The global market for PMMA continues to benefit from an increasing demand, mainly from the construction and electronics industry as well as the automotive and transportation sector. However, continuing raw material bottlenecks have damped sales, which has also pushed up the price for PMMA.

Lower energy consumption, better plant growth: a company in the Netherlands builds functional greenhouses with the help of lens optics made of a Plexiglas PMMA molding compound

Growth through Diversity for Molding Compounds and Semifinished Products

Flachfolien- und Plattenextrusion

Kunststoffverarbeitung: Verfahren

Extrusion

Technische Kunststoffe

Kunststoff Werkstoffe

Thermoplaste

Polymethylmethacrylat

Platten

Halbzeuge und Zwischenprodukte

Kunststoff-Halbzeuge

Polymethyl Methacrylate (PMMA)

The transition to electric cars is transforming automotive design. And so polymers producer Röhm has developed special polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) molding compounds with this in mind. These are sold under the company’s well-known Plexiglas brand. At Fakuma, the company will be demonstrating how they can be used to combine design requirements and functional properties.

Plexiglas Resist AG 100 is used, for example, in Volkswagen’s ID.3 electric vehicle

Automotive

Elektronik

Elektromobilität

Mobilität

Messe Fakuma

kunststoffe-international.com

Greater Design Freedom for Electric Cars

Premium-quality automotive interior surfaces are becoming increasingly important from the customer’s point of view. This insight prompted Asahi Kasei to develop its Leona SG series of semi-aromatic polyamides (PA), which the Japanese group will be presenting at this year’s trade show Fakuma.

Automotive interiors require materials with good mechanical properties that will also produce premium-quality surfaces

Polyamide

Superior Surface Quality in Automotive Interiors

PA66 and PBT considerably expand the field of applications for laser sintering by showing better properties than classic PA11 and PA12 materials in most cases.

As a temperature-resistant and flame-retardant material with high mechanical properties, PA66 opens up new application possibilities for laser sintering, such as its use as a sensor holder

16:9

PA66 and PBT for Laser Sintering

Polybutylenterephthalat

Selektives Lasersintern von Kunststoff, Metall, Keramik

Verfahren für die additive Fertigung

Pulverbettverfahren

Kunststoff

Bauwesen

Baustoffe

Additive Fertigung

From Injection Molding to  Additive Manufacturing

Röhm produces antimicrobial PMMA for transparent partitions.

Plexiglas XT Antimicrobial is an extruded sheet material with a special surface treatment on both sides. The coating contains a formulation that controls microbial growth

Disease Protection by PMMA

Selected Makrolon RE grades from Covestro are climate-neutral from cradle to gate, thanks to the usage of renewable electricity for Covestro production processes and the introduction of raw materials coming from mass-balanced bio-waste and residues.

For the production of its climate-neutral polycarbonates Covestro uses mass-balanced renewable feedstock and renewable energies.

Erneuerbare Energie

Energieerzeugung

Polycarbonat

Kreislaufwirtschaft

Covestro Produces Climate-Neutral Polycarbonate

Zumtobel produces moisture-proof luminaires from Plexiglas molding compounds, the polymethyl methacrylate from Röhm.

The Amphibia PM moisture-proof luminaire from Zumtobel is made using the Plexiglas Resist zk5BR special molding compound.

Leuchten / Lichtmanagement

Lichttechnik

High Light Efficiency for a Luminaire

Profiles made of rigid PVC have many advantages: they are easily extrudable, inexpensive, and with suitable additives, they exhibit good UV resistance. However, regarding its mechanical and thermal properties, PVC occasionally reaches its limits. This shortcoming can be evaded by co-extrusion with a PBT blend.

If the properties of pure PVC profiles are inadequate, PBT co-extruded versions are an option. For example, their thermal expansion and post-shrinkage when heated are lower.

Co-Extrusion of PVC with Modified PBT Blend Improves Profile Mechanics

Polyvinylchlorid

Rohr- und Profilextrusion

Extending the Limits of PVC

The Chinese automotive manufacturer Geely will in the future use a polyamide 6 (PA6) from Lanxess for front-end (FE) carriers in its vehicles.

The front-end carrier for vehicles by the Chinese manufacturer Geely will be made of a PA6 from Lanxess in the future. © Lanxess

Kfz-Elektronik

 PA for a Front-End Carrier

Most of the energy in a crash is absorbed by metal parts. A new additional polyamide (PA) crash absorber has for the first time been integrated into the front end of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class. The advantage is that an additional loadpath could be added without significantly increasing the mass of the car.  Close cooperation between the project partners and the use of suitable simulation tools were key to successful realization of this project.

