Dr. Alexander Münch

Group Leader Sustainable Multiscale Coatings
at the Leibniz-Institut für Polymerforschung Dresden e.V.

Hohe Str. 6
01069 Dresden

Phone: +49 (0)351 4658-297
Fax: +49 (0)351 4658-281
Email: muench@ipfdd.de

We program material functions through chemical design and develop sustainable, adaptive polymer coatings across length scales for a circular materials future.

Sustainability begins at the molecular design stage of a material.
Our research aims to understand how chemical design can be translated into programmable and sustainable material functions across multiple length scales. We develop novel polymers and intelligent coatings and investigate how information encoded at the molecular level is transferred through polymer networks, interfaces, and hierarchical structures into functional polymer coatings with precisely tunable properties. Our research approach combines polymer synthesis, materials design, and multiscale structural understanding to systematically elucidate the relationship between molecular architecture and macroscopic function.

Building on this foundation, we develop polymer coatings whose functions are not static but can be selectively activated, adapted, or reversibly modified. We consider materials as programmable systems whose functions can be controlled throughout their entire lifecycle – from fabrication and use to repair, reuse, and controlled disassembly.

In this way, we bridge fundamental molecular research and technological application. Our coatings combine adaptive surface functionalities with programmable switching mechanisms to enable materials that remain functional, repairable, and reusable throughout their lifecycle. Through this approach, we establish the foundation for resource-efficient coatings and contribute to a circular materials economy.

• AiF-IGF: SWAMpaper – Development of a process engineering procedure for the functionalization of paper surfaces using the example of antimicrobial finishes (in collaboration with PTS Heidenau)
• AiF-IGF: Apollon – Adaptive polymer brush systems for industrial-grade processes for long-term stable surface modification of sustainable film substrates (in collaboration with Fraunhofer IFAM Bremen)
• AiF-ZIM: ESIRhood – Development of a new type of cooker hood with innovative solutions for odor and surface contamination elimination (in collaboration with Blümchen AG Reutlingen)
• BMBF: EISAB – Active ice-repellent surfaces for rotor blades (in collaboration with TU Dresden)
• ZIM-Network: fotec – functional coatings for technical applications
• ZIM-Network: Antimik – antimicrobial coatings

• Münch, A. S.; Fritzsche, T.; Haufe, H.; Uhlmann, P., Fast preparation of biopassive nonfouling coatings on cellulose, J. Coatings Technol. Res. 2018, 15, 4, 703–712.
  DOI:10.1007/s11998-018-0066-3
• Münch, A. S.; Stake, A.; Lukasczyk, T.; Stalling, A.; Fritzsche, T.; Stenzel, V.; Uhlmann, P., A scalable process for the generation of durable easy-to-clean coatings on foils, J. Coatings Technol. Res. 2019, 16, 6, 1515–1525.
  DOI:10.1007/s11998-019-00189-3
• Münch, A. S.; Adam, S.; Fritzsche, T.; Uhlmann, P. Tuning of Smart Multifunctional Polymer Coatings Made by Zwitterionic Phosphorylcholines, Adv. Mater. Interfaces 2020, 7, 1, 1–10. DOI:10.1002/admi.201901422