Plastics Engineering 2016 - Automative Lightweight Composite

00 Cover_Layout 1 8/19/16 5:40 AM Page cvr1
Plastics Engineering
September 2016
Plastics in Automotive: Lightweighting

with Composites
Heating up Under the Hood
• Blow Molding Innovation
• Anticipating K 2016
01-05 contents_editorial 8/19/16 8:51 AM Page 1
CONTENTS
VOLUME 72 ■ NUMBER 8 ■ SEPTEMBER 2016
FROM SPE
6 Preparing to reflect, and to forge ahead

By Wim de Vos
Digital processes, interconnectivity, Industry 4.0 and fast-changing
information technology are reshaping our industry. At the upcoming
K Show, we will pause to review the landscape while looking ahead
to assess where we are heading, as SPE prepares to enter its 75th
anniversary year in 2017.
DESIGN NOTES
8 Sustainable Eyeglasses from Down Under, with a German Flair

By Robert Grace
Australia’s Dresden Optics is aiming to produce low-cost, stylish,
recycled-plastic eyewear but a strong nod to German design and 8
manufacturing quality
Plastics in Automotive: Material Advances

COVER STORY
12 Power Drive
By Patrick Toensmeier
The desire to reduce vehicle weight is accelerating the development
and use of high-performance thermoplastics for underhood
applications
22 Automotive Composites: Mass Reduction for Mass Production

By Peggy Malnati
Reinforced plastics are lowering weight, improving handling and
performance, and boosting safety for passenger cars
12
28
K 2016 Preview
Gearing Up for the World’s Largest Plastics Show
By Jon Evans
To whet your appetite, we offer up a small sampling of the vast
array of innovative products and technologies that await the
200,000 visitors to K 2016 in Düsseldorf from Oct. 19-26
34 New Developments in Blow Molding

By Nancy D. Lamontagne
In early October, attendees will gather in Atlanta for SPE’s Annual
Blow Molding Conference. Get a sneak peek at some the advances
that will be on tap.
About the cover:

In this issue we turn a bright LED headlight (such as the one pictured on the
cover) on how advanced materials are reshaping the automotive industry.
(Photo courtesy of Bigstock; cover designed by SPE MarComm Team.) 22
www.plasticsengineering.org | www.4spe.org | SEPTEMBER 2016 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | 1

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01-05 contents_editorial 8/19/16 2:39 PM Page 4
CONTENTS
CONTENTS
38
Technical Paper: Joining Technologies
How to Select the Right Process for Joining Your Underhood Parts
By Craig Birrittella
A variety of technologies exist to execute the welding and joining of
plastics parts. In this article, Branson Ultrasonics helps you to
determine which one is right for you.
CONSULTANT’S CORNER
44 Plastics — It’s All About Molecular Structure

By Jeffrey A. Jansen
Get a quick primer on some key aspects of polymer chemistry —
from polymerization, intermolecular bonding, molecular weight,
and the differences between crystalline and amorphous structure
28
PLASTICS MAKE IT POSSIBLE
50 Plastics Sustainability, through the Lens of Natural Capital Costs

By The American Chemistry Council
A new study by UK consultants Trucost PLC reveal that in some
key applications, plastics offer broad environmental advantages
over competitive materials. We crunch the numbers for you.
INSIDE SPI
54 Assessing the Brexit Impact, plus The FLiP Files

By SPI: The Plastics Industry Trade Association
SPI’s Michael Taylor takes a hard look at what the UK’s potential exit
from the European Union might mean to the U.S. plastics industry.
See also the latest person to be profiled in SPI’s Future Leaders in
Plastics (FLiP) files.
38
58 The Dawn of Commercial Thermoforming
By Stanley R. Rosen
Industry veteran Stan Rosen reflects on how the thermoforming
industry got its start some 80 years ago, and what developments
have helped shaped the modern-day thermoforming sector.
DEPARTMENTS
64 Industry News
80 Market Place
72 Industry Patents
By Dr. Roger Corneliussen 82 Editorial Index
76 Upcoming Industry
Events 84 Advertisers Index
64 78 Energy-Saving Tip
By Dr. Robin Kent
4 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

06-07 From SPE_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/22/16 7:17 AM Page 6
FROM SPE
Preparing to reflect,
and to forge ahead
T
By Wim de Vos
ime flies by. The pace of innovation quickens. Product careers 20-30 years ago as
cycles shorten. Time to market accelerates. And every chemical or mechanical
day our plastics industry helps to advance these evo- engineers. In the future,
lutions. more of our industry’s lead-
The digitalization of processes continues and even virtual tech- ers are likely to come from
nologies can help us to speed up or skip certain steps in the old an information technology
product development processes. Time indeed goes so fast that background. The key
it seems as if NPE 2015 was only yesterday and the K 2013 show aspects of Industry 4.0 are
only last month, but K 2016 is already upon us. information, knowledge
No wonder the theme of this year’s K Show is Plastics Indus- transfer and networking.
try 4.0. Whilst information technology emerged at first to help Not surprisingly, SPE pro-
support some of our industry’s functions, IT now is taking over vides these same aspects —
some of our key functions, and playing a central role in both our although SPE’s knowledge
manufacturing and business processes. transfer and networking currently have a different perspective.
This also has and will continue to impact the types of people This brings us to how SPE will support the plastics industry
we need to run the processes in our factories. We used to need of tomorrow. And tomorrow = next year. In 2017 SPE will cel-
chemists, polymer engineers and mechanical engineers to ebrate its 75th anniversary — marking three-quarters of a
start up new machines, do new trials and run our operations. century of excellence in supporting the plastics and polymer
Human interpretation and manual adjustments always made industry and its individuals. The Oct. 19-26 K Show in Düssel-
a difference. This, for sure will not be the case tomorrow. dorf is a starting point for us to begin our reflection of the past
Our industry will need IT people to run our processes — 75 years and to assess what lies ahead.
whether to simulate product or mold design, calculate prop- This offers us an opportunity to reflect on those volunteers
erties, set up machine and leaders who made what SPE is today. We will acknowledge
parameters or such. All but not dwell on the past. We mostly want to reflect what our
this knowledge will be organisation should be in the next 75 years!
supplied by intelligent We want to have a dialog with you about our common
databases and software, future, how our industry will evolve, what resources it will
which will adapt and require, what kinds of knowledge will be needed and how it will
update our systems and be transferred. Most of all, we want to learn how can SPE con-
processes on a continu- tinue to be your go-to resource for finding whatever you need
ous, 24/7 basis. The in the polymer and plastics industry. From the K Show onward,
search for talent will shift we will be featuring our SPE logo in a Futuristic 75, which will
from finding the best remind us that SPE needs to remain the vehicle for this indus-
chemist or engineer to try for at least another 75 years.
employing the cleverest SPE — our past, our present, your future.
IT process person. _________________________________________________________
This is a paradigm shift. Please help us to reflect and to prepare for the future. Share your
Today, many of our plas- thoughts about the association, its history, and our industry’s
tics companies are led by future, in the Industry Exchange section of SPE’s online forum The
SPE CEO Wim de Vos CEOs who started their Chain: http://bit.ly/SPE_at_75

06-07 From SPE_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 2:40 PM Page 7
08-11 Design Notes_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 8:53 AM Page 8
DESIGN NOTES
Sustainable eyeglasses from

Down Under, with a German flair
J
By Robert Grace
ack Piper and his colleagues at Dresden Optics Pty. Ltd. The company’s co-founders – Bruce Jeffreys and Jason
in Australia want to put a new face on the business of McDermott – describe themselves as frustrated glasses-
eyeglasses. At the same time, they believe strongly in wearers. Because, they note, glasses are annoying. “You lose
environmental stewardship and a circular economy. And so them, you break them. You scratch them. You forget them.
they’re doing their modest bit to drive that concept forward They’re fragile, expensive and hopelessly inconvenient.”
– one set of recyclable glasses at a time. Jeffreys and McDermott decided to do something about
it. They conceived the idea for a new type of eyewear com-
pany in late 2013 and opened their first shop in July 2015.
They were attracted to a craft excellence and to the German
approach to both design and manufacturing. “We admire
how Germany has maintained its traditions, yet has a hyper-
modern, progressive edge,” they said. Hence, the adoption
of the name Dresden Optics (after the German city of Dres-
den) for a startup company in the Sydney suburb of
Newtown.
The founders’ one rule when first assembling its new team,
explained Piper, the firm’s head of research and development,
was that no one was allowed to be from the optics industry.
Piper – the Canberra-born son of United Nations officials –
has lived all over the world, earned a structural engineering
degree from the University of Sydney and did his honors
research in water storage solutions for drought-stricken vil-
lages in the mountains of Nepal.
“Despite having no experience in manufacturing or plas-
tics,” he said recently, “we were determined to do it our
ourselves. The more we learnt about various methods of
manufacturing, the more we realized how much fun we could
have with injection molding. In our ignorance we assumed
that once you had a mold you could just throw anything you
liked in there so we started mucking around with recycled
Dresden Optics offers a single style of eyeglass frame, with
interchangeable parts. It prides itself on its vast array of col- plastics and bioplastics and realized that though anything
ors – some are one-of-a-kind because they choose not to might be a bit strong, there was a lot out there that we could
fully purge the injection press between runs. get away with.”

08-11 Design Notes_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 2:46 PM Page 9
The Dresden team’s vision was to create simple yet stylish glasses cases.” instead of a classic screw hinge, the frustrating
eyeglasses that were very durable, lightweight, inexpensive weak point on most glasses, Dresden frames have a plastic
and made locally. The injection molded plastic frames – made hinge ‘pin’ that allows one to interchange any parts without
from Swiss compounder EMS-grivory’s grilamid TR90 nylon the need for tools, and the arms and frames can be pieced
– are fully recyclable. together in any combination. The firm currently makes its
Dresden also has been experimenting with making eyeglass hinge system from a bio-based copolyester called Ecozen,
frames from recycled waste plastics recovered from the fol- which it sources from SK chemicals in South Korea.
lowing diverse sources: low-density polyethylene milk bottle The firm already is selling glasses made from the above-
lids, high-density polyethylene keg caps, and polypropylene noted types of recycled plastics and, by working with
takeaway containers – all from newtown cafés and brewers; companies such as compounder Duromer Products Pty. ltd.,
recycled PET (rPET) from a local recycler; and recycled nylon- they continue to work to achieve 100 percent recycled content.
6 ghost fishing nets from a Byron Bay marine debris collector. Separately, Dresden is thrilled with its recent success with
They’ve also explored using a castor-oil-based bioplastic from using discarded fishing nets, washed up on the beach in arn-
Evonik. hem land on the country’s northern coast. “Our ghost net
The company trusts that when consumers who buy a pair nylon-6 frames are fantastically strong at the weld lines,” said
of their low-cost, recycled-plastic frames will be willing to trade Piper, “despite [the waste plastic] having floated around the
off a little in product durability to be part of the environmental Pacific for years on end.”
solution. Over the coming year, Piper said, the firm plans to launch
“Taking out the technical jargon,” Piper said, “our durability a number of “ranges,” but unlike others in the eyeglass industry,
standards are all about that unfortunate basketball to the all will be of the same style. “What’s new with each range is
face in the school yard.” He noted that playing with many recy- instead the material and story behind them. … There is so
cled materials brings a few challenges, and that Dresden is much to be recycled with so many stories to tell,” Piper notes.
still searching for the right additive to increase the strength He explained that his company’s eyeglass system is built
of the weld lines in the frames made from recycled lDPE milk around a single frame style in four sizes in a vast array of col-
bottles and HDPE keg caps. it has partly addressed the strength ors. customers find the best fit in the color combos that they
problem by blending polypropylene with the polyethylene, choose. all parts are interchangeable.
but that makes end-of-life recycling a bigger challenge. The project began with Dresden asking Sydney-based indus-
So Dresden has set up a closed-loop system with Melbourne- trial design firm Vert to research australians’ face shapes and
based Replas australia, which can successfully recycle such sizes and test frame styles via 3D-printed prototypes. One
mixed plastics into useful products such as outdoor furniture classic favorite has become Dresden’s universal frame. From
and decking. Over the past 20 years, Replas has grown from there, they realized that frame sets could easily be customized
a waste collector and mixed-plastics recycler into one of the with interchangeable parts. The result was four frame
country’s leading plastic product manufacturers in its own sizes and four lengths of arm, to accommodate different fits.
right. The system allows customers to customize their look by
Piper says that, “So far we’ve produced fully recyclable changing out frame and arm colors and materials. as for the
glasses, even replacing the hinge with a plastic pin, so that interchangeable lenses – supplied by Zeiss Vision care, a local
with our take-back program all our glasses at the end of their arm of the century-old german optics pioneer – Dresden
life – along with our industrial waste – will be turned into cuts them in-store to allow for additional flexibility, function-
Dresden sources its used plastics from many sources – from LDPE milk bottle lids (above left) and HDPE beer keg caps, to PP
takeaway food containers and nylon 6 fishing nets (above right). Sydney-based automotive supplier Astor Industries molds the
frames (above middle).
www.plasticsengineering.org | www.4spe.org | SEPTEMBER 2016 | PlaSTicS EnginEERing | 9

