DUTCH COMPANIES DEVELOP NEW COLORED, NON-HALOGENATED FR LFT-PP PRODUCTS WHOSE MECHANICALS ARE HIGHER THAN NON-FR BASE RESIN
Glass-Reinforced Polypropylene Offers High but Balanced Mechanicals with Non-Halogenated Flame Retardance Plus Long-Term Weatherability in Colors
Enschede, The Netherlands, 28 May 2011
Thermoplastic compounding requires a careful balancing act as improving one property can unintentionally have negative consequences for another property, leading to compromises in the final compound because it was not possible to achieve desired performance for all properties simultaneously.
This is especially common in situations where it is necessary to have both a good balance of mechanical properties as well as halogen-free flame retardance (FR), because modification techniques that increase FR properties tend to reduce mechanicals and service life. However, for at least one thermoplastic resin family, this seems no longer to be the case, thanks to a consortium of Dutch companies – including a thermoplastics compounder, colorant house, molder, and OEM– that have joined together to develop a new family of colored and flame-retarded long-fiber thermoplastic (LFT)-polypropylene (PP) compounds and masterbatches whose mechanical properties actually are better than those of the non-FR base resin.
The technology required to develop the new FR LFT-PP grades arose from the needs of one member of the consortium – TULiPPS Solar B.V. (Eindhoven, The Netherlands), a startup company working on a new composite-based solar photovoltaic (PV) module system for flat roofs – to find a flame-retarded version of the LFT-PP materials targeted for the system’s structural components. New regulations are anticipated in many geographies requiring all polymeric materials used on roofs to be flame retarded. Since the composites used in TULiPPS’ module system have been formulated to offer an extremely demanding target service life of 25 years or longer, company founder and managing director, Paul Stassen wanted to ensure the units would comply not only with current regulations but also with future requirements where possible.
That presented an interesting challenge, since the composite module system needed both to be flame retardant as well as lightweight and thin, and therefore required high stiffness and strength plus excellent long-term durability – properties that can be affected by the non-halogenated additives package.
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TULiPPS Solar B.V. is a startup company with patent-pending technologies for the next generation of solar PV modules. The company is currently building prototypes that will subsequently be tested by early customers. It hopes to be commercial with its initial “plug-‘n-play” products designed for light flat roofs by 2012. For more Information, see: http://www.tulipps.com/
RESIN (Products & Technology) B.V. is an innovative compounding company with a strong focus on developing and commercializing environmentally friendly, specialty thermoplastic compounds and concentrates. RESIN offers rigid and elastomeric thermoplastic polyolefins whose performance has been enhanced in the functional areas of halogen-free flame retardance, improved barrier properties, and/or improved mechanical properties – with or without colorant. RESIN serves a broad customer base in the automotive, construction, packaging, and consumer-goods industries. For more information, see: http://resintechnology.nl
QolorTech B.V. is an independent producer and supplier of industrial coloring solutions for paint, printing, ink, plastic, and other color-use industries. The company provides its unique solutions in the form of pigments, pastes, mono-concentrates, masterbatches, and specialty additives. For more information, see http://www.qolortech.nl/
Voestalpine Plastics Solutions, a division of the Austrian-based steel conglomerate voestalpine AG, specializes in the design and manufacture of structural and semi-structural injection- and compression-molded plastic products and solutions, with a particular expertise in plastic-metal hybrids. The company manufactures components for leading automotive and truck customers and their suppliers, as well as for a growing number of companies in the solar, mobility, and industrial-packaging markets.
For more information, see http://www.voestalpine.com/polynorm/en/company/organization/plastics_solutions.html
Eco-Forte™ is a Trademark of RESIN (Products & Technology) B.V. All other trademarks are the property of their owners.
