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BASF plastics on the K show 2004 |
Engineering plastics – the development continues
Three new grades that help customers save on moulding, material and finishing costs have recently been added to BASF's Ultramid® range of nylon resins. Among the flame-retardant grades, there are also three new grades available. One of them is Ultramid B3U HF, an unreinforced, halogen-free nylon 6 with excellent melt rheology, intended for electrical/electronic applications. For contact-breaker applications, there is B3UM4, a halogen-free flame-retardant nylon 6 reinforced with a low-cost mineral filler. And finally, BASF offers Ultramid A3UG5, a UL 94 V0 rated nylon 66 grade, which is freely colorable thanks its pale-coloured flame retardant additive (P 242, P 243).
BASF's high-performance polyethersulfone, which is marketed under the Ultrason® tradename, is currently being used by i-Components of South Korea as a substrate for flexible LCD displays. In order to act as a suitable substitute for glass in this application, the Ultrason film must exhibit high purity, optical clarity and heat resistance. The first commercial products are due soon (P 245).
At K 2004, BASF will be presenting a new rheology-modified PBT (polybutylene terephthalate), whose melt-flow properties beat anything seen so far, not only in the company's Ultradur® range. This aptly named "High Speed" resin flows twice as fast as a conventional Ultradur for higher output. Initial customer trials have resulted in cycle times being cut by 20% (P 246).
A special use of polymer resin is found in powder injection moulding (PIM), a process in which metallic (or ceramic) powder, dispersed in a resin binder, is injection moulded and then sintered to produce precision metal (or ceramic) parts. BASF's PIM product is marketed by the company's Inorganics division under the Catamold® tradename and will be present to the wider audience for the first time at K 2004 (P 244).
Moeller, a manufacturer of low-voltage switching devices and the market leader in Germany in power circuit-breakers, has launched a new series of compact circuit-breakers. To meet the tough requirements regarding fire safety and dielectric strength, Moeller is using BASF's proven flame-retardant Ultramid A3X, a nylon 66 grade that is marketed worldwide (P 263).
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Packaging - Aesthetics - Design
Colorants and light stabilizers are important ingredients in the manufacture of plastic articles. Among the new products in this field are pigments that prevent blockage of the spinnerets in the extrusion of coloured fibres, as well as reduce the warpage tendency of injection-moulded parts. New low-volatility, anti-fogging light stabilizers for automotive instrument panels set a new standard in the industry (P 250).
Styrolux® and Styroflex® are two of BASF's transparent styrene/butadiene resins for use in packaging applications. At K 2004, BASF will be presenting Styrolux 3G 33, a particularly clear and tough third-generation Styrolux. Styroflex, which is used in high-resilience stretch packaging film, is now in its second generation with the introduction of Styroflex 2G 66, a grade that promises greater packaging productivity (P 248/ P 249).
Another transparent BASF styrenic specialty polymer is Terlux®, a MABS (methyl methacrylate/acrylonitrile/butadiene/styrene). BASF has recently started offering a package of services to Terlux customers in technically demanding market segments such as cosmetics packaging, toys and medical products. The package - which can be tailored to customer requirements - includes security of supply, long-term constancy of resin formulation, regulatory approval, compatibility testing, colour matching and engineering support in parts development and moulding (P 247).
BASF has also taken a step closer to the customer with its Luran® S specialty (ASA - acrylonitrile/styrol/acrylate). Working with British door-maker Permacoat, BASF technologists developed a process - called Permaskin™ - for laminating doors with a weather-resistant, colour-stable film of Luran S. The process eliminates painting. The Luran S film is marketed under the LuraSkin™ name (P 265).
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From the depths of application research
Technically complex plastic parts - those used in automotive and electrical/electronic applications in particular - require precise engineering and thorough testing before they can go into production. BASF - not just a big producer of engineering plastics - invests much in plastics application-technology and -development. Throughout the last decades it has become an expert in developing ways to make the processing of plastics easier and cheaper for its customers.
BASF is now able to design fibre-reinforced parts more efficiently thanks to FIBER, an engineering analysis software module developed by its own technologists. FIBER uses information about the part's anisotropy - directional properties caused by orientation of the reinforcing fibres - to help predict the part's structural behaviour more accurately than was hitherto possible (P 252).
Yet another example is engineering software developed jointly with international auto parts supplier MANN+HUMMEL that enables the burst characteristics of nylon engine-intake manifolds to be predicted with 90% accuracy, thereby allowing much expensive prototyping work to be eliminated (P 255).
Using computer-aided engineering in combination with much experimental work, BASF plastics engineers succeeded with KTSN, a parts manufacturer from eastern Germany, in developing the world's first thermoplastic truck-engine oil sump. In 2003 the oil sump, which is fitted to Mercedes Actros truck engines, won the Grand Innovation Award from the Society of Plastics Engineers (P 254).
In 2002 BASF demonstrated an efficient new technique for joining plastic to metal for use in metal/plastic hybrid components. Called "collar joining", the technique has now advanced to the stage where a prototype front-end assembly has been developed in cooperation with Visteon, a major auto parts supplier. The project also involved the development of software tools for predicting the crash performance of such hybrid parts (P 251).
One challenge in electronic engineering has always being to find a cheap and efficient method of applying circuit patterns to complex three-dimensional objects. LPKF, a maker of industrial lasers, has now developed a technique called Laser Direct Structuring (LDS) in which laser light is used to etch the conductors directly onto objects moulded from a laser-sensitive plastic. BASF has developed a high-temperature nylon - Ultramid® T KR4380 LS - for the LDS process, which will be shown at K 2004 (P 253).
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Polyurethane and other foams
Polyurethane (PU) must be one of the most versatile of all plastics. Thanks to the wide spectrum of formulations possible, PU applications are as diverse as running shoes, vehicle suspension springs and road bridges. In Europe, BASF polyurethanes are produced and marketed by Elastogran, a wholly owned BASF subsidiary. PU can be used as a foam or in compact form.
One new use of PU includes the coating of flat flexible cable, an extremely attractive application for motor vehicle electrical systems because of its space-saving potential. And at a time when ever more electronics are going into cars, the less bulky the electrical connections, the better (P 257).
Special structural steel-plate/polyurethane sandwiches known as SPS™, which were successfully introduced into ship-building a few years ago, have now made it in bridge construction. The first bridge built with SPS elements was released to traffic in November 2003 in Canada and is 60% lighter than a concrete design. (P 259).
Polyurethane is also being used as jacketing material to protect oil and gas pipelines from heat and cold, water, pressure and shock. A new package comprising three products, also includes Elastoshore® 2570, a totally new system for insulating pipelines lying in ultra-deep water. The PU coating material is filled with minute glass beads that allow the jacket to withstand the enormous pressures present at depths of 3000 metres (P 258).
A system for the heat insulation of car engines by cladding them in PU foam - so-called thermal engine encapsulation - has made good progress since the idea was launched last year. A well-known car maker is currently testing the concept for its future models. The idea behind the PU cladding is to prevent rapid heat loss from a turned-off engine, thereby reducing the number of cold-starts and resulting in few emissions and better fuel economy (P 256).
Basotect® is a thermosetting melamine foam made by BASF. Basotect is used in a wide number of applications thanks to its unusual properties. Apart from classic uses such as sound-proofing in motor vehicles and buildings, it is now found in aircraft seating owing to its lightness and good flame retarding properties. The reduction in the weight of each seat adds up to a huge saving in aircraft weight - and so saves fuel. BASF has also developed a modified Basotect foam - Basotect TG - that is directly "thermoformable". Basotect TG eliminates a costly resin-impregnation step in the shaping of parts from foam block (P 260).
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