DESIGN NOTES
prescriptions on the road. the dream,” Dresden says, “is to

have a mini DiY granulator and injection molder recycling
people’s waste into glasses frames along the way.”
And, speaking of waste, Piper noted that the company’s
leaders realized very early on what a negative impact they
could have on the environment if they were to manufacture
plastic frames irresponsibly. “this realization drove our man-
ufacturing process and today one of the first things you’ll notice
when you walk into our shops is that the colors never end.
“On our first day of manufacturing,” he recalled, “we
couldn’t believe how much material was wasted in purging
machines from one color to the next, so instead of stubbornly
sticking to a set color range, we started capturing all the
transitions between each color. the result is an endless color
range with unique pieces that might never be repeated.”
“to us,” the company notes on its website, “quality doesn’t
mean perfection down to the last micron or shade of Pan-
Jack Piper, head of Dresden’s R&D, sorts beer keg caps that
tone. Yes, we’ve got 16 regular colors in our range. But
the firm plans to recycle into eyeglass components. The
between every run, we’re looking forward to some happy
firm’s goal is to eventually make all its products from 100%
recycled resin. accidents.”
“the plan,” Piper noted, “is to bring Dresden to all major
cities around Australia by next year, with our trailer on the
road bringing eye health services and Dresden specs to Aus-
ality and convenience. it makes its plastic lenses from PPG tralians living in more remote communities. then it’s
industries inc.’s CR-39 allyl diglycol carbonate monomer. onwards! it’s an exciting unknown, but we’re dreaming of
Dresden has teamed up with manufacturing partner Astor L.A., Vancouver, taipei, Barcelona, just to get started. 2017
industries, an injection molder and plastics plater in western will be running at a million miles an hour and the liberty of
sydney that previously focused almost exclusively on making our mobile trailer means we really can be anywhere.”
car parts. But with Australia’s auto industry shrinking fast, “We’re on a mission,” declares the firm. Regardless of how
the firm was happy to branch out into the molding of eye- things play out, it would be fair to say – with tongue only
wear. partly in cheek – that Dresden Optics is a company with a
Dresden itself, meanwhile, has what it calls a “hobby” vision.
benchtop injection molding machine – from U.s.-based Medi-
um Machinery LLC – in its newtown workshop. it’s there, the
firm says, that “we’ve brewed up experimental frames on ABOUT THE AUTHOR
the spot – one-offs made from milk bottle lids, A 35-year B2B media veteran, Robert Grace was the
plastic ocean waste, or even plastic keys from a discarded founding editor of Plastics
keyboard. We’ll give anything a try.” News in 1989. An ardent
this past spring Dresden signed leases on space in sydney design advocate, he struck
for two more retail shops. Once these are up and running, out on his own in 2014 and
Piper said he hopes to build one of the Precious Plastic founded RC Grace LLC
machines – referring to the do-it-yourself plastic recycling (www.rcgrace.com), a consul-
machine created and offered for free online as an open- tancy through which he
source design by Dutch entrepreneur Dave Hakkens (see offers a variety of services –
http://bit.ly/Precious_Plastic). from content creation, free-
“We’ve built a trailer that will take eye health services and lance editing, marketing and
thousands of Carl Zeiss prescription lenses to rural Australia PR, event organizing, and
where these services are very limited, to test eyes and fulfil business development.
10 | PLAstiCs EnGinEERinG | sEPtEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

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12-21 Cover Story Toensmeier_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 9:12 AM Page 12
COVER STORY
Power Drive
Weight-reduction goals accelerate the development and use of
high-performance thermoplastics for underhood applications
By Pat Toensmeier
Ford used materials substitution to trim 800 lbs off this Focus, in a project co-funded by the U.S. Department of Energy.
Photo credit: Ford

M
aterials substitution is gaining traction in an increasing num-
ber of critical automotive areas, as OEMs take advantage of
evolving thermoplastic technologies to achieve ever-higher
levels of component performance.
Many advances are focused on groundbreaking applications in
engines and powertrains. OEMs are tapping the properties of a new
generation of high-performance engineering resins to replace met-
al and some polymers in engines, transmissions and other powertrain
components with thermoplastics that withstand harsh end-use con-
ditions, notably heat.
An important factor influencing this is ongoing efforts to Regulatory initiatives and global sales also narrow differ-
reduce vehicle weight. Regulatory initiatives such as the ences in automotive development and, in a manner of
CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) program in the U.S. speaking, level the playing field when it comes to material
and the Euro 6 exhaust gas standard in the European Union requirements.
are pushing OEMs to design vehicles for greater fuel effi- “Traditionally, European automakers have held a lead in
ciency, with the ultimate aim of reducing carbon emissions. innovation due to the regulations they deal with, but U.S.
As a result, automakers in North America, Europe and Asia automakers are catching up,” says Scott Schlicker, power-
are refining designs to comply with these and other man- train market segment manager at BASF. The result is that
dates by reducing component weight, sometimes only by a most high-performance automotive thermoplastics, no mat-
few grams or ounces. ter where they are developed, have broad global applicability
CAFE standards call for 54.5-mpg fuel ratings in cars and for auto OEMs whose needs are increasingly the same.
light-duty trucks by model year 2025. This figure is an aver- In addition to the properties of lightweighting, heat resist-
age for a carmaker’s fleet rather than a goal for each model, ance, and acoustic and vibration management, OEMs are
and is based on mileage tests under ideal conditions. The specifying new-generation thermoplastics with other prop-
actual figure most vehicles achieve, analysts say, will be erties in mind. These include:
around 36 mpg. • Part consolidation. While a traditional benefit of plas-
Predictably, weight reduction creates tradeoffs in per- tics, in underhood and powertrain applications it
formance, especially under the hood. Small engines, for potentially eliminates bolt-on components—usually of
example, are fuel efficient, but have less power, and con- metal—that add weight to a vehicle, as well as costly
sumers do not want underpowered cars. OEMs, notably in secondary finishing and installation steps during fabri-
Europe, get around this by turbocharging small engines to cation.
boost horsepower. This increases engine compartment heat, • Rapid process cycles. Since many thermoplastics are
along with noise and vibration. As a result, for passenger injection or blow molded, parts can be made faster,
comfort resin suppliers are formulating thermoplastics to more precisely and, importantly, more economically
resist high underhood heat, as well as control NVH (noise, than if cast in metal and finished to spec.
vibration and harshness) acoustics generated by tur- • Sustainability. Most thermoplastics, even those with
bocharging. glass or carbon fiber reinforcements, are recyclable and
The ability of thermoplastics to meet such multiple require- can be reused in lower-performing parts, whether in
ments is especially important as automakers add universal automotive or other industries.
engines and powertrains that are designed for use around • Standardization. Major resin producers with global
the world, rather than particular countries or regions. operations maintain they can supply materials any-

COVER STORY
Power Drive
where in the world with consistent specifications and Polimotor, the concept has been around since the early
costs for universal engines, powertrains and other com- 1980s. The brainchild of Matti Holtzberg, president of Com-
ponents. posite Castings LLC of West Palm Beach, Fla., Polimotor 2, as
The ongoing developments in high-performance ther- the current design is called, seeks to develop a polymer-rich,
moplastics—many of which will be on display in October at 2,000cc (122-cu.-in.) engine that weighs 138 to 148 lbs, or
K 2016 in Germany—are giving automakers the tools they some 90 lbs less than a standard metal production engine
need to rethink ways in which engine and powertrain com- of the same size.
ponents can be designed for diverse needs. The fuel-injected Polimotor 2 is a four-cylinder, 16-valve,
double-overhead-cam engine. Holtzberg says it will gener-
ate 280 hp in a racing version and 180 hp in a street model.
Resurgent Polymer Engine He plans to install the racing engine later this year in a Stohr
Resin supplier DuPont has said that eliminating 110 lbs of WF1 Sports Racer, which is manufactured by Dauntless Rac-
vehicle weight would reduce CO2 emissions 5 grams/km ing Cars of Vacaville, Calif., and test performance in races
(0.6 mi.) and raise fuel efficiency by up to 2%. sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America.
In the U.S., this would generate major benefits in lower Holtzberg selected the Stohr WF1 because it is lightweight
carbon emissions and fuel consumption, based on car and and configured for four-cylinder engines. Making extensive
light-duty truck sales. Figures developed by the Automotive use of carbon fiber in its construction, the car weighs just
News Data Center show the tally for vehicle sales in 2015 at 780 lbs and has a 97-in. wheelbase.
just under 17.5 million, up 5.7% from 2014, and a 15-year The Polimotor engine, despite some reports, is not entire-
high. ly made of plastics. Metal parts include the crankcase,
So imagine the environmental impact if another 90 lbs camshaft, pistons, cylinder sleeves and cylinder bores.
was extracted from the engine alone. However, the engine block, cam block and oil pan are fab-
This is one goal of an ongoing project to develop a com- ricated with an undisclosed thermoset resin in a special
mercially feasibly polymer-rich automotive engine. Called process Holtzberg developed. He declines to provide details
Polimotor 2, developed by Matti Holtzberg, is

a plastics-rich engine that weighs 90 lbs less
than comparable metal engines. The Polimotor 2 engine will be installed and tested in a Stohr WF1 racecar.
Photo credit: Solvay Photo credit: Dauntless Racing Cars

but likens it to compression molding without heat and pres-

sure. The thermoset components are reinforced with an
undisclosed loading of S-glass fiber, which he says works
better in the application than carbon fiber.
As many as 10 parts are made mostly with thermoplas-
tics and other materials supplied by Solvay Advanced
Polymers, including a fuel runner and plenum fabricated
with 3-D printing.
“We are involved with the Polimotor 2 engine to introduce
polymers and processing techniques that have become avail-
able in the last five years,” says Brian Baleno, Solvay’s global
automotive business development manager.
Solvay in effect inherited the Polimotor project from Amo-
co, whose engineering polymers business it acquired in late
2000. Amoco had worked on earlier Polimotor versions, sup-
plying such material as Torlon polyamide-imide (PAI) resin.
Baleno says that the experience Solvay gains in supply-
ing materials for Polimotor 2 parts will encourage
“outside-the-box thinking” in the auto industry when it comes Red areas are prime targets of turbocharged engine parts
to applying high-performance thermoplastics and similar molded of high-heat thermoplastics from BASF.
materials to weight-reduction goals in engine applications. Photo credit: BASF
The project is generating interest. Holtzberg is building

an engine for an undisclosed German OEM and fielding inter-
est from automakers elsewhere, including North America.
The Solvay materials and components include: (PPA) and Tecnoflon PL855 fluoroelastomer for, respec-
• AvaSpire AV-651 CF30 (30% carbon-fiber reinforcement) tively, a water inlet/outlet fixture in the cooling system
polyaryletherketone (PAEK) for three injection molded and a chemical- and heat-resistant seal for the device.
sections of the external dry-sump modular oil pump The fixture retains tensile strength and seal integrity
housing. Each section weighs 0.2 lbs They replace an after exposure to ethylene glycol at 275°F. Functional
aluminum housing that weighs 0.42 lbs PAEK provides temperature range is -40 to 392°F.
strength, stiffness and fatigue resistance, and withstands • Ryton XK-2340 (40% glass fiber) polyphenylene sulfide
oil temperature of 284° F and internal pressure cycling (PPS) to mold an 18-in. fuel rail and Tecnoflon VPL 85540
of 2.8 to 5.5 bars. fluoroelastomer for its seven O-rings. The PPS offers a
• KetaSpire KT-820 CF30 (30% carbon fiber) poly- balance of high-temperature chemical resistance and
etheretherketone (PEEK) for an 18-in. oil scavenger line dimensional stability, while the O-rings have low cold-
on the dry-sump modular oil pump. The part is extrud- temperature flexibility and fuel compatibility. The fuel
ed from a stock shape then machined to spec. PEEK’s rail weighs 25 to 30% less than a welded steel assem-
dimensional stability holds tolerance during machining, bly.
while its high modulus and fatigue resistance withstand The 3-D-printed parts are a fuel intake runner fabricated
continuous use at 464°F. The material also resists auto- from KetaSpire KT-820 (10% carbon fiber) PEEK, and a plenum
motive fluids. chamber made by selective laser sintering (a form of 3-D
• Torlon 7130 (30% carbon fiber) PAI for three cam sprock- printing) using Sinterline Technyl polyamide 6 powder with
ets, two of which are 4 in. dia. and one 2 in. dia. The a 40% loading of glass beads for dimensional stability.
sprockets assure precise timing control, and resist high The PEEK fuel intake runner withstands high underhood
torque, extreme temperatures and vibration, fluids, dirt temperatures generated by turbocharging the engine. It
and road salt. They weigh 75% less than stainless steel reportedly outperforms molded polyamide (PA) resin in this
sprockets, and are molded in net shape and machined. application, and weighs 50% less than the aluminum run-
• Amodel A-8930 (30% glass fiber) HS polyphthalamide ner used on previous Polimotor versions.

