers, challenges of how these elastomers behave and fail in extreme conditions and solutions to prevent failure and develop better materials. It is taught by world class instructors, including accomplished faculty from the University of Houston, and leaders from industry. The program is offered in 16-hour modules. The certificate provides a permanent record, endorsed by the University of Houston, that can be made a part of your resume to credential your new skills.

  • ramanan.jpg

    Dr. Ramanan Krishnamoorti
    University of Houston

  • picture of Dr. Sudhin Datta

    Dr. Sudhin Datta
    Formerly EXXONMOBIL

  • picture of Dr. Will Mars

    Dr. Will Mars
    Endurica LLC

  • picture of Dr. Brendan Rodgers

    Dr. Brendan Rodgers
    Formerly Goodyear Tire and ExxonMobil

  • picture of Mr. Buc Slay

    Mr. Buc Slay
    Alpine Polytech

  • picture of Mr. Sandeep Thatathil

    Mr. Sandeep Thatathil
    Halliburton

  • picture of Dr. Xuming Chen

    Dr. Xuming Chen
    Schlumberger

  • picture of Dr. Anil K. Bhowmick

    Dr. Anil K. Bhowmick
    University of Houston

Topics include:

  • Fundamentals of elastomer science, Polymer formation, Structure, Configuration, glass transition temperature, Impacts of molecular structure, Cross-linking chemistry, advances in elastomer science
  • Various elastomers, elastomer compounding, and principles of compounding for critical environments, advances
  • Failure of elastomers in tire, non-tire, and oil and gas industry products - Mechanical properties, Tearing, & Fatigue
  • Wear of rubbers and tire wear including those in electric vehicle
  • Aging of elastomers and their products, thermo-mechanical properties, physical and chemical Aging; prevention of aging in critical environment
  • Behavior of elastomers in high pressure and high temperature environments: Basics and practical examples
  • Elastomers in liquids and aggressive environments
  • Elastomer testing in critical environments
  • Practical failure of rubber products in aggressive environment and their causes
  • End of life analysis, monitoring, life time prediction and dealing with failed rubber products

Learning Objectives

After successfully completing this program, participants will be able to understand:

  • Elastomers and elastomeric compounds that are used in critical applications.
  • Fundamentals of elastomer science to make materials better with long life.
  • Behavior of elastomers and soft materials under ambient and extreme conditions.
  • Analysis of elastomers for prevention of failure.
  • Failure of elastomers in practical situations.
  • Life prediction and monitoring.

CREDENTIALING PROGRAM PREREQUISITES

Either:

  • Industry professional; or
  • Rising senior in a bachelor’s degree program or graduate student; business, engineering, or technology preferred.

Frequently Asked Questions

Registration accepted up to the first day of the course, and can be completed online, or you may contact UH Energy (uhenergy@uh.edu) for details

Currently, we only accept credit card payments.

Each day will be 4 hours long, and the program will be available online.

If you cannot find the information you need on the webpage or in the other FAQs, please contact: