As the largest category of engineering plastics, polyamide PA is widely used in automobiles, electronic appliances, home appliances, new energy and other fields, and there are many enterprises engaged in PA modification business. In the past two years, what new products, what applications have been achieved, and what breakthroughs have been made in the polyamide industry?
1.Halogen-free flame retardant reinforced PA66
Tenor Epeth CompanyTeknorapex has launched three new halogen-free flame retardant glass fiber reinforced PA66 compounds, all of which are UL94V 0 graded. They have high injection flow, excellent surface finish, and better performance retention compared to standard glass fiber reinforced flame retardant PA66.
The CreamId grades A3H7G3, C3H2G4 and C3H2G6 have % and 30% glass fiber content, respectively. Its halogen-free flame retardant formulation complies with European RoHS and WEEE directives as well as internal OEM requirements.
Tenore Epace recommends these compounds for housings for electrical and power tools, handheld electronics, EV charging infrastructure components, and certain under-the-hood automotive components.
Tenorl Epace utilizes semi-aromatic nylons to enhance the tensile properties and stiffness retention of these compounds when exposed to moisture. The A3H7G3 product is currently used in automotive engine covers to meet OEM requirements for 170 years of performance retention after heat aging.
2.Reinforced PA66 is used as a plastic alternative to aluminum for engine and motor mounts.
Asahi KaseiReplace the cast aluminum bracket with PA66 resin. Asahi Kasei has developed and designed a mount for engines and a mount for an electric motor using Leona GF reinforced grade "14G50" made of polyamide (PA66). It has excellent heat resistance, high strength, high rigidity and fatigue resistance. According to the rigidity and strength requirements, the design was carried out, and the position of the glass fiber orientation and welding line was accurately grasped through the molding technology, and the stress analysis reflecting this information was carried out to evaluate its mechanical properties.
3.PA12 provides the highest level of fire protection for battery busbars.
EvonikEvonik presents the new Vesta MID series of PA12 compounds, Vestamid LX9050OR, for insulating electrical conductors. By using halogen-free flame retardants in accordance with IEC 60754, VestamidlX9050OR complies with UL94 flammability rating V 0.
In the high-voltage batteries of electric vehicles, busbars made of copper or aluminum will require safer protection against electrical failures up to 1kV and above and the associated fire risk. In accordance with the requirements of the automotive industry, Evonik has specially developed new PA12 compounds with halogen-free flame retardant additives to achieve the highest flammability class V 0. 0.5~0.The coating thickness of 7mm can meet the insulation requirements of electric vehicles for 30 150mm2 busbar profiles.
Copper busbar. Busbars made of copper or aluminium are coated by co-extrusion, and the Vestamidlx 9050or has good processing properties to provide higher extrusion speeds, and it has excellent adhesion to metal cores without the need for additional adhesion promoters. Due to the high elasticity of the compound, the coated busbar can be formed well after extrusion and can even be bent in a small radius without losing the protective effect of Vestamid insulation.
The compound is also suitable for injection molding. Due to the use of halogen-free flame retardants, it can also be used in the manufacture of automotive electrical or other components in the electrical industry. The newly developed flammability grade V 0 complements Evonik's existing RAL Signal Orange PA12 product range (with V 2 and HB classifications).
4.Thermally conductive PA6 for electric sports car components
Thermally conductive plastics show great potential for application in the thermal management of electric vehicle charging systems. One example is a charge controller in an all-electric vehicle from a sports car manufacturer in southern Germany. The controller contains a by:LANXESSThe company's cooling element made of Durethan BTC965FM30, a thermally conductive and electrically insulating PA6 material, dissipates heat generated in the controller plug contacts when charging the battery.
AC and DC charge controllers.
In addition to preventing the charge controller from overheating, this material of construction meets the stringent requirements for flame retardancy, tracking resistance, and product design. The charge controller converts the three-phase or alternating current coming in from the charging station to direct current and controls the charging process. During this process, they limit the charging voltage and current to prevent the battery from overcharging. Up to 48A of current flows through the plug contacts, generating a lot of heat during charging.
DurethanBTC965FM30 is filled with special thermally conductive mineral particles that effectively conduct heat away from the source. These thermally conductive particles allow the compound to have a presence in the melt flow direction (in the plane) and perpendicular to the melt flow direction. High thermal conductivity of 3W (m·k).
In addition, the material has passed the UL94 flame retardancy test and is best classified as V 0 (0.).75mm)。Its high tracking resistance also contributes to increased safety, as evidenced by its tracking index (CTI) of 600V. Despite the high content of thermally conductive fillers (68% by mass), PA6 has good flowability. Potential applications for this thermally conductive thermoplastic include EV battery components such as plugs, radiators, heat exchangers, and mounting plates for power electronics.
5.Car battery charger cover made of PA6.
LANXESSThe highly enhanced PA6 has been proven to be suitable for larger-scale EV applications. The cover of the on-board battery charger used in the all-electric small car produced by the German car manufacturer is made by Durethan BKV50H30 and 50% (mass fraction) of short glass fibers. Leopoldkostal, a system manufacturer consisting of covers and chargers, is a global system leader for automotive, industrial and solar electrical and electrical connector systems.
This large-scale application illustrates the fact that PA6 compounds do not necessarily have to be hydrolytically stabilized to be used in cooling applications of glycol water coolants in electric vehicles. Bernhard Helbich, Technical Account Manager, said: ".In the future, this type of PA6 product will become very common in the mass production of EV covers and other thermal management components. This is especially true for applications such as fluid connectors or control units in cooling systems.
Plastic components in the cooling circuits of internal combustion engines have long been manufactured with PA66 because of its high resistance to hot coolants such as water-glycol mixtures. However, the thermal management requirements for all-electric powertrains are shifting towards lower temperatures. For all-electric vehicles, the long-term heat resistance of the PA6 compound to the water-glycol mixture is sufficient to meet the needs of most parts, even if the stress time is significantly longer in some cases.
As a result, the new cover can permanently withstand temperatures of up to 400 °C during vehicle operation and enables burst loads of up to 1 MPa. Long-term tests on specimens have also shown that even in water glycol mixtures at 110 and 0After 15 MPa was stored at a pressure of 15 MPa for 15 hours, the mechanical properties of the compound were hardly reduced.
As a result, the material meets the technical requirements of a major German car manufacturer for water-cooled components for electric vehicles. The cover is about 29cm long and 11 cm wide2cm with a considerable flange size. The cover plate is screwed onto the aluminum housing of the charger along with the seal.
The high strength and stiffness exhibited by the PA6 compound ensures that the lid meets stringent sealing requirements. The cover also shows the DurethanBKV50H30 other material advantages. It is easy to process and can be injection molded at high injection speeds, which is good for shorter cycle times and therefore economical.
In addition, thermally stable durethanbkv50h30 does not contain copper and does not cause galvanic corrosion of metal parts in the cooling circuit. Another advantage of the compound is that it can tolerate media commonly used in vehicle operation, such as fuel, grease, battery electrolyte, and road salt.
6.PA6 is used in automotive front-end carriers.
Chinese automaker Geely will use it in the futurePA6 from LANXESSas a front-end (FE) carrier for its vehicles. The design concept of this component is a hybrid design solution that goes beyond the traditional square rectangular finite element structure. Although the lower cooler is mounted in sheet metal, the complex superstructure uses highly filled and thermally stable Durethan BKV50H20EF, a material that is ideal for rigid and high-strength hard components. The all-plastic design of the upper part meets the wide range of requirements for this multi-part assembly. The use of high-modulus thermoplastic materials also provides a cost-effective solution.
7.Irradiated engineering plastics are used in automobiles instead of high-performance plastics.
In the past, vehicle interiors were the main application area for automotive plastics. However, with the development of plastics, the focus of plastics is on the steering drivetrain periphery, batteries and body bodies. However, the temperature and mechanical load at these locations are usually much higher.
As a result, their materials had to meet new requirements: in some applications, they had to withstand temperatures of more than 150 °CIn electric vehicles, they must provide good insulation;They must be durable and age-resistant throughout the vehicle's life cycle;They must have high mechanical strength and toughness;In addition to this, in the case of fiber composite plastics (FCPs), the adhesion between the polymer matrix and the fibers must be particularly good.
Automakers and parts** often use high-performance plastics such as polysulfone (PSU, PES, PPSU), polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) and polyetheretherketone (PEEK) to meet these needs. However,The cost of these high-performance plastics is expensive;And in contrast to engineering plastics, they are processed at high temperatures – typical injection temperatures of 300 400 °C and mold temperatures of 125 210 °CAs a result, the cost and energy consumption of the machining process are also higher;Special injection molding machines and molds are also required.
One way out of this dilemma is:Irradiation modification of engineering plastics such as PA and polybutylene terephthalate (PBT).。Compared to high-performance plastics, material costs can be reduced by 2 to 10 times.
For example, irradiable cross-linked PA can be processed at least 100 degrees lower than high-performance plastics during injection molding, and mold temperatures between 60 and 100 per cent. Through or ray high-energy irradiation, the chemical bonds in the polymer molecules react to produce free radicals, and when adjacent free radicals react with each other, covalent bonds are formed, thus forming a three-dimensional highly stable network. The properties of engineering plastics are improved to a higher level.
Irradiation crosslinking is done after the part has been molded。Manufacturers still do injection molding, extrusion, or blow molding as before, without having to buy new machines or molds. In summary, not only the cost of materials, but also the processing cost of irradiated engineering plastic parts is lower than that of high-performance plastic parts.
But not all plastics are suitable for irradiation crosslinking, and many engineering plastics used in electric vehicles require crosslinkers, including PA6, PA11, PA12, PA66, PBT, and polyurethane-based thermoplastic elastomers. Radiation crosslinking is performed at room temperature, and the irradiation results are easily reproducible.
Electron irradiation improves the thermal stability of PA. For example, the glass transition temperature of irradiated PA66 increases from 81 to 97;The storage modulus of non-cross-linked PA66 decreases rapidly at about 240, and the storage modulus of irradiated PA66 increases by 120 times at this temperature, and the residual stiffness is almost unchanged at 360. Irradiation can also alter the mechanical properties of PA, as can glass fiber-reinforced PA, as shown in Table 1.
Table 1 Mechanical properties of PA66 and PA6 GF30 without irradiation and after irradiation.
Cross-linked engineering plastics can be used for different purposes of electric vehicles, such as cables, fixings, joints, gears, connectors, covers, etc. Some of these components, such as gearing, fixtures and connectors, are also used in vehicles equipped with internal combustion engines and have been mass-produced. Other applications for electric vehicles are still in the development stage, and these materials are particularly suitable for battery housings as well as separators and power cords near the battery.
8.Bio-based high-performance aliphatic PA46
DSMA new 100% bio-based high-performance aliphatic PA46 has been added to Engineered Materials' Stanyl PA46 portfolio. The specific Stanyl B MB (Bio-based Mass Balance) is reported to have the same high performance as the original counterpart. Its excellent high-temperature mechanical properties (melting temperature of 290 °C), excellent flow and processability, and excellent abrasion and friction resistance make it ideal for high-temperature applications in the automotive, electronics, electrical, and consumer goods industries, such as USB connectors, automotive and industrial actuator gears, powertrain timing chains, bearing cages, and food contact conveyors.
It uses the highest possible levels of biomass waste feedstock, enabling DSM to halve the carbon footprint of this product line and, in turn, the carbon footprint of its customers' Stanyl BMB-based products. According to DSM, global production of bio-based products roughly doubled between 2015 and 2020, but the materials industry urgently needs to accelerate the shift to sustainable feedstocks.
Stanylb MB is a fully Sustainability & Carbon Certified (ISCC) mass balance solution that has been proven to have the exact same characteristics, performance and quality as conventional Stanyl, but with a 50% lower carbon footprint than fossil-based ones. According to DSM, this means a reduction of 3 per 1t produced3t of carbon dioxide is equivalent to charging 420,000 smartphones.