COVER STORY
Power Drive
The sintered PA6 plenum chamber can be used with tur- Ecoboost engine. The LCF components save 4 lbs per engine,
bocharged metal engines and resists 250°F, though the he reports, and provide a per-component mass savings of
Polimotor 2 engine will generate heat in the 150 to 200°F 23% for the front cover and 33% for the oil pan.
range. The value of the composite parts can be enhanced by
Solvay is also looking to apply its expertise in high-heat component integration during molding and reduced man-
plastics to electric vehicles. “High-temperature materials will ufacturing steps compared with aluminum.
allow electric cars to operate at higher temperatures, which Among grades BASF has developed for high-heat auto-
means they can get greater power density in batteries and motive applications is Ultramid Advanced N polyphthalamide,
extend their range,” Baleno says. a line of reinforced (short- or long-glass fibers) and unrein-
forced compounds including flame-retardant grades.
During a pre-K conference in June in Germany, BASF offi-
New Materials Save Weight cials said the Advanced N line of PPA exceeds the properties
Several years ago the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) of conventional PPA—glass-transition temperature is 125°C,
launched and co-funded the Multi-Material Lightweight Vehi- double that of standard grades, and constant mechanical
cle (MMLV) project with Ford and engineering and prototype properties are maintained up to 100°C. The grades are
specialist Vehma International. The goal was to develop a reportedly easier to mold, with short cycle times and wide
vehicle that achieves significant weight reduction by mate- processing windows.
rials substitution. The heat-resistant properties of the PPAs meet the needs
The result was a Ford Fusion modified with substitute mate- of such turbocharged engine parts as integrated charge air
rials including thermoplastics that trimmed more than 800 coolers, air intake manifolds and turbo ducts, where air input
lbs from the car’s original curb weight of almost 3,500 lbs. and output temperatures range from 170 to 210°F.
The latest MMLV initiative involves DOE working with BASF BASF noted at the conference that Ultramid Advanced N
and molder Montaplast of North America Inc. to develop resins could be used “to design lighter, smaller and stronger
advanced composite powertrain components. components for challenging environments where other
BASF, says Schlicker, formulated a long-carbon-fiber (LCF) materials reach their limits.” These include “structural parts
PA66 composite called Ultramid XA-3370 to replace a cast alu- near [an] engine and gearbox in contact with hot, aggres-
minum front cover and structural oil pan on Ford’s 1.0L GTDI sive media and different fuels.”
BASF’s Endure PA66 is used in an air-intake spacer to replace A charged air cooler inlet uses heat-stabilized Vydyne
aluminum (left). The spacer has molded-in holes that create PA66 from Ascend to withstand high operating
turbulence for better mixing and temperature control. temperature and pressure.
Photo credit: BASF Photo credit: Ascend Performance Materials

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COVER STORY
Power Drive
Schlicker says that BASF has developed injection moldable In development is a PA66 grade that withstands 3,000
PA6, PA66 and PA66/6 grades for the high pressure and tem- hours of aging exposure at 210°C. A patent search is under
perature that turbocharger components must withstand. way, Jeszke says, and the material is “on the horizon for us.”
Depending on the base polymer and stabilization system, grades Ascend’s expertise in polyamide formulations extends to
resist heat aging to 220°C and have high burst pressure and related requirements for underhood parts. Vydyne R533H
weld strength. Ultramid Endure PA, for example, withstands is a PA66 grade tailored to resist calcium chloride, a road
constant-use temperature of 220°C and peaks to 240°C. salt used in some countries including northern parts of the
In one application an OEM used a grade of Endure PA66 U.S. and Canada in place of sodium chloride. Calcium chlo-
to redesign an air-intake spacer on a turbocharger. The new ride can cause premature cracking in PA parts under load or
part, which replaces aluminum, has molded-in holes that pressure.
create air turbulence for better mixing and temperature The company also supplies a highly filled grade of PA66
control. called R550H to replace metal in engine mounts. Jeszke says
BASF also supplies Endure PA blow molding grades. this has a 40 to 65% loading of barium sulfate, dense filler
Notable among these, Schlicker says, is D5G3BM, a heat- that prevents underhood noise from being transmitted to a
stabilized, 15% glass fiber-reinforced PA66 with continuous- passenger compartment. It can also be used in transmis-
use temperature of 220°C and peak to 240°C. Intended for sions to dampen the noise of shifting gears, and even in
engine pipes and ducts, benefits include high melt stability, power seats to silence the inflation of a lumbar support. The
which maintains parison length and wall thickness during material isn’t less heavy than metal, he remarks, but is qui-
blow molding, and acoustic properties. eter, and so appeals to high-end car manufacturers.
The first use of grade D5G3BM, Schlicker notes, is on an DSM Engineering Plastics, meanwhile, commercialized
engine with a heat-resistance requirement of 200°C. He Arnitel HT copolyester elastomer for flexible blow molded
declines to identify the part or OEM but says the applica- charge air ducts. The material allows cost-efficient, one-step
tion will be at the K show. production of parts with a single resin, rather than the mate-
Tailoring PA Properties
Polyamides, of course, are dominant in underhood appli-
cations. Phil Jeszke, automotive segment leader at Ascend
Performance Materials, a global nylon supplier, says 1.3 bil-
lion lbs of PA66 is used worldwide in 80% of underhood,
engine-cooling and powertrain components. Since 2009, he
adds, demand has more than doubled.
These applications are, consequently, major R&D areas
for Ascend, especially as they pertain to turbocharged
engines. “As we map this space and identify performance
requirements, we develop different property retention char-
acteristics,” Jeszke says.
Recent developments include glass fiber-reinforced Vydyne
PA66 grades heat stabilized for such parts as radiator end
tanks that withstand 1,000 hours of aging exposure at 125
to 130°C, or resist 2,000 or 3,000 hours at 115 to 125°C.
Other critical materials include H series Vydyne resins for
air ducts on charge air coolers, a turbocharger component
that reintroduces cooled exhaust gas to an engine. Jeszke
says these grades, R530, R535 and R550 (the last two num- A new grade of Arnitel HT copolyester elastomer from DSM
bers indicate glass-fiber loading), resist 190 to 210°C exposure allows one-piece blow molding of charge air ducts, with
on the inlet side of a charge air cooler and 170 to 190°C on improved parison control.
the outlet side. Photo credit: DSM Engineering Plastics

„driven by innovation“
FDC (fast dimension change)
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battenfeld-cincinnati USA
phone: +1 620 241 6843
HPDLOXVD#EDWWHQIHOGFLQFLQQDWLFRP
www.battenfeld-cincinnati.com/usa
COVER STORY
Power Drive
rial combinations common to many such parts. DSM says

the grade reduces production cost by 50% and weight by
up to 40% compared with conventional ducts.
Arnitel HT withstands continuous operating temperatures
of 180°C and peaks to 190°C. It combines elasticity and
mechanical strength, and provides high chemical resistance,
the company said in announcing the resin in June. Ducts can
be 3-D suction blow molded in one piece with an almost
50% reduction in wall thickness versus standard ducts.
The first commercial use of the resin is for an undisclosed
duct produced by Cikautxo of Spain.
Noise Abatement
Turbocharged engines and smaller engine compartments
mean effective management of NVH acoustics plays a grow-
ing role in design.
Dow Automotive Plastics is addressing this with a
polyurethane foam hood liner material that combines low
density—15 grams/liter—and low weight with sound-damp- Specflex PUR foam from Dow is designed for NVH acoustic
ening properties. Called Specflex, the system is designed management in hood liners and engine parts.
for a range of acoustic needs, says Esther Quintanilla, Euro- Photo credit: Dow Automotive Plastics
pean marketing manager for interior and underhood.
Specflex foam can be applied to the underside of a hood,
typically as a part of a multilayer thermoformed structure,
on top of an engine, on the back wall of the engine com-
partment, applied to a transmission tunnel as an insulator, Specflex, which can be foamed into 1-meter-sq. (3.3-ft.-
or used in carpet and dashboard systems. sq.) blocks, offers consistent properties no matter where
The material replaces melamine and polyolefin foams and sections are cut—from the top, middle, bottom or sides of
other options. In addition to acoustic properties, the PUR foam a block. “Since every cut can constitute a different part of a
has reduced amine content and thus lower emissions than hood liner, it’s important that performance be the same
most conventional foams, as well as good flow and fast cure. throughout,” Quintanilla says.
Specflex is a three-component, water-blown system con- Foam formulations are customizable to end-use specifi-
sisting of Dow’s Voranol 4701 polyether polyol, isocyanate cations.
and catalyst. The polyol is tailored for semi-flexible molded Dow is working with OEMs to qualify Specflex foam for
foam and consistent properties. global use.

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22-27 Malnati Auto Composites_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 9:14 AM Page 22
AUTOMOTIVE COMPOSITES
Automotive Composites:
Mass Reduction for Mass Production
Reinforced plastics lower weight, improve handling and performance,
and boost safety on passenger cars
By Peggy Malnati
L
“ ightweighting” is the mantra du jour in the automotive of design, material and process technologies that reduce
industry these days, especially for those designing and mass on anything from wiring harnesses to seat structures
producing parts. As the industry passes the midpoint to chassis components is growing. It’s a good time to be
phase-in of the much stricter fuel-efficiency and tailpipe involved in automotive plastics and composites.
emissions standards of 2025, OEM interest in and support As is so often the case, replacing heavier materials with com-
posites to reduce mass isn’t the only benefit that automakers
and their tier suppliers gain. Generally, they also benefit from
far greater design freedom (including parts consolidation
with reduced assembly time and costs, and carryover savings
in inventory storage/tracking and warranty claims); elimination
of corrosion (and occasionally the paint and primer that pro-
tect against it); increased damage resistance (and often
improved crashworthiness); lower noise/vibration/harshness
New sizing chemistry for tougher hol-

low glass microspheres and a new
form of glass roving combined to
lower specific gravity (SG) for sheet-
molding compound used to compres-
sion mold up to 21 painted exterior
body panels on GM’s 2016 model year
Chevrolet Corvettes. Molder
Continental Structural Plastics devel-
oped the unique sizing and special
1.6-SG SMC compound, which is said
to make the material competitive
with aluminum at any production
volume.
(Part photo courtesy of SPE Automotive
Division; vehicle photo courtesy of General
Motors Co.)

(nVH) for a quieter ride; and lower tooling and part-produc- a typical SMc recipe involves use of resin – in this case,
tion costs. unsaturated polyester supplied by aOc llc of collierville,
another indirect benefit is so-called “mass decompounding.” Tenn. – as well as additives, chopped fiberglass, and mineral
By reducing the weight of a hood or decklid/liftgate, for exam- fillers (usually calcium carbonate, or cacO3). lower-density
ple, other mass can be removed from the assembly by going grades of SMc often have some portion of cacO3 replaced by
to lighter hinges, latches and struts, helping cut mass and costs hollow glass microspheres, which are more costly and require
further. The applications that follow are good examples of the more care during compounding and molding because they are
many benefits that come from mass reduction by using com- sensitive to process conditions and can crush. cSP researchers
posites. Each part was a finalist, category winner, or grand believed that if they could reach a density of 1.2 Sg with their
award winner in the 2015 SPE automotive innovation awards SMc, they could directly compete cost wise against aluminum,
competition. while offering the benefits of much lower mass, elimination of
rust/corrosion, better energy absorption in low- and high-
speed crashes, and far greater design freedom ― a boon to
Improved adhesion while saving mass designers on cars sporting the kinds of compound-curve
With all the pressure to cut weight from vehicles, much time styling that epitomizes corvettes.
and effort are focused on finding ways to trim a few grams to given the sensitivity of the microspheres, cSP researchers
a kilogram of mass from auto parts. However, a reformulated, sought a tougher, higher performance product (which they
lower-density grade of sheet-molding compound (SMc), eventually sourced from 3M co. of St. Paul, Minn.), and they
formulated and compression molded by continental Structural also set out to improve interfacial adhesion with the matrix.
Plastics (cSP) of auburn Hills, Mich., has reduced mass an after much trial and error with a scanning electron microscope
average of 9 kg (20 lbs.) on a total of 21 exterior body-panel and different sizing chemistries, cSP developed a formulation
assemblies for 2016 model year chevrolet corvette sports cars in-house that not only greatly improved part performance, but
from Detroit-based general Motors co. Reportedly, this was also offered visibly better matrix adhesion under the
accomplished without lowering mechanical performance or microscope.
necessitating process or tooling changes.
The new tough class a grade, which cSP calls Tca Ultra lite,
has a specific gravity (Sg) of 1.2, a value the company says is
28% lighter than its Tca lite 1.6-Sg, mid-density grade, and 43%
lighter than conventional 1.9-Sg SMc. cSP also reports that the
formulation is equally appropriate for painted, class a
applications such as the corvette painted body panels, as
well as for non-visible structural applications.
Injection molded long-glass PA 6/6 and

barium sulfate have replaced stamped
and painted steel for an engine-com-
partment partition wall on 2015
Hyundai Genesis luxury sedans. The
composite partition wall reduced mass
by 20%, and improved sound damping
by 8 dB while also reducing part count
and assembly time, and eliminating
paint.
(Part photo courtesy of SPE automotive Division;
vehicle photo courtesy of Hyundai Motor group.)

As an added bonus, that work helped researchers better are required. Better still, CSP claims its numbers show that
understand long-standing issues with paint adhesion on TCA Ultra Lite saves money vs. aluminum even at production
certain SMC parts. The problem, it turned out, wasn’t the volumes as high as 350,000-400,000 vehicles per year.
strength of the bond between paint and part surface, but
rather between the matrix and microsphere surface. By
strengthening the latter, the former was improved as well, Damping sound at lower weight
leading to better part bonding with paint and adhesive. Still Engine-compartment partition walls help keep engine noise
another formulation change that helped reduce mass without out of the passenger compartment for a more comfortable
loss of mechanicals was switching to ME1975 fiberglass, a ride. In addition to good NVH values, such parts also need
new multi-end glass roving from Toledo, Ohio-based Owens stiffness and strength, the durability to last 161,000 km
Corning that is specifically formulated for use in unsaturated (100,000 miles), and thermal stability to 160°C (320°F), since
polyester SMC where high strength and corrosion resistance they are mounted near the exhaust system. A composite
engine-compartment partition wall has replaced stamped
steel on 2015 model year Hyundai Genesis luxury sedans
from South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group. The steel part
offered good stiffness, strength, dimensional stability and
sound insulation, but was heavy and needed paint to prevent
corrosion. Injection molded neat plastic was cost effective,
but had poor NVH values, dimensional stability, stiffness, and
strength.
Researchers experimented with combinations of polymer
(Kopla KDX 1065 PA 6/6 resin from South Korea’s Kopla Co.
Ltd.), reinforcements and fillers to improve performance of
Ford Motor Co. last year intro-

duced a hollow-spoked, all
carbon-fiber-reinforced com-
posite wheel as standard
equipment on its 2016 model
year Ford Shelby GT350R
Mustangs. Australia’s Carbon
Revolution Pty. Ltd. makes the
single-piece wheel using a pro-
prietary resin system via resin
transfer molding. Replacing
aluminum with composite not
only reduced mass but also
lowered rotational inertia,
and improved steering, accel-
eration and braking.
(Part photo courtesy of SPE
Automotive Division; vehicle photo
courtesy of Ford Motor Co.)

the plastic option. They compounded combinations of short sold with full warranty coverage. The single-piece, painted
and long glass fiber with several mineral fillers (barium wheel is made by infusing a dry carbon fiber preform with a
sulfate (BaSO4), iron oxide (FeO), and wollastonite (calcium proprietary resin system via the resin transfer molding (RTM)
inosilicate/caSiO3). The formulation with the best balance of process.
mechanicals, nVH, and weight featured 15% long-glass fiber System supplier, material processor, and tooling supplier
and 50% BaSO4. The patent-pending application is supplied carbon Revolution Pty. ltd. of Waurn Ponds, australia, does
by nVH Korea using tools supplied by Hyundai. not only does say it uses a high-Tg resin to meet extreme track performance
the new part reduce mass by 20% without increasing costs, where brake-rotor temps can reach 900°c (1,652°F). This
but it also improves sound damping by 8 dB while reducing necessitated use of a novel ceramic thermal barrier applied
part count and assembly time, and eliminating the cost and via plasma arc to the inner barrel surface and back of the
environmental issues of paint. spokes. The polymer also provides high yield stress and
elongation, and abrasion and weathering resistance. carbon
Revolution designed the closed-cell, foam-filled spokes for
Reduced mass, improved handling maximum stiffness at low weight, while aluminum lug seats
if you’ve been around the automotive industry for a while, and backer plates are slip-fit (via c-clips) around the
you’ve seen many attempts to make composite wheels on composite for a robust joint after machining bores into the
passenger cars work ― with lots of development effort and wheel. The manufacturer even embeds a radio-frequency
marketing promise, but few commercial successes. However, identification chip in each wheel to record and track
that’s changing with a new wheel introduced last year by manufacturing and quality history. Replacing aluminum
Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford Motor co. as standard equipment with a composite reduced wheel weight by 27 kg (59.5 lbs)
on its 2016 model year Ford Shelby gT350R Mustang. The per car and lowered rotational inertia by 40%, thereby pro-
product is said to be the first high-volume, original-equipment, viding faster, more responsive steering, and improved
carbon fiber-reinforced composite wheel designed to meet all acceleration and braking.
OEM requirements and quality standards, and produced and

sequently welded these flanges to the rocker during injection

Hybrid rocker improves crashworthiness molding, thereby eliminating the need for structural adhe-
at lower weight sives. The part reportedly proved to be a very efficient,
A plastic/metal hybrid floor rocker reinforcement on 2015 energy-absorbing crash-box structure, reducing intrusion lev-
model year Jeep Renegade sport-utility vehicles from FCA US els during U.S. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 214
LLC of Auburn Hills, Mich., removed 1 kg (2.2 lbs) of mass testing for dynamic side-impact protection. Furthermore, not
from the body-in-white, lowered direct costs by about 10%, only is the plastic/metal hybrid rocker reinforcement capa-
and also contributed tooling savings vs. the earlier all-steel ble of being e-coated (electrophoretic/anti-corrosion coating),
solution. Less than half the weight of the incumbent design, but it is easy to assemble to the vehicle’s body-in-white and
the part’s optimized honeycomb geometry uses SABIC’s is said to offer comparable performance to high-strength
Noryl GTX 910 modified polyphenylene ether/polyamide 6 steel. Given that there are 10-12 similar reinforcement junc-
(MPPE/PA6) alloy and is integrally attached to two steel tions on a typical vehicle, there is an even greater opportunity
flanges. System supplier Proma Group of Caserta, Italy, sub- to trim 5.4-8.2 kg (12-18 lbs) of mass from the body-in-white
by using the same technology.
Learn about the latest in automotive composites at SPE’s
16th annual Automotive Composites Conference & Exhibition
(ACCE) from Sept. 7-9, and the 46th annual Automotive
Innovation Awards Gala on Nov. 9, both in the Detroit
suburbs (see http://speautomotive.com).
A plastic/metal hybrid floor

rocker reinforcement from FCA
US LLC on 2015 model year
Jeep Renegade SUVs removed 1
kg of mass from the body-in-
white and lowered direct costs
by about 10%. It also proved to
be a very efficient, energy-
absorbing crash-box structure
during U.S. Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 214
testing for dynamic side-
impact protection.
(Part photo courtesy of SPE
Automotive Division; vehicle photo
courtesy of FCA US LLC.)

28-33 Evans K-Preview_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/21/16 7:21 AM Page 28
K 2016 preview:
Gearing up for the
world’s largest
plastics show
I
By Jon Evans
nnovation will be the word on everyone’s lips at this year’s K 2016 trade
fair, taking place in Düsseldorf, Germany, from Oct. 19-26.
“Innovative products are the most important asset in a competitive
environment,” says Werner Matthias Dornscheidt, president and CEO of
Messe Düsseldorf, which organizes and manages the K fair. “Only those
who can offer new technologies that bring real benefits to their customers
will be able to hold their own against strong competition.”
K 2016 — the world’s largest plastics fair — will feature 3,200 exhibitors from 60 nations and more than 200,000 visitors over 8 days

Covestro expert Roland Wagner observes the manufacture of a small component in Covestro´s new 3D printing laboratory at
its headquarters in Leverkusen, Germany. Photo courtesy of Covestro LLC.
Meanwhile, speaking at the company’s recent K 2016 pre- In its first K fair since being spun-off from Bayer AG and
view, Covestro LLC CEO Patrick Thomas said, “Our main changing its name, Covestro will be presenting a whole host
objective is to drive energy efficiency, improve people’s lives of new plastic materials, including materials for three-dimen-
and create value, while at the same time reducing our own sional (3D) printing. These will include various types of plastic
use of fossil resources. But developments of this kind are filament for a form of 3D printing known as fused filament
impossible without intensive and targeted innovation.” fabrication, in which the plastic filaments are melted before
As the premier trade fair for the plastics and rubber indus- being laid down in a desired pattern. The filaments range
try, the triennial K fair has always been a prime venue for from flexible thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU) to high-
companies to unveil their latest innovations. But K 2016 strength polycarbonate.
will place a major focus on four innovative themes of par- In addition, Covestro is able to offer TPU powders for
ticular importance for the future development of the global another form of 3D printing known as laser sintering, in
plastics industry – new materials; lightweight solutions; which the powders are laid down in a desired pattern before
resource efficiency; and industry 4.0. being solidified with a laser. Laser sintering is conventionally
These themes will feature heavily in both the Innovation used with metal powders, but TPU allows it to produce
Compass, which will bring together some of the innovative more flexible products, such as soles for shoes.
technologies being developed by the plastics industry, and The company also is actively developing a whole range of
the Science Campus, which will showcase the latest plastic new materials for 3D printing, with the aim of expanding
research being conducted by universities and research insti- beyond the around 30 or so materials that are currently avail-
tutes. The four themes will also feature in a special show able. To this end, the company recently opened a new 3D
called ‘Plastics shape the future”, which through panel dis- printing laboratory at its headquarters in Leverkusen, Ger-
cussions and multiple media will explore how plastic many. “We want to work with leading partners in the process
innovations will help to solve tomorrow’s challenges in func- chain to further advance these developments,” said Julien
tional, aesthetic and sustainable ways. Other issues such as Guiu, who leads the company’s global 3D printing activities.
marine litter will also be addressed during the show. “These include formulators, 3D printer manufacturers, soft-
As usual, however, the more than 3,000 exhibitors from five ware companies, service providers and of course OEMs.”
continents, spread over the 19 halls of the Düsseldorf exhi- Other companies will be presenting alternative approach-
bition center, will be the main draw of K 2016. But here, too, es for expanding the range of materials available for 3D
the four themes will feature heavily, as revealed in the K printing. For example, Wacker Chemie AG will debut the
2016 preview information that several companies have first ever industrial 3D printer specifically designed for sili-
already put out. cones, which are widely used for medical applications.

Preview
Known as the ACEO Imagine Series K, it employs a drop-on- materials is a solution to some of the biggest challenges of our
demand printing method developed by Wacker, in which time – finding a replacement for finite fossil resources such as
objects are built up by depositing individual droplets of sil- oil and gas and closing material cycles.” Covestro will market
icone on a surface and then hardening them with UV light. these polyols under the name Cardyon and already is work-
Producing medical devices is currently one of the fastest- ing on ways to produce other plastic materials from carbon
growing applications for 3D printing. “In these types of dioxide. Its ultimate aim is to dispense with crude oil as a feed-
applications, silicones can display their favorable properties stock in plastics production almost entirely.
particularly well,” said Bernd Pachaly, head of Wacker’s sili-
cones research and responsible for the ACEO team. “Silicones
are heat resistant, flexible at low temperatures, transparent
and biocompatible.”
In addition to offering this printer for sale, Wacker also is
allowing customers to order 3D-printed silicone parts, by
uploading their own designs in a web shop. These parts
will then be produced in Wacker’s new 3D printing technol-
ogy center, known as the ACEO campus, at its main site in
Burghausen, Germany.
BASF’s Ultrasim simulation tool can predict the behavior of

polyurethane systems during foaming in both open and
closed molds. Photo courtesy of BASF.
In contrast, other companies will be highlighting their efforts

to replace crude oil with biological material. For example,
BASF will be presenting ecovio EA, its new bio-based and com-
postable closed-cell foam material. With similar properties to
BASF’s ecovio EA is the first expandable, closed-cell foam expanded polystyrene, BASF is marketing ecovio EA for use as
material to be bio-based and certified compostable, and is transport packaging for high-value or delicate goods.
particularly suitable for transport packaging. The foam is made from a mixture of the widely used
Photo courtesy of BASF. biopolymer polylactic acid (PLA), derived from starch, and the
biodegradable BASF polymer ecoflex. BASF then produces it
by combining granules of ecovio EA with the blowing agent
As well as unveiling new materials, Covestro also will pres- pentane in an innovative foaming process. Even though
ent an entirely new approach to manufacturing plastic ecovio EA is perfectly stable and durable under normal envi-
materials, by using carbon dioxide as a raw material. This fol- ronmental conditions, BASF says it will break down in just five
lows its opening in June of a new production plant for polyols, weeks in an industrial composting plant, turning back into bio-
which are used to produce polyurethane foams, at its site in mass, carbon dioxide and water.
Dormagen, Germany. By taking advantage of a novel catalyt- Meanwhile, Wacker will be presenting novel ways to
ic process, this plant will use carbon dioxide generated by a enhance the physical properties of bio-based materials. It will
neighboring chemical company to produce about 20% of the be introducing its new Vinnex family of additives for bio-
polyols. plastics such as PLA and its Genioplast thermoplastic silicone
“We have to change the way we look at carbon dioxide, and additives for wood plastic composites (WPCs). Wacker says
we will,” said Thomas. “Using it as an alternative source of raw that its Vinnex polyvinyl acetate-based additives can make PLA

Engel’s novel injection molding technology uses fiber-rein- Covestro is now making polyols for polyurethane foams
forced thermoplastics to produce plastic components with using carbon dioxide as one of the feedstocks at its plant in
walls that are just 0.6mm. Photo courtesy of Engel. Dormagen, Germany. Photo courtesy of Covestro LLC.
easier to process, whether by extrusion, injection molding or energy-efficient technologies. The plastics industry already
even 3D printing. For example, Vinnex 2526 can optimize melt has made great strides in energy efficiency, with modern
and bubble stability during extrusion, while Vinnex 8880 can plastic processing machinery now using 20% to 50% less
enhance the flow properties of melted PLA during injection energy than 10 years ago. To their credit, however, com-
molding and 3D printing. panies are still finding room for improvement.
The primary role of Wacker’s new Genioplast additives is Battenfeld-Cincinnati, which recently adopted the motto
lubrication, thereby allowing the wood fibers that make up to ‘driven by innovation’, will be showcasing several new
75% of WPCs to bond with plastics such as polyethylene, extruders at K 2016, all of which are designed to maximize
polypropylene or polyvinyl chloride during extrusion molding. energy efficiency. For example, the company’s new single-
But Wacker’s novel additives can also enhance the WPCs’ screw extruder solEX NG 75 for the production of polyolefin
physical properties, conferring higher impact strength and flex- pipe offers a completely redesigned barrel-screw combi-
ural toughness and making them more resistant to weathering. nation that allows lower melt temperatures, reducing energy
This move to replace crude oil with carbon dioxide and bio- costs by about 15%.
logical material as feedstocks can be encompassed under “With the design of the new NG series we again prove our
the resource efficiency theme, but many exhibitors are tak- innovativeness,” says Grant Flaharty, Battenfeld-Cincin-
ing a more direct approach to this theme by introducing nati’s chief sales and marketing officer. “We have succeeded
Covestro’s prototype electric car includes holographic films that allow the headlamps and rear lights to be incorporated
directly into the chassis. Photo courtesy of Covestro LLC.

Preview
in developing an extremely powerful and energy-efficient ideal for producing tough but light cases for handheld
processing unit that has not yet been seen on the market electronic devices.
in this form.” Lightweight engineering is particularly in demand by the
Arburg will be presenting its new Allrounder Golden Elec- automotive and aerospace industries, and this need often is
tric injection molding machine, along with 26 others. The met by replacing metal with plastic materials. Royal DSM will
Allrounder Golden Electric is an entry-level electric machine be displaying its expanded range of ForTii high-performance
that employs several innovative technologies for reducing polyphthalamides (PPAs), which it is marketing to automotive
energy demand, including highly efficient servo motors and manufacturers as an alternative to the die-cast metal parts cur-
energy recovery during braking. The company also promis- rently used in the fuel system, chassis and suspension. The
es to unveil more new technologies at K 2016. company claims that replacing die-cast metal with its ForTii
TheAllrounder Golden Electric machine series made its PPAs, which can be reinforced with glass fiber and maintain
debut in March. “This was their mechanical strength at
What are you looking for at the K show?

the first product innovation temperatures above 100°C, can
for this year, but by no lead to cost and weight savings
means the last,” says Michael Tell us what you hope to achieve, and what of around 50%.
Hehl, managing partner of would make it successful for you. Join the BASF will also be launching a
Arburg. discussion in the Industry Exchange section new PPA portfolio under the
With touchscreens, easy-
of SPE’s online forum The Chain: Ultramid name. Called Ultra-
http://bit.ly/K_Show_goals
to-use control systems, mid Advanced N, this portfolio
on-board sensors and wire- comprises unreinforced PPA,
less monitoring, these and together with PPA reinforced
many other machines presented at K 2016 also embody the with glass fibers and flame retardants. With outstanding
industry 4.0 theme. This theme reflects the manifold effects chemical and heat resistance and low friction and wear,
of digital technology on the plastics industry, and its name BASF says that its Ultramid Advanced N range can be used
refers to the fact that these effects have been likened to a for automotive components that are near the engine and the
fourth industrial revolution. gearbox and in contact with hot oil and fuel.
As well as being easier and more convenient to use, the lat- “Ultramid Advanced N is BASF’s response to the rising
est machines also generate a huge amount of data. In demands on plastics that are employed today under increas-
conjunction with advanced tools for analysis and model- ingly challenging operating conditions,” says Melanie
ling, these data can help to make the plastics industry even Maas-Brunner, senior vice president, performance materi-
more efficient, in terms of costs, time and energy. For exam- als Europe at BASF.
ple, BASF will be showcasing its Ultrasim simulation tool Novel plastic materials are not just being used to replace
for predicting the behavior of polyurethane systems during existing metal parts in conventional gas-powered vehicles,
foaming in both open and closed molds. This allows proces- though, they are also helping to usher in the next generation
sors to spot potential problems with the design and of motoring. At K 2016, Covestro will be displaying a proto-
manufacturing of a component before a mold is made, type electric car, developed in close collaboration with design
reducing development times and costs. students and partners in the automotive industry, that incor-
Many of these new machines also allow plastic prod- porates a range of advanced plastic technologies. These
ucts to be produced with less material than ever before, include: a seamless, homogenous front end to reduce drag;
fitting squarely within the lightweight solutions theme. holographic films that allow the headlamps and rear lights
Engel will be demonstrating an injection molding technol- to be incorporated directly into the chassis; and wrap-around
ogy that uses fiber-reinforced thermoplastics to produce glazing made from transparent polycarbonate to provide
plastic components with walls that are just 0.6mm thick and enhanced visibility.
yet can still sport sophisticated surface decorations. By The innovations on display at K 2016, which three years ago
integrating three processing technologies, this technology attracted 218,000 attendees, have the potential to transform
can transform, overmold and decorate fiber-reinforced much more than just the plastics industry. More event
thermoplastic preforms in a single step, and could prove details are available at http://www.k-online.com.

34-37 Lamontagne Blow Molding_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 9:31 AM Page 34
Coming Soon to Atlanta:

FOAM BLOW MOLDING
New Developments in Foam

Blow Molding
F
By Nancy D. Lamontagne
oam blow molding will be a trending topic at this year’s upcoming conference, Wolfgang Meyer, president of the
Annual Blow Molding Conference, which features a vari- company, will give a presentation aimed at helping attendees
ety of industry presentations on packaging, medical and understand the effects of foam blow molding on mechani-
industrial applications, machinery and design innovations, cal properties.
and materials and processing. At this SPE event, held in Meyer explains that companies already familiar with blow
Atlanta from Oct. 3-5, several speakers will discuss how molding can add foaming capability without much difficult-
foam blow molding technology has matured in the last few ly. “There is always a training or learning curve, but foam blow
years and how various approaches can help save money and molding is similar to other multilayer processes that are
materials. state-of-the-art today.”
Triple-layer foam
W. Müller USA Inc. supplies customized extrusion heads for
blow molding machines. One of the company’s retrofitting
packages allows converters to add triple-layer foaming capa-
bility to their existing blow molding machines. At the
At the conference, Wolfgang Meyer of W. Müller USA will Bottles produced with W. Müller’s triple-layer foaming tech-
compare the loading capability of foamed and non-foamed nology (right, and inset) retain many of the physical proper-
containers. Courtesy of W. Müller USA. ties of non-foamed bottles (left). Courtesy of W. Müller USA.

Meyer points out that consumer packaging companies that maybe we couldn’t in the past. I’m hoping that our talk
have the greatest interest in foam blow molding, but may not will create some interest in EBAs and help dispel the myth
always have an immediate project or a number of projects that using EBAs is highly complex.”
that would use a foam blow molding system continuously. Bobrov, who works with iD Additives as a consultant,
However, the industrial packaging sector, which is also show- explained that EBAs come as a pelletized masterbatch prod-
ing interest in this technology, may see even more benefits uct that any converter can add to its blending process
from foaming. without additional equipment or sophisticated process mod-
“The return on investment is faster if foaming will save ification. “It can be treated as a regular material because the
more weight per container,” explained Meyer. “Foaming a polymer vehicle is usually very friendly to the materials used
100-milliliter bottle does not produce as much weight savings as a matrix,” he said. “In addition, EBAs are Food & Drug
as foaming a 5-gallon container, but for the 5-gallon container Administration-compliant, and both the agents themselves
the issue of load carrying capability is much different than on and the decomposition products are very neutral. This
a 100-ml bottle.” makes EBAs very suitable for all kinds of food packaging,
During his talk, Meyer will discuss some of the company’s including hot-filled, deep-freeze and refrigerated containers.”
studies on the load properties of foamed blow molded During the presentation, Bobrov plans to discuss the
products. “Everyone seems to quickly get excited at the essentials of polymer selection and principals of formulating
material savings available with foaming, but they always EBAs for a given application. He points out the importance
want to know more about the load capacity,” said Meyer. “We of understanding the temperature of decomposition for
felt the need to investigate this and provide some informa- the foaming agent in order to match it to the temperature
tion about how foamed structures compare to solid profile of the polymer matrix used in the product. The
structures.” decomposition products of an EBA are another important fac-
He plans to talk about how wall density and other param- tor. Materials such as PET that are sensitive to higher
eters such as compression affect the load capacity of blow moisture content will work better with a metal bicarbonate
molded foamed products. While some load capacity is lost blowing agent because the alkyl salt decomposition products
with foaming, the amount that is lost depends on the degree will absorb the water vapor.
of compression and other parameters that are permissible In terms of blowing process parameters, the pressure of
in a specific product. the blowing agent and the timing for using it are key. “Hold-
To help companies better understand the benefits of ing the air back a little bit longer can give the opportunity for
foaming, W. Müller USA’s parent company in Germany is the cells to form before blowing starts, yielding additional
working with European and global companies to conduct improvements in lowering density,” said Bobrov.
sample runs with customer molds for different bottle weights,
etc. They are also working with resin suppliers to fine-tune
resins.
In addition, W. Müller has worked on improving the mix-
ing system in the extrusion head and the way that the
foaming gas is injected into it. “Since we can disperse the
nitrogen gas independently of screw speed, etc.,” Meyer
said, “we believe that this automatically produces better
dispersion and, thus, finer cell structure.”
Foaming agents
At the conference, Nick Sotos, president of iD Additives Inc.
and Sergey Bobrov, president of Poly-Werk LLC, will discuss
extrusion blow molding converting processes that use
endothermic blowing agents (EBA). EBAs are bicarbonates of
alkali, transitional and/or post transitional metals that decom-
pose at wide range of temperatures to yield metal salt,
carbon dioxide and water vapor. EBAs that produce fine, extra
fine, and microfine cells are available from iD Additives.
“The main hurdle to adoption of EBAs is that people think This cross section of a foamed container’s wall shows the
the process is too complicated,” said Sotos. “We’ve come a microfine cell structure that can be achieved using blowing
long way with our product mix, and we’re able to do things agents from iD Additives. Courtesy of iD Additives.

FOAM BLOW MOLDING
Bobrov said that more and more companies are exploring “One of the things we’re trying to get across during the
opportunities to reduce their carbon footprint, reduce aux- talk is that our clients from a few years ago were ground-
iliary cost of operations, and improve recyclability of their breaking because we didn’t have very much evidence to
products. “In addition to offering these benefits, using EBAs show the success of the technology,” said Dominey. “How-
also greatly improves manufacturability of blow molded ever, now MuCell foaming technology is becoming a more
containers, thus reducing cost of operations that improves mature technology that can be used in new application
profitability,” he said. “EBAs can be used to produce very light, areas.”
very strong articles in an environmentally friendly, very easy One of those groundbreaking clients was Unilever, which
to use way.” applied the MuCell technology to blow molding its Dove
body wash 250 ml bottle. “Unilever publicized its testing and
decision-making process, which has given the MuCell extru-
A maturing technology sion technology as applied to blow molding a great deal of
Simon Dominey, vice president of MuCell Extrusion LLC, creditability,” said Dominey.
will provide an update on foaming technology for blow Through testing, Unilever found that consumers could not
molding. MuCell’s foaming process is based on directly differentiate between foamed and non-foamed bottles
injecting atmospheric gas in its supercritical state. This very manufactured with blow molding. “Our technology can
stable process provides uniform and repeatable product reduce the quantity of material and provide the cost sav-
density and part weight that can increase stiffness at equiv- ings without any visible functional difference,” said Dominey.
alent part weight or decrease part weight at equivalent “With downgauging, a company might save 5% on materi-
stiffness. al but will still need to compensate for how a lighter,
thinner bottle feels when the consumer picks it up. With the
MuCell technology, a company can save 20% material, and
the bottle feels the same as one that is solid.”
Dominey will also talk about Kyoraku Co. Ltd. of Japan,
which incorporated MuCell technology into its own process
for making automotive ducts. “Kyoraku put a lot of effort
into duct design and maximizing the benefit they can get
from the foaming technology,” said Dominey. “They use the
fact that the foaming process makes the plastic thicker
and stiffer to make a very rigid duct that uses significant-
ly less polymer. For the automotive industry, it is a real
win-win because they want to save weight as much as pos-
sible to improve gas mileage.”
Kyoraku’s success is an example of how well the MuCell
technology works in automotive applications, he added.
Many approaches for making cars lighter, such as convert-
ing steel to aluminum, increase costs while foaming can
help make car parts lighter while also lowering cost. The
Kyoraku application also exemplifies how the MuCell foam-
Kyoraku Co. Ltd. of Japan, incorporated MuCell’s foaming
technology into its own process for making automotive
ing technology can be used as an enabling technology.
ducts. Because the foaming process makes the plastic thick- “Companies can get a straightforward savings by letting us
er and stiffer, they can make a very rigid duct that uses sig- guide them, or they can also apply their own knowledge and
nificantly less polymer. Courtesy of Kyoraku Co. Ltd. get even more out of the technology,” Dominey said.

October 9 - 12 | The Peabody - Memphis,

his, Tennessee
Where P
Packaging & Innovation
vation Meet
Monday AM: M als a

Materials and Processing
PM:: Coating and
Monday PM a Barrier
AM: Business and Regulatory Issues

Tuesday AM:
Tuesday PM: Networking
Wednesday AM: Bio and Advanced Converting

Wednesday PM: Traceability and Packaging
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)RUWKHIXOODJHQGDRUWRUHJLVWHUYLVLWVSHRUJȵH[SDFNFRQ
Co-located with AIMCAL Web

Coating & Handling Conference
38-43 Branson Ultrasonics_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 9:33 AM Page 38
TECHNICAL PAPER
Joining underhood automotive parts:

A primer for choosing the right process
By Craig Birrittella, Automotive Segment Manager, Business Development,

Branson Ultrasonics, a business of Emerson
I
t has been more than 25 years since polyamide (nylon) We have seen, for example, high-performance polymers
was first used in place of cast aluminum to mass produce such as PPS and PPA replace metal in assemblies that are clos-
an air intake manifold in the United States. Since then, er than ever to the engine combustion area. Here again,
replacing metal components with plastics in automotive success has been the result of a team approach simultaneously
under-the-hood applications has become a continuing trend. evaluating materials with higher thermal resistance, the pro-
In recent years, key technology drivers, led by fuel efficien- cessing requirements of such materials, and part design.
cy and emissions reduction, have presented tougher challenges, Given such complex challenges, when considering plas-
demanding innovative design solutions that rely on advances tics joining solutions, it is important to understand the
in engineered polymers and processing (see Table 1). advantages and limitations of a wide range of joining tech-
Success so far has been a result of the industry redesigning nologies. Of equal importance, a “process neutral” approach
parts and assemblies for plastics, and not simply replacing met- should be adopted at the outset of the design phase and
al components one by one. Design teams have had to engage maintained while evaluating the many available technolo-
resin suppliers and processing equipment suppliers at early gies. Plastics joining solutions providers should be engaged
stages of development to optimize all aspects of part design, early to help determine the best fit for the application.
resin material and processing. This will dramatically improve the design, manufacturability
and functional perform-
ance of the application,
and will reduce the risk of
Ultrasonic Welder costly redesigns, rework
of prototypes, and sched-
uling delays caused by a
Automotive Under-The-Hood Technology Drivers Challenges
lack of information about
Technology Fuel plastics joining technolo-
gies.
Emissions Safety Environmental Cost
Drivers Efficiency
Following is an overview
Solution Light- Smaller Higher Power Global of certain plastics joining
technologies deployed in
Recyclability
Trends weighting Footprints “Density” Production
under-the-hood applica-
tions that involve
engineered and high-per-
Solution Metal to Part Complex Advanced New / Advanced
formance polymers. We
Needs Plastics Consolidation Geometries Resins / Fillers Processing
then present a sample

application to illustrate the
New Higher Higher Processing Functional Improved
Resistance to Resistance to Precision / Quality /
thought process used to
Challenges Thermal / Chem Impact / Wear Consistency Longevity Aesthetics
determine the most

Table 1: Technology drivers, new challenges. All images and tables courtesy of Branson Ultrasonics appropriate solution.

Vibration welding uses heat energy generated when one part Infrared welding uses energy that is radiated by gray body
is held stationary while the other part is moved in a linear, emitters mounted on a movable platen. It is a non-contact
back-and-forth motion. The heat generated initiates a con- process in which the parts to be joined are brought close to
trollable meltdown at the interface of the parts. Vibration the emitter platen (approximately 1 mm) as energy is
welding requires that the part interface accommodate the absorbed at the weld interface. The parts are then pressed
relative motion inherent in the process. Typical motion is 1 together, achieving a bond that is controlled during meltdown.
mm in each direction for 240 Hz welding and 2 mm in each Infrared emitters are typically either glass bulb or metal foil
direction for 100 Hz welding. (Fig. 4). To optimize energy absorption in the weld area, the
Figure 2 shows an air intake manifold made from PA6 emitters should have an output energy profile that accom-
GF30. While the geometry is complex, the parts are designed modates the absorption efficiency profiles of the many
so that there is a part-to-part orientation that will accommo- plastics used (Fig. 5). Medium wave emitters have this char-
date the linear motion required by the process. Jagged weld acteristic and are best for plastics joining.
flash and particulates are typical by-products of vibration
welding. “Flash traps” are designed into the parts (Fig. 3) to con-
tain the flash produced during the weld. However, in some
designs, part geometry does not always allow for this method
of flash containment.
Figure 2: Vibration welded air intake manifold. Inset,

Direction of linear motion of top part relative to bottom
part.
Figure 4: IR metal foil emitter assembly. Follows the shape
and contours of the weld interface.
F

Flash trap
captures
particulates
during weld
process

Figure 5: Metal foil energy emission (red/green) and PA6 GF30

Figure 3: Typical vibration weld joint. absorption efficiencies (black) over a range of wavelengths.

TECHNICAL PAPER
Plastics joining options under the hood
Clean vibration technology (CVT) combines IR preheating (Fig. Laser welding uses energy typically generated by one or
6) followed by a vibration weld cycle. The preheat step more 980 nm laser sources to heat the parts during the weld
enables the combined process to bypass the dry friction cycle. Several techniques exist that deliver the laser energy
phase in traditional vibration welding, which generates the from its source to the plastic parts, including simultaneous,
common particulate and jagged flash (Fig. 7). In CVT welding, quasi-simultaneous, and trace welding. All techniques
the flash produced is clean and compact, similar to that of deploy the concept of through transmission welding, in
IR welding. Figure 8 shows a fluid reservoir requiring a her- which the parts are clamped together as the laser energy is
metic seal, high strength and a clean weld joint. Geometry transmitted through one part and absorbed by the sec-
constraints did not allow for the option of flash traps so weld ond part at the mating interface. The absorbed heat is
aesthetics were also important. conducted across the part interface, thus achieving a con-
trolled melt in both parts.
Laser welding accommodates highly complex parts,
achieves high-strength welds, and in the case of simulta-
neous laser welding, has very fast cycle times. The resulting
weld joint has very little flash and virtually zero particulate.
No relative motion or high-temperature heat sources are
required during the weld process, so parts with delicate
internals are often candidates for this technology. Laser
welding requires parts with good dimensional tolerances and
also requires one part to have a higher transmission/absorp-
tion ratio (at 980 nm) relative to the other. This is usually
accomplished by using selective colorants in the parts.
Figure 9 shows a laser welded electronic control module
that has delicate internals and a very thin wall, creating
Figure 6: IR emitter for CVT application. Contoured metal
foil matches part shape.
very little room for a weld joint.
Figure 7: Left, Typical vibration weld flash from PC/ABS test

specimen. Right, CVT weld flash from same PC/ABS test
P
specimen.
Figure 8: Fluid
Reservoir. PA6 GF25.
Clean weld, hermetic
seal required. Figure 9: Control module PBT.

Hot gas (convection) welding uses the energy in electrical-

ly heated air that is directed out of an array of nozzles
mounted on a movable platen. It is a non-contact process
in which the parts to be joined are brought close to the air
nozzle platen (<1 mm) for a preset amount of time while the
heated air is directed toward the weld joint area. The parts
are then pressed together, thereby achieving a control-
lable welded joint. Instead of using heated air, exhaust gas
from natural gas or methane combustion may be used as
the heating medium. This reduces the amount of oxygen in
the hot gas, which reduces heating time. The hot gas weld-
ing process has advantages similar to IR welding, but it
requires a consumable gas if the natural gas or methane
Figure 10: Coolant manifold
approach is used. This process requires very tight dimen-
sional tolerances of the parts.
Other technologies are, of course, available for plastics join- an overall technology evaluation for any application.
ing that remain viable for a number of under-the-hood To illustrate the process of determining the most appro-
applications. These include hot plate welding, spin welding priate plastics joining solution for a particular application,
and ultrasonic welding. While these processes are not consider the coolant manifold shown in Figure 10. Assume
described in-depth here, they are also an important part of for a moment that the part shape has yet to be finalized and
Table 2.

TECHNICAL PAPER
Plastics joining options under the hood
that the following information is known:

• Required material: PA66 GF30
Keys to good decision making
• Part size: 175 mm x 175 mm x 125 mm
• Production volume: approximately 175,000/year 1. Maintain a solid understanding of the latest advance-
Special requirements include: Strict avoidance of partic- ments in plastics joining technologies and polymer
ulate break-off inside the part that would contaminate science.
fluid. Hermetic seal. Burst pressure of 14 bar (200 psig) 2. Maintain a “process neutral” approach and consider
minimum. a variety of joining technologies during the design
Table 2 demonstrates a decision matrix of relevant points phase. Be open to using whatever is shown to be the
to consider in the left column with color codes in each col- most effective solution for your application.
umn indicating whether the corresponding joining technology 3. Evaluate the key variables that will determine your
is viable. In addition to color coding, select comments are best solution, including material to be used, size
included in certain areas for clarification. and complexity of part design, production vol-
The analysis shows four viable processes, given the design ume/cycle time, weld cleanliness and aesthetics, and
requirements as long as the comments in yellow boxes are expertise and support of equipment suppliers.
satisfied. Material testing should be done with any process 4. Involve all stakeholders early in the design process,
considered to further vet out any challenges. A plastics join- including resin suppliers and processing equipment
ing equipment supplier should have lab equipment to test suppliers.
each process and be willing to weld test samples and assist
with weld strength testing to help in the optimization process.
If multiple processes are able to meet the requirements,
as in the example above, one must also consider production
criteria. The four viable processes all meet the yearly capac-
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ity requirement, so a number of production considerations
Craig Birrittella is the Automotive Segment Manager,
like these can help focus the selection:
Business Development for Branson Ultrasonics, a busi-
• What is the capital budget for the program versus the ness of Emerson.
cost of equipment needed?
During Birrittella’s 20-year
• Is the takt time of the process consistent with the pro- career at Branson, he has
duction plan?
received a US Patent for a
• If one process is much faster than needed, is there lens that adapts laser ener-
another application that can be run in the same
gy for uniform welding, and
machine?
has focused on a variety of
• If more capacity is desired (say for safety stock produc- technical areas, from vibra-
tion), is a multicavity tool an option?
tion, clean vibration,
infrared, and laser welding
For optimum results, it is important to not make a tech-
to application development,
nology decision based on whether your company has
and custom machine and
experience with an appropriate technology. Being open to
tooling design.
new technologies and methods helps ensure the most effec-
Birrittella has served Bran-
tive solution gets chosen.
son in a variety of capacities, including mechanical
In summary, four overarching considerations can guide you
engineer, engineering manager, director of plant oper-
to determining the best plastics joining technology for your
ations, product manager and director of global product
application, and thus help you achieve success in solving the
management, before assuming his current position.
tough challenges the automotive industry faces.

