As part of the two-week interdisciplinary internship "Resource-efficient mobility", interested high school students from Gymnasium Schloss Neuhaus were able to gain insights into various areas of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and the Institute of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology. Through the internship, the pupils* had the opportunity to get to know studying, learning and working at the chairs.
The Laboratory of Materials and Joining Technology welcomed the students on 23.01.2023 and gave them insights into different areas of the LWF. The internship day started with a theoretical introduction with the topic "Key technology joining technology". The learners were then taken to the Mercedes C-Class body to have a close-up look at a "body in white" (bodyshell) and the associated industry-relevant joining processes. After an LWF staff member explained the processes and allowed the students* ample time to ask questions, they were split into two groups and taken to the joining labs.
In the mechanical joining lab, the students learned about clinching. This is a process that joins a wide variety of materials together without the need for pilot holes or auxiliary parts. With the help of the LWF's scientific staff, the students gathered more in-depth information about clinching and were then able to put the knowledge they had gained into practice. The students were able to gain their own first practical experience and produce an "LWF organizer" by setting two clinch points, which they were allowed to take home as a souvenir at the end of the day.
In thermal joining, resistance spot welding was clearly explained to the students and it was also demonstrated that basic physical knowledge and expertise are required to permanently thermally join two sheets of metal. The students received instruction on the joining gun and adjusted the welding parameters independently and iteratively. Chisel specimens were taken as well as ground sections to verify the results.
During their time in the bonding lab, the students made bonded joints of steel, aluminum and plastic joining parts. In this way, they were shown the possibilities that adhesive bonding technology opens up for mixed and lightweight construction. Through calculations specially carried out by the students*, they determined which joint offered the most advantages, taking strength and weight into account.
At the end of the practical day, the students were again taken to the body of the Mercedes C-Class, where they repeated what they had learned during the day and recognized the joining points of the "body in white" from their own practical activities.
All in all, it was a successful event and we hope to see one or the other student here with us again in a few years as a student* in mechanical engineering!
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