Resin-ating Developments

While perhaps not as impressive to the eye as largesized plastics processing machinery, engineering resins are make-or-break components in the production of a wide variety of North American markets, and thus the lifeblood keeping the industry alive. All the more reason, then, for plastics processors to pay particular attention to the many new product releases unveiled at the K-2007 show in Dsseldorf.

GOING HYBRID & ECO-FRIENDLY

Dupont Engineering Polymers unveiled a new metal replacement material with its MetaFuse line of nanometal/polymer hybrids.

Manufactured and commercialized in partnership with a series of technology providers — including Toronto-based Morph Technologies Inc. — MetaFuse applies ultrahighstrength nanometal to parts made of DuPont engineering resins, resulting in lightweight components in a variety of complex shapes with the stiffness of magnesium or aluminum and higher strength. “Metal offers strength and high stiffness, while thermoplastic offers tremendous freedom to create shapes and integrate functions,” said Clive Robertson, business development manager at Dupont Engineering Polymers. “With this technology, designers have the best of both worlds.” Initial developments will focus on selected applications in the automotive, consumer electronics and sporting goods markets, Robertson continued.

For processors searching to satisfy environmental awareness among consumers, Arkema launched what it described as the first complete range of engineering thermoplastic elastomers with a 20 per cent to 90 per cent renewable carbon content.

The Pebax Rnew range of polymers use Amino 11 chemistry, a unique chemical processed from a vegetable source: castor oil. The use of Amino 11 chemistry in this new Pebax formulation reduces fossil energy requirements as well as emissions of CO2, the main greenhouse gas.

According to Arkema, the Pebax Rnew family (25D to 72D hardness) offers the same properties as the company’s Pebax line, including flex fatigue resistance, spring-back and elasticity return, and retains these features over a wide temperature range. This new Pebax range is designed to meet the needs of Arkema’s customers in electronics, sports, and automotive applications.

GETTING LIGHTER

Dow Automotive has developed a new and innovative acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) resin, which provides a lowgloss finish with superior scratch and mar resistance, while enabling weight reduction in parts design and production.

Available in both regular and high heat grades, this new material was developed to be produced as “mass ABS” using Dow’s proprietary continuous production process, which helps keep manufacturing costs down and eliminates the need for processing aids. As a result, the ABS resins combine a highly consistent colour with superior lot-to-lot consistency, giving processors a wider range of appearance options without compromise on colour tolerances. Together with high stiffness over a wide temperature range, these properties enable production of thinner walled parts which results in reduced weight, one of the most requested deliverables of the automotive industry.

Lanxess is extending its portfolio of Pocan polybutylene terephthalates (PBT) with the new Pocan DP B 3160 XF, the first PBT available on the market with 60 per cent glass fibre reinforcement, the company said.

The material has good flowability despite the high filler content, as well as high stiffness and strength; the elasticity modulus is 19,000 MPa, and tensile strength at break is 151 MPa. The resin also heat resistant to 211C. “Possible applications include hinges, structural components, housings, end shield for car generators or, in commercial vehicles, steps and easy entry systems,” said Manuel Sauer, a designer with Lanxess’ semicrystalline products business unit. The ultimate function of the DP B 3160 XF resin, he continued, is metal replacement. “This new resin boasts a range of properties that is quite sufficient for many existing metal applications,” he said.

GOING HYGIENIC

A new family of acetal copolymers (POM) from Ticona is designed to ensure better cleanliness and hygiene in parts intended for kitchens or bathrooms.

According to Ticona, Hostaform Anti-Crobe provides antimicrobial protection at the molecular level to inhibit contamination by microorganisms. The new polymer is especially suitable for application in hot, moist environments. In applications produced from Hostaform Anti-Crobe, the inorganic antimicrobial formulation is anchored at the molecular level and distributed throughout the polymer matrix. This makes it possible to deter bacterial and fungal attack throughout the entire lifecycle of the product, even when the surface is exposed to severe stresses, the company said.

Also venturing into the realm of more hygienic plastic parts is Sabic Innovative Plastics, which introduced the new Lexan EXL1413B polycarbonate siloxane copolymer, an opaque injection molding grade modified with anti-microbial additives. According to Sabic, this resin offers extreme low temperature — up to -30C — ductility in combination with medium flow characteristics and good processability, offering opportunities for shorter injection molding cycle times. The resin is available in black, grey and white colours only.

GETTING TOUGHER

Three years after the market introduction of Ultradur High Speed PBT, BASF has released its first Ultramid high-speed products.

Ultramid A3WG8, A3WG10 and the optimum-warpage A3WGM53 are highly filled polyamide 66 grade materials. The first two products are filled with 40 per cent and 50 per cent glass fibres respectively, while the third is filled with glass fibres and mineral.

The incorporation of special nanoparticles into the plastic offers improved flow properties, which creates weight savings by allowing for thinner injection molded parts. The high heat aging resistance makes the new grades particularly well suited for cylinder covers or intercooler end caps.

Rhodia Engineering Plastics launched Technyl Heat Performance (HP), a new polyamide 6.6 product family designed for under the hood temperatures.

According to the company, Technyl HP provides better retention of properties, specifically when exposed to continuous high temperature, than such standard solutions as polyphthalamide.

Rhodia also introduced Technyl Star AFX, a new polymide 6.6-based technology designed to combine flowability and superior reinforcement to act as a metal replacement in automobile applications.

The product is a good candidate for a wide variety of applications requiring resins modified with anti-microbial additives, the company said.

DSM Engineering Plastics announced a new high performance grade of Stanyl, also designed for under the hood applications.

Stanyl Diablo OCD2100 is the first member of a next generation family of Stanyl grades intended to offer improvement in long-term thermal stability, the company said, by extending the functional life of components beyond the limits of other high temperature polyamides. According to DSM, by limiting thermal oxidative breakdown, Diablo OCD2100 can withstand up to 3,000 hours of exposure to 230C with less than 15 per cent loss in mechanical properties.

Bayer MaterialScience introduced Bayhydrol A XP 2695, a polyacrylate dispersion with excellent chemical resistance, designed to enable coatings that are well suited for the high-end coating of industrial goods, trains, commercial vehicles and even aircraft. Coatings formulated with Bayhydrol A XP 2695 are resistant to graffiti, scratching, weathering and aggressive liquids such as Skydrol hydraulic fluid, the company said.

Resource List

Arkema Canada Inc. (Oakville, Ont.); www.arkema.ca; 800-567-5726 BASF Canada (Toronto); www.plasticsportal.com; 800-267-2955 Bayer Inc. -Division of Bayer AG (Tor
onto); www.bayer.ca; 416-248-3067 Dow Chemical Canada Inc. (Sarnia, Ont.); www.dow.com; 519-339-3196 DSM Engineering Plastics (Evansville, Ind.); www.dsm.com; 800-333-4237 E.I. DuPont Canada Company -Engineering Polymers Division (Mississauga, Ont.); www.plastics.dupont.com; 800-387-2122 Lanxess Corporation (Pittsburgh, Pa.); www.lanxess.com; 800-526-9377 Rhodia Engineering Plastics Corp. (Farmington Hills, Mich.); www.rhodia-ep.com; 248-994-6120 Sabic Innovative Plastics (Pittsfield, Mass.); www.geplastics.com; 413-448-7110 Ticona -Division of Celanese AG (Florence, Ky.); www.ticona.com; 859-525-4740