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44-49 Consultants Corner_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 9:36 AM Page 44
Plastics – It’s All About Molecular Structure
By Jeffrey A. Jansen
senior Managing Engineer & Partner, the Madison group
t
he characteristic properties exhibited by plastics are are formed through a process known as polymerization, in
the direct result of the unique molecular structure of which monomer molecules are bonded together through a
these materials. taking that a step further, the variation chemical reaction that results in a three-dimensional network
within the properties demonstrated by different plastics aris- of long individual polymer chains consisting of smaller repeat-
es from diversity in their structure. Plastics are polymers of ed units.
very high molecular mass. to enhance their properties, they there are two basic types of polymerization reactions —
often contain additives, such as fillers and reinforcements, addition and condensation. addition polymerization is the
anti-degradants and stabilizers, flame retardants and plas- formation of polymers from monomers containing a car-
ticizers. However, the underlying attributes of a plastic bon-carbon double bond through an exothermic addition
material are determined by the polymer. reaction. significantly, this reaction proceeds without the
loss of any atoms or molecules from the reacting monomers.
common materials produced through addition polymeriza-
Polymerization tion include polyethylene, polypropylene, poly(vinyl chloride),
Polymers are macromolecules that are based on a structure and polystyrene as represented in Figure 1.
built up, chiefly or completely, from a large number of similar in contrast, condensation polymers are formed by a step-
structural units bonded together. Often called chains, the wise reaction of molecules with different functional groups.
polymer consists of repeating units, similar to links. Polymers the reaction is endothermic and produces water, or other
Figure 1. Addition reaction mechanism showing styrene monomer polymerizing into polystyrene.
44 | Plastics EnginEEring | sEPtEMBEr 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

Figure 2. Condensation reaction mechanism showing the polymerization of a polyamide from a diacid and a diamine.
small molecules such as methanol, as a byproduct. Common condensation polymers. Comparing polymers produced via
polymers produced through condensation reactions include the two different mechanisms, addition polymers are gen-
thermoplastic polyesters, polyacetal, polycarbonate and erally chemically inert due to the relatively strong
polyamides as represented in Figure 2. carbon-carbon bonds that are formed. Condensation poly-
Addition polymers form high-molecular-weight chains rap- mers tend to be susceptible to hydrolytic molecular
idly, and tend to be higher in molecular weight than degradation through exposure to water at elevated temper-
atures, through a mechanism that resembles the reversion
of the initial liberalization reaction.
By using different starting materials and polymerization
processes and techniques, polymers having different molec-
ular structures can be produced (see Fig. 3).
The fundamental differences between the properties of
these different types of polymers are attributable to the
varying functional groups within the molecular structure.
These differences include mechanical, thermal and chemical
resistance properties. As such, it is important to select the
correct type of plastic based upon the requirements of the
application.
Intermolecular Bonding
As indicated, polymerization results in the formation of mul-
tiple individual polymer chains made up of repeating units.
A key aspect of polymeric materials is that the chains are
entangled within each other. The individual chains are not
covalently bonded to each other, but instead rely on inter-
molecular forces, such as Van der Waals forces, hydrogen
bonding, and dipole interactions, to keep the chains from
disentangling. This results in a structure that is similar to a
bowl of spaghetti noodles (Fig. 4).
Figure 3. Polymers contain a wide variety of functional Figure 4. Polymer chains consist of a high number of repeating
groups, responsible for the diversity in physical properties. units, and are entangled to form a spaghetti-like structure.
www.plasticsengineering.org | www.4spe.org | SEPTEMBER 2016 | PlASTiCS EnginEERing | 45

impact resistance, but will demonstrate reduced strength

Molecular Weight and stiffness.
through the polymerization process, materials of relatively Because of the structure of the molecules, polymeric mate-
high molecular weight, macromolecules, are produced. a key rials have different properties compared to other materials,
parameter of a polymer is its molecular weight. Molecular like metals. specifically, the relatively high molecular weight
weight is the sum of the atomic weights of the atoms com- and long polymer chain length result in entanglement, and
prising a molecule. For example, the molecular weight of the lack of covalent intermolecular bonds facilitates polymer
polyethylene is calculated by multiplying the molecular weight chain mobility. this combination of entangled mobile chains
of the repeating ethylene functional group times the number results in viscoelasticity.
of units comprising the chain. thus, for polyethylene (Fig. 5), Viscoelasticity is the property of materials that exhibit
where the repeating unit contains two carbon atoms and both viscous and elastic characteristics when undergoing defor-
four hydrogen atoms, the molecular weight is 28n, where n mation. Viscous materials, like honey, resist shear flow and
represents the number of repeating segments. Most com- strain linearly with time when a stress is applied. Elastic mate-
mercial polymers have an average molecular weight between rials, such as a steel rod, strain when stressed and quickly
10,000 and 500,000. return to their original state once the stress is removed. Vis-
Higher molecular weights are associated with longer molec- coelastic materials have elements of both of these properties
ular chains, and this results in a greater level of entanglement. and, as such, exhibit time-dependent strain.
this has important implications, as higher-molecular-weight there are three main factors that will affect the viscoelas-
grades of plastics will have superior mechanical, thermal ticity of a plastic part — temperature, strain rate, and time.
and chemical resistance properties compared with lower- Because of this, plastics are temperature, strain rate and
molecular-weight grades of the same material. time sensitive. temperature is the most obvious of these
it is important to remember that the polymerization factors. Polymers exhibit a comparatively high level of change
process is a chemical reaction, and while carefully controlled, in physical properties over a relatively small temperature
there is some inherent variation. this results in polydispersity, range. as the temperature is increased, the polymer chains
or polymer chains of unequal length. Because of this, com- are positioned further apart. this results in greater free vol-
mercial plastics have polymers with a molecular weight ume and kinetic energy, and the chains can slide past one
distribution. simply put, molecular weight distribution rep- another and disentangle more easily.
resents the relative amounts of polymers of different as strain rate — the speed at which load is applied — is
molecular weights to comprise a given specimen of that increased, the polymer chains do not have enough time to
material. Unlike molecular weight, the relationship between undergo ductile yielding, and they will disentangle through
molecular weight distribution and end properties is not uni- an increasingly brittle mechanism. this is why plastics are
form. For example, in comparing two similar materials with much more susceptible to impact failures than they are over-
different molecular weight distributions, in general the mate- load failures, which occur at more moderate strain rates.
rial with a wider distribution will exhibit better ductility and the inherent viscoelastic nature of polymeric materials
produces movement within the polymer chains under con-
ditions of applied stress. this results in time dependency
within polymeric materials. Because of this molecular mobil-
ity, plastic materials will exhibit differences in their long-term
and short-term properties due to the application of stress
over time. this means that the properties of a plastic material,
such as strength and ductility, are not static, but will decrease
over time. this often leads to creep and stress relaxation
within plastic materials.
Crystalline/Amorphous Structure
Figure 5. The repeating unit of polyethylene consists of two another fundamental characteristic of polymeric materials
carbon atoms with pendant hydrogen atoms. is the organization of their molecular structure. Broadly,

plastics can be categorized as being semicrystalline or amor-

phous. Understanding the implications of the structure, and
specifically, the crystallinity, is important as it affects material
selection, part design, processing and the ultimate anticipated
service properties.
Most non-polymeric materials form crystals when they
are cooled from elevated temperatures to the point of solid-
ification. This is well demonstrated with water. As water is
cooled, crystals begin to form at 0°C as it transitions from
liquid to solid. Crystals represent the regular, ordered
arrangements of molecules, and produce a distinctive geo-
metric pattern within the material. With small molecules, Figure 6. Structural representation of semicrystalline and
amorphous polymers.
such as water, this order repeats itself and consumes a rel-
atively large area relative to the size of the molecules, and
the crystals organize over a relatively short time period.
However, because of the rather large size of polymer mol- Amorphous polymers have an unorganized, loose struc-
ecules and the corresponding elevated viscosity, ture. Semicrystalline polymers have locations of regular
crystallization is inherently limited, and in some cases, not patterned structure bounded by unorganized amorphous
possible. Polymers in which crystallization does occur still regions. While some modification can be made through the
contain a relatively high proportion of non-crystallized struc- use of additives, the extent to which polymers are semicrys-
ture. For this reason, those polymers are commonly referred talline or amorphous is determined by their chemical
to as semicrystalline. Polymers, which because of their struc- structure, including polymer chain length and functional
ture, cannot crystallize substantially are designated as groups.
amorphous (Fig. 6). The ordered arrangement of the molecular structure asso-

Figure 7. DSC thermogram six showing a melting endotherm for a semicrystalline polymer and a glass transition for an
amorphous material.
ciated with crystallinity results in melting when a sufficient temperature.

temperature is reached. Because of this, semicrystalline Aside from the time and temperature dependence, other
polymers such as polyethylene, polyacetal and nylon will key properties of polymeric materials are determined by
undergo a distinct melting transition, and have a melting their semicrystalline/amorphous structure. Some general-
point (Tm). Amorphous polymers, including polystyrene, izations of characteristic properties are listed in Table 1.
polycarbonate and poly(phenyl sulfone), will not truly melt,
but will soften as they are heated above their glass transition
temperature (Tg). This is represented by the differential scan-
ning calorimetry (DSC) thermograms (Fig. 7).
The difference between semicrystalline and amorphous
molecular arrangement also has an implication on the
mechanical properties of the material, particularly as they
relate to temperature dependency. In general, amorphous
plastics exhibit a relatively consistent modulus over a tem-
perature range. However, as the temperature approaches
the glass transition temperature of the material, a sharp
decline occurs. In contrast, semicrystalline plastics exhibit
modulus stability below the glass transition temperature,
which is often subambient, but show a steady decline
between the glass transition temperature and the melting
point (Fig. 8).
Due to their viscoelastic nature, time and temperature
act in the same way on polymeric materials. Because of
this, the changes within the material as a function of time Figure 8. Graphical representation of the changes in modulus
can be inferred from the stability of the material versus characteristic of semicrystalline and amorphous polymers.
48 | PlASTICS EngInEErIng | SEPTEMBEr 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

Plastics continue to be used in increasingly diverse and of the plastic resin, it is essential that the correlation between
demanding applications. Given the cost of product failure, molecular structure and performance be understood. The
it is very important that the right material be chosen specif- difference between success and failure can hinge on the
ically for each situation. Because the base polymer implications of molecular weight, molecular weight distri-
determines many of the critical performance characteristics bution, and crystalline/amorphous structure.
Semicrystalline
• Distinct and sharp melting point ABOUT THE AUTHOR
• Opaque or translucent Jeffrey A. Jansen is senior
• Better organic chemical resistance managing engineer and a
• Higher tensile strength and modulus partner with The Madison
• Better creep and fatigue resistance Group, a Madison, Wis.-
• Higher density based provider of consulting
• Higher mold shrinkage services to the plastics indus-
try. He is an expert in failure
analysis; material analysis,
Amorphous
identification and selection;
• Soften over a wider range of temperature
and aging studies for plastic
• Transparent
and rubber components. A
• Lower organic chemical resistance
senior member of SPE,
• Higher ductility
Jansen also is a past chair-
• Better toughness
man of SPE’s Failure Analysis & Prevention Special
• Lower density Interest Group.
Table 1.
Consistent Color Distribution

Minimize Scrap
Decrease Cycle Time
Improve Appearance

50-53 ACC Trucost_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 9:37 AM Page 50
Plastics and Sustainability:

A Look Through the Lens of Natural Capital Costs
A new study by consultants Trucost shows the broader
environmental advantages of plastics over alternative materials.
By American Chemistry Council (ACC)
Note: This article continues the series of updates in Plastics

Recent Advances
I
Engineering from Plastics Make it Possible®, an initiative spon-
sored by America’s Plastics Makers® through the American We already know that plastics are replacing traditional mate-
Chemistry Council (ACC). rials, due in large part to their favorable strength-to-weight
ratio that allows them to do more with less. We see that in
f a new material were found today that could reduce numerous previous studies and market sectors.
environmental costs compared to existing materials by
nearly four times, imagine what a positive, disruptive Packaging – A study in the U.S. shows that if we were to
force that would be. In the presence of such a force, tradi- replace plastic packaging with alternatives, we would dra-
tional materials would progressively be set aside in the name matically increase the amount of packaging material.
of corporate and planetary sustainability. Alternatives would require four and a half times as much
Well, a new study provides insights for corporate decision material by weight and increase the amount of packaging
makers, policy makers and environmentally minded people used by nearly 110 billion pounds yearly.
into just how disruptive plastics are from an environmen-
tal perspective. Building Materials – Plastics can help save a whole lot of
Disruptive, that is, in a good way. energy over the lives of our homes and buildings. The ener-
gy saved by using plastic materials compared to alternative
materials is approximately 467.2 trillion BTU of energy a
year – that’s enough to meet the average annual energy
needs of 4.6 million U.S. households.
Vehicles – Lightweight plastics and plastic composites com-

prise 50 percent of today’s vehicles by volume yet only 10
percent by weight, due to their strength-to-weight ratios.
Reducing vehicle weight can significantly improve fuel effi-
ciency, reducing both financial and environmental costs,
while improving performance. As Ford Motor Co. notes: “Few
innovations provide a more wide-ranging performance and
efficiency advantage than reducing weight. All factors of a
vehicle’s capabilities—acceleration, handling, braking, safe-
ty, efficiency—can improve through the use of advanced,
lighter materials.”
But despite measurable advances in these and other areas,
the often-accepted narrative around plastics is: they are
Figure 1. more wasteful and have greater environmental impacts than

traditional materials. Is this true? While every material has

environmental costs, how do plastics actually compare to
alternatives?
New Study
To answer this question, the American Chemistry Council
commissioned an independent study by the environmen-
tal consulting firm Trucost PLC in London that looks at the
broad environmental costs of using plastics in consumer
goods compared to other materials.
This July 2016 study builds on a 2014 study, also by Tru-
cost, commissioned by the United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP) called, “Valuing Plastics: The Business
Case for Measuring, Managing and Disclosing Plastic Use in
the Consumer Goods Industry.” That study found that the
“total natural capital cost of plastic used in the consumer
goods industry is estimated to be more than $75 billion per
year.” The cost comes from a range of environmental impacts
such as effects from marine litter and the loss of valuable ALL THE
resources when used plastics are sent to landfills rather
than recycled. RIGHT RESINS
RESINS..
What the 2014 study did not ask is: compared to what?
Trucost’s new study, “Plastics and Sustainability: A Valuation FOR ALL THE RIGHT REASONS.
of Environmental Benefits, Costs and Opportunities for Con-
tinuous Improvement,” provides that perspective. The A capacity for leadership.
report’s authors call it the largest natural capital cost study In what matters most to you.
ever conducted for the plastics manufacturing sector.
The new study expands upon the initial study by includ-
ing transportation as part of the life cycle of products and
When it comes to PET T Resin,, DAK
DAK Americas®
packaging. Indeed, the study’s broader scope actually