9.92% bio-based glass fiber reinforced PA6
LANXESSLaunch of the first ScopeBlue series of materials, 92% bio-based glass fiber reinforced PA6-DurethanBlue BKV 60H20ef, which consists of at least 50% recycled (** or bio-based) raw materials or whose carbon footprint is at least 50% lower than that of conventional products.
Production of Durethanblue BKV 60H2One of the raw materials used in 0EF PA6 is cyclohexane from sustainable**, i.e. bio-based, bio-based, or chemically produced cyclohexane. The material is also reinforced with 60% wt% glass fibers, including industrial glass waste instead of mineral raw materials. The alternative raw materials used by LANXESS are chemically identical to the fossil equivalent of **, hence Durethanblue BKV60H20ef has the same properties as virgin materials and can be easily machined using the exact same production tools and equipment, without the need for conversions.
Guentermargraf, Global Head of Product Management at LANXESS Performance Materials (HPM), said: "This high-strength, high-rigidity structural material can be deployed anywhere where pure fossil-based equivalents have traditionally been used for mass production and are therefore used in automotive manufacturing for the production of automotive front ends, brake pedals and fuel tank sumps. We are currently working to increase the content of sustainable raw materials in this compound to 100%. ”
10.Long-fiber composite material based on nylon from end-of-life fishing nets.
PolyOne Corporation(**ient) provides a long-fiber reinforced composite complētr based on PA6 from end-of-life fishing nets. According to Ericwollan, general manager of PolyOne Long Fiber Technologies, this is the first long-fiber composite based on recycled resin in the plan. There are standard black formulations worldwide with typical content of long glass fibers, long carbon fibers, or a combination of them. The level of post-consumer resin content in the product varies, which allows the final product to meet different performance and sustainability requirements.
Scrapped fishing nets. Potential market applications for the Complēt R include the use of more energy-efficient next-generation vehicles, LEED-certified office furniture that favors the Green Building Rating System, and lightweight adventure gear for outdoor recreation. The new material is said to have comparable stiffness, strength, and toughness to standard PA6 long-fiber composite formulations made using virgin PA6 resin. The use of these composites as metal substitutes can also significantly reduce mass while saving time and cost in one-step injection molding.
11.High-performance glass-reinforced PA6 and PA66 based on the best composition
SolvayThe company has launched the PA6 and PA66 series of Omnix Recycle HPPAs based on at least 33%** composition, consisting of 70% industrial** plastic consumer plastic (PIR PCR) recycled resin, which is highly safe and has a controlled process.
Following the company's "One Planet" roadmap, Omnix Recycle HPPA technology continuously improves the environmental footprint and circularity of its product portfolio, with lower water absorption, better flow, and best-in-class surface appearance compared to virgin high-performance nylon. OmnixRecycle's composition has been reported to significantly reduce carbon footprint compared to virgin high-performance polyamide (HPPA), resulting in a 30% reduction in global warming potential (GWP).
OmniX Recycle HPPA vs. other HPPAs.
At the same time, it is ideal for replacing less performing nylons and metals. In household appliance applications, it has higher durability than standard PA6 and PA66. This helps original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) reduce product breakage and product damage returns, while meeting consumer demands for long service life and low environmental impact in product selection. The new HPPA does not need to be painted due to its excellent surface appearance, which adds to its overall sustainability benefits.
The Omnixre Cycle can be processed on standard injection molding equipment, including the use of water to heat the mold. Claireguerrero, Global Marketing Manager and Sustainability, Solvay's Packaging Division and Sustainability, said: "As Solvay's first HPPA reinforced with 50% glass fiber, Omni Recycle is a true breakthrough in the polyamide market for household appliances. It combines the excellent mechanical properties of the native semi-aromatic HPPA with better flowability, lower water absorption and a first-class surface appearance.