As part of the safety concept in the front end of the latest S-Class, Mercedes-Benz uses a crash absorber made from polyamide.

Crash Absorbers made from PA for the Front End Carrier of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Kfz-Sicherheit, passiv

Kfz-Systeme

Kraftfahrzeugtechnik

Accident Protection with Plastics

Electric-vehicle makers looking for fresh impetus are turning to thermoplastics, as these can be used to  improve the safety, performance and sustainability of the vehicles. Initial application areas for manufacturers can be found in a multitude of components ranging from battery cases to busbars, cooling lines and seals. Things become very interesting when material suppliers offer support in the form of CAE and injection molding analyses.

Thermoplastics play an important role in the batteries of electric vehicles. They help to keep battery temperatures in the optimal range for a long service life and high performance. 

Improving the Performance of Electric Vehicles with the Right Materials

Electric, Environmentally Friendly, Thermoplastic

The conditions in electric vehicles place high demands on the materials used. Therefore, automakers and suppliers must resort to expensive, high-performance plastics. For many applications, cost-effective alternatives are plastics whose properties have been greatly improved by means of treatment with high-energy electron beams.

Fig. 1. Crosslinked engineering plastics can be used for many different applications in electric vehicles.

Irradiation Crosslinking Replaces High-Performance Plastics with Cheaper Polymers

Strahlenvernetzung

Kunststoff-Aufbereitung

Hochleistungskunststoffe

Electron Booster for Electric Vehicles

Alternative powertrains, autonomous driving and the urge for more sustainability impact the vehicle design and driving experience.

 The USB connector system enables space saving of up to 60 %. The used PBT allows tight tolerances regardless of the ambient conditions.

Steckverbinder

Elektromechanik

Smaller, Faster, Lighter

Electromobility in particular, but also many other electrical applications, are asking for ever higher demands regarding the electrical properties of thermoplastics. This raises the question of whether the polymers commonly used in this area can still meet these demands. The plastics manufacturer, Lanxess, has now investigated how suitable, for example, polyamide and polybutylene terephthalate are for use at higher voltages and temperatures.

How Suitable Are PA and PBT for High-Voltage Applications?

Leistungselektronik

Against the Current

Electrical and electronics manufacturers want to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from their products and optimize waste management and recycling for them. This can be achieved, among other ways, by using more sustainable thermoplastics and quality-assured recyclates. A close cooperation between companies to establish material cycles and the recycling-friendly design of equipment are also important.

Driving Sustainability Trends in the Electrical and Electronics Industry with Polymers

Recycling

Umweltmanagement

Kunststoff-Recycling

Kunststoff-Rezyklat

Support for a Greener E&E World

PMMA for lights, lighting solutions, automotive exteriors, and household appliances will take center-stage on Röhm’s booth at this year’s show.

Röhm will be showcasing its latest development in PMMA, Plexiglas Optical HT. This material obviates the need for converters to choose between high optical quality and high long-term service temperatures, as it meets both requirements. It is therefore suitable for, e.g., high-power LED lenses and long light guides.

Röhm has also further developed its range of specialty molding compounds for automotive taillights. Aside from colorless transparent PMMA or PMMA pigmented in signal colors, the company offers diffuse light-scattering variants whose light-scattering properties and transparency vary in accordance with the product. The manufacturer says that the molding compounds can also be easily processed by special methods, such as laser-welding. This expands the scope for taillight design, because it allows angular components to be combined with minimal joints.

Röhm will also come to the show with specialty PMMA molding compounds for the front of vehicles. This is the company’s response to current advances in automobiles. Long light guides as well as high-gloss decorative trim and emblems are replacing chrome in the front areas of vehicles. This application calls for particularly rugged, impact-modified materials.

Röhm believes that PMMA Plexiglas Resist AG 100 is ideal for illuminated automotive applications because it meets the necessary optical and mechanical requirements. Meanwhile, Plexiglas Hi-Gloss NTA-5 can be used for high-gloss panels. According to the company, this can be used to implement both rugged and resource-efficient alternatives to components that otherwise need downstream painting. The material’s high weatherability ensures a lasting, sophisticated appearance.

In the realm of household goods, Röhm will be presenting molding compounds suitable for permanently high-gloss surfaces, illuminated designs and operating panels, and displays with a black panel effect that integrate seamlessly into the housing. With these displays, only a high-gloss black panel is visible when the appliance is off.

Röhm GmbH  

https://www.roehm.com

Displays with a black panel effect for household appliances can be implemented in PMMA.

2022-09-08 - Röhm

Messe K-Kunststoffmesse

issue 06/2022

issue 05/2022

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