<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>Further innovation in the field of selective laser sintering (SLS) is strongly connected to the availability of new materials since the market is dominated by polyamide 12 (&gt;90%). The aim of this publication is to develop a descriptive model for the droplet formation process in a Filament Extension Atomizer to predict the applicability to exploit further polymers for the SLS process. The feasibility was tested, investigated and characterized using a “Dripping out of a nozzle” setup for uniaxial extension. The droplet formation process was then observed via high-speed camera imaging and classified for certain parameters. The experiments were carried out using semi-diluted polyethylene oxide (600–4000 kg/mol), glycerol and water solutions as model fluids. Driven by the Plateau-Rayleigh instability, different types of spherical droplets were observed and various droplet formation mechanisms demonstrated and analyzed. Based on the experimental results, a predictive model is derived to describe various essential parameters.</jats:p>

The influence of latent heat storage elements on the cooling performance and the temperature rise time of household refrigerating appliances is studied experimentally in the context of the “new global refriger- ator standard”IEC 62552:2015. In addition to the daily energy consumption, this international standard- ization introduced performance tests for cooling capacity and temperature rise time. While the cooling capacity has long been anchored in various test procedures of consumer organizations, the temperature rise time, which has only been tested on freezers so far, will be a decisive factor in the future. Moreover, the need for so-called "smart appliances" that may balance power consumption is increasing since such devices may compensate the volatility of renewable energies and thus stabilize the power grid. Against this background, eight commercial household refrigerators and refrigerator-freezers are equipped with polymer-bound phase change materials (PCM) and their performance is determined under the new stan- dard test conditions. The results show that the introduction of PCM increases the cooling capacity by up to 33 % and also increases the temperature rise time by up to 145 %, without affecting power consump- tion, as compared to the unmodified refrigeration appliances.