In addition, its unique properties and sustainability offer attractive material solutions for brand owners and manufacturers seeking to increase the ** composition in their products without compromising dimensional stability, high stiffness, impact resistance and processability. ”
12.Genomatica and Asahi Kasei have collaborated to develop PA66, a renewable resource
Biotech companiesZhinometicaCompany (Genomati ca) withAsahi KaseiAsahikasei to commercialize renewable** PA66. As a key ingredient in many types of nylon, traditional hexamethylenediamine (HMD, also known as HMDA) is manufactured from fossil fuels such as ** or natural gas, while HMD, a renewable resource made using Genomatica technology, comes from renewable feedstocks such as plant sugar and can improve the sustainability of many materials made from it.
Hexamethylenediamine (HMD).
As a result of Genomatica's success in producing large quantities of plant-based HMD, Asahi Kasei intends to apply GenoMatica's process technology to create more sustainable materials for products such as high-temperature automotive parts, electronics, or yarn for the production of airbags. Asahi Kasei will prioritize access to HMD, an early-stage renewable resource, and conduct nylon application testing using Asahi Kasei's extensive experience in developing successful nylon applications.
Asahi Kasei expects to license Genomatica's GenohMD process technology to commercialize bio-based PA66. Genomatica develops complete integrated process and manufacturing plant designs, using biotechnology, fermentation, and renewable feedstocks to prepare widely used ingredients and materials with a lower carbon footprint. Asahi Kasei expects Genomatica's innovations to help the company reach its goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
13.Medical grade PA6, PA6 66 and PET
DSMEngineered Materials (DSM) has added four new medical-grade engineered materials to its medical portfolio to support medical device manufacturers around the world in improving the quality of patient care. These materials meet or exceed important global standards such as FDA food contact compliance, ISO 10993, and United States Pharmacopeia (USP) Class VI standards.
Akulon's Care PA6 is an unfilled PA6 for injection molding, while K1G6 is a 30% glass fiber reinforced PA6 for injection molding. Both products offer excellent results in injection molding and extrusion. These grades use clean polymerization technology to ensure low volatile organic compound (VOC) levels. Their applications include catheters, IV bags, insulin pens and autoinjectors, surgical robots, and advanced wound care.
Novamid Caren30PA6 66 is an unfilled PA6 66 copolymer for film extrusion. It has excellent oxygen and carbon dioxide barrier properties and is optimized for film applications such as IV fluid bags and medical packaging.
Arnitecarea1U is an unfilled PET for injection molding. It is said to be the highest purity medical grade PET with low water absorption, excellent abrasion resistance and color stability as well as low extractables leachables and high dimensional stability. Applications include catheters, insulin pens and autoinjectors, and surgical robots.
14.The water pump is reinforced with glass PA66
WiloThe company (Wilo) selected a 30% glass fiber reinforced PA66 injection molding compound that is thermally stable and ethylene glycol resistant, and is said to be stable in permanent contact with water, which can be used in quality pumps and pump systems for building services, water management, and industrial applications.
The material is BelgiumDOMO ChemicalsPart of Technyl, an advanced nylon compound produced by the company (Domino Chemicals). The two companies say they share a common goal in promoting the megatrend of urbanization: both are committed to making complex technologies user-friendly, easy to use, energy-efficient and high-performing.
Wilo's products are said to combine top performance, German engineering, and world-class materials, and they are designed to provide maximum efficiency for heating and cooling systems. In the heating segment, DOMO Chemicals offers several options that have been specifically developed for circulating pump applications. According to Manuel Rossi, Domo Account Manager, Wilo's preferred material was Technyl A218 V30 Black 34NG for the production of the WilloPara MSL 6-43 SC circulating pump for heating systems.
Wilo Circulation Pump.
The second grade is Technyl A218WV30Blackfa, which is approved for use in drinking water contact applications. The two grades perform equally well against ethylene glycol aging, with Technyl A218V30BLACK34NG slightly superior.
15.Sustainable nylon for PCR and PIR**.
RadiciGroup, a global manufacturer of chemicals, plastics and synthetic fibres, has launched a new sustainable nylon range, Renycle. The range includes PA6 resins obtained from post-consumer** (PCR) nylon and PA66 materials obtained from post-industrial** (PIR) nylon. The company's range of sustainable Renycle nylons, now on display on the MatMatch** platform, helps designers and engineers find the best material for their design needs. The content is ** in the [Plastic Warehouse Network] applet.