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increased the estimated environmental cost of plastics from
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$75 billion to $139 billion per year. de velopment,, state-of-the-ar
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Most notably, it compares the environmental cost of using and market
markket know-how.
know-how. All from from one of the
plastics in consumer products and packaging to the cost of
replacing plastics with alternative materials.
producers of PET Resins world-wide.
largest producers world-wide.
The findings? When compared to alternatives, the new

D AK Americas’ broad
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tics is four times less than the costs of other materials. meeting your
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goals.
Substituting plastics in consumer products and packag- From
From trade leading products
products and technical
ing with alternatives that perform the same function would
increase environmental costs from $139 billion to $533 bil-
service
ser vice to recycling,
recycling,g,, to sustainable ra w
raw
lion annually (Figure 1).

materials,, we
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Disruptive Findings
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These results disrupt the commonly accepted narrative
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One of the likely reasons for these findings, as mentioned
above, is the comparable strength-to-weight ratio of plas-
tics. Alternative materials such as glass, tin, aluminum and
paper can be viable alternatives to plastics in many con-

Plastics and Sustainability
sumer goods applications. But a greater amount of these

alternative materials typically is needed to accomplish the
same objective. Similar to the findings in the packaging study
above, this new study finds that alternatives require four
times more material by mass on average (Figure 2).
A good example: when Planters® replaced its glass jar for
dry roasted peanuts with a recyclable plastic jar, the new
label announced: “84% less packaging than glass jar by
weight!” The company claims that the switch will result in a
25% reduction in trucks on the road to ship the same amount
of nuts, along with saving millions of pounds in packaging
and shipping materials.
In other words, using more material typically translates
into higher environmental costs.
As it turns out, plastics are extremely efficient materials.
Because they are both strong and lightweight, they allow us
to do more with less in the 16 market sectors reviewed in the
study … and in just about every aspect of modern living.
Figure 2.

increasing the use of lower-carbon sources of energy

upstream, adopting lower-emission transport modes, devel-
oping even more efficient plastic packaging, and increasing
recycling and energy recovery to help address ocean litter
and conserve resources. To help reduce plastics leakage
into the marine environment, the study also highlighted the
importance of expanding waste management infrastructure
globally, particularly in Asia where other studies have deter-
mined 75% of marine litter originates.
The study also called for enhanced environmental lead-
ership by the plastics industry, noting that the industry has
“direct influence, or indirect influence via its supply chain
management practices, over a significant share of the envi-
ronmental costs of plastic use in consumer goods sector,
and other sectors. Thus the industry is well positioned to
play an enhanced leadership role in driving improvements in
the environmental performance of the plastics value chain.”
Figure 3. This study represents the clearest and most comprehen-
sive picture to date of the relative environmental costs and
benefits of plastics compared to alternative materials. And
Now What? by providing a path forward to further reduce these rela-
tive costs, the study provides insights for corporate decision
Even though plastics have significantly less impact on the makers, policy makers and environmentally minded people
environment than alternatives, the study identifies numer- into how these disruptive materials can further contribute
ous opportunities to reduce that impact. These steps include to sustainability.

54-57 Inside SPI_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 9:39 AM Page 54
INSIDE SPI
How Will the Brexit Impact the

U.S. Plastics Industry?
By Michael Taylor, Vice President - International Affairs & Trade

SPI: The Plastics Industry Trade Association
T
he vote by 52 percent of the European Union to set the terms
United Kingdom to leave the of its withdrawal, a negotiation
European Union—the so-called which some expect may take two
British exit (Brexit)—has sent shock- years or more.
waves across global financial markets Until the U.K. officially withdraws
and ushered in a period of uncer- from the EU, it should be treated
tainty for manufacturers on both as an EU member state in trade for
sides of the Atlantic. The vote could purposes of tariffs and other tech-
further undermine growth within nical matters. Eventually, however,
Europe and potentially around the the U.S. trading relationship with
globe. Given the size of the U.S. economic relationship with the UK will experience increased costs and red tape after
Europe, the U.K. decision may have significant ramifications they have completely withdrawn from the EU. For U.K. man-
for the American plastics industry. ufacturers exporting into the European Union, EU standards
The U.S. commercial relationship with the U.K. and EU and regulations are expected to continue to apply for those
combined is the U.S.’ largest in the world, representing about goods to be eligible for sale, but much as they would nor-
40% of the global economy. Trade of U.S.–EU manufactured mally apply to U.S. exports, rather than to exports from EU
goods reached $836 billion in 2015, and cross-border invest- member companies.
ment equaled more than $5 trillion. Many U.S. companies Regarding the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Part-
with EU operations have headquarters in London, and about nership (TTIP), a major trade treaty currently being negotiated,
17% of U.S.-manufactured exports to the EU are destined it is clear that the Brexit vote will be a drag on the progress
for the U.K. of the deliberations. Prior to the vote, it was apparent that
The U.K. is the ninth largest export market for the U.S. plas- the differences separating the United States and EU in the
tics industry, representing more than $1.3 billion dollars in TTIP talks were larger than the areas of shared objectives
goods in 2015, and our eighth largest import market, with and perspectives. With the U.K. and EU now preparing to
more than $249 million dollars in goods in 2015. While the enter into a multi-year withdrawal negotiation, there are
day-to-day operations of businesses in the United Kingdom, serious questions as to whether the TTIP talks can result in
European Union or the United States may not be directly a truly meaningful and comprehensive agreement or even
impacted by the Brexit immediately, all businesses engaged any deal at all. In addition, the loss of the UK voice within
in the transatlantic market should prepare for the changes the EU will likely make it even more difficult for a deal to be
that are inevitably coming. struck. On a positive note, there is the possibility of a U.S.-
It’s expected that what the Brexit means for manufactur- U.K. free trade agreement, but this opportunity would still
ers in the United States and their partners in Europe won’t be years away at this point, and only be a fraction of the size
be fully known for years. Soon the United Kingdom will begin of an ideal TTIP agreement with the entire EU.
negotiations with the EU under Article 50 of the Treaty of the All this said, although it is a significant event with notable

economic consequences, the Brexit vote is unlikely to usher But the causal relationship between political and eco-
in a recession. It is very clear that all of the key players stand nomic uncertainty and negative market and trade
ready to intervene in the financial markets vigorously to buoy consequences is well established. The Brexit will most like-
their economies as required. Specifically, in the U.S., the Fed- ly have impacts akin to past Eurozone crises, at least in the
eral Reserve likely will cut interest rates rather than raise short term. It will shake financial markets and consumer
them, counterbalancing any negative investment conse- confidence, cause a majority of business decision-makers
quences the Brexit might have in the near-term for U.S. to hedge and serve as an unwelcome drag on economic
stakeholders. growth and demand.
The FLiP Files: Katie Masterson

The FLiP Files is a blog series spotlighting tee, and the Equipment & Moldmakers
young professionals that are active in SPI’s Leadership Summit. I manage, along with
Future Leaders in Plastics (FLiP), a group other young professionals on SPI’s staff,
for plastics professionals under the age the Future Leaders in Plastics (FLiP) group.
of 40. For our fourth entry, we spoke to Has anyone in the industry mentored
Katie Masterson, who works for SPI in you?
Washington, D.C. I was fortunate to work with Jackie Dalzell
when I first started at SPI, who was always
Where do you work and what’s your willing to share her knowledge and passion
title? for the industry with me. Although she has
I work at SPI: The Plastics Industry Trade since moved on, she still is a great mentor
Association, where I am Senior Program and friend.
Manager, Industry Affairs for the Equip- I also have to note my Equipment Council
ment Council. and CES leadership, as they are always will-
ing to answer my questions and help foster
Tell us a little about what your my knowledge of the industry. They are a
organization does. wealth of knowledge with their tenure in the
SPI represents and advocates for the industry. I’m lucky to work for such a group.
full supply chain of the plastics indus-
try. We help members be more Describe in one sentence what you do on
successful in their businesses. We pro- an average day.
vide programs, education and My typical day varies, but can consist of CES
conferences and councils and commit- report follow-up, reporting definition dis-
tees that bring the supply chain cussions, committee and subcommittee calls
together to solve industry issues. and web meetings, reviewing economic reports, program man-
agement planning for SSA or FLiP, meeting prep, writing update
How did you find yourself working in the plastics indus- reports for committees, etc.
try? One thing I love about my job is when an issue arises that
When I graduated, I was interested in working in the D.C. members would like us to address, we must look at the prob-
area for a smaller company or a nonprofit and was getting lem and come up with a plan to help address it. So it’s a lot of
a lot of leads with associations. (There are a lot of associa- problem solving with no instruction manual, which I love.
tions in the D.C. area!) I started my career at the American
Society of Interior Designers, where I worked on continuing What do you like most about working in the plastics
education, specifically in the online learning environment. I industry?
was ready for a new challenge and joined SPI in 2012. I saw It’s an industry filled with enthusiastic people who are pas-
SPI as a good next step in diversifying my association man- sionate about what they do. It’s a privilege to work for such a
agement skills and knew I would be surrounded by peers I group and hard not to catch the passion.
could learn and grow from.
Some of the programs I manage are the Committee on What’s one thing about your personal life that you feel
Equipment Statistics (CES), and the Safety Standards & Awards has been changed by having a career in plastics?
Program (SSA). I also assist with other Equipment Council I’ve become an advocate for plastics. If a peer or friend says
activities, such as the Machinery Safety Standards Commit- something un-factual about plastics, like “don’t buy that one

Rur Sast. Rur Sresent.

Your Future.
4spe.org
The celebration starts in Booth 11 E21
INSIDE SPI
The FLiP Files: Katie Masterson
because it’s plastic, get the glass bottle because it’s more What’s one plastic product you couldn’t live without?
‘green’,” I know how to productively counteract that com- My contact lenses. I love my glasses too, but it’s crazy that
ment with facts like, “Well, plastics are recyclable and it took a curved piece of plastic you place on your eye can make
less energy to ship this plastic bottle to this location,” etc. the world beautiful and crisp.
People can easily be reminded that plas-
tics are needed in many facets of our
everyday lives and bring a lot of good.
What are the major challenges you

see facing the plastics industry today?
How do you think the industry can
overcome them?
As of 2015, millennials are the largest
generation in the workforce and will be
taking over baby boomers’ positions and
leadership roles as the baby boomers
retire. I think ensuring that my genera-
tion is prepared for this transition is a
challenge the industry is facing. FLiP’s
Mentorship Program and more internal
succession planning at plastics compa-
nies will help ease this transition. The
transition to a largely millennial work-
force is coming quickly and I am sure my
generation is ready for the challenge, but
we know we need our predecessors’
guidance to help ensure our success and
the success of the industry.
Why do you think someone from your

generation should consider a career
in plastics?
Because there are a lot of opportunities.
I was at Wittmann Battenfeld USA for
Manufacturing Day 2015 and their Pres-
ident, Dave Preusse, highlighted to the
students that there were over 30 differ-
ent job types at their facility from
marketing, to accounting, to engineers
and technicians. I think that’s a great
point. It’s rare that people know exactly
what they want to do for a career, but if
they know about opportunities the plas-
tics industry has to offer, they may
consider it down the line.

58-63 Rosen Thermoforming_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 9:41 AM Page 58
THERMOFORMING
The Dawn of Commercial Thermoforming
By Stanley R. Rosen
T
hermoforming is the process of heating a thermoplas- The firm first demonstrated its machine at the National
tic sheet and using vacuum or compressed air to form Plastics Exhibition in 1952 in Philadelphia (Fig. 1). Modern Plas-
the sheet to a mold and later trim to size each individual tics magazine in May 1952 noted: “This booth attracted more
cavity. Several firms during the 1930s and 1940s designed continuous attention than any other exhibit.” The process
and built proprietary machines that were used to thermo- appealed to many attendees due to the low cost of the equip-
form small quantities of plastics products. None of this ment and tooling when compared to injection molding.
equipment was ever sold to processors in the plastics indus- Within a very short time, machinery competition arose: J.E.
try. Kostur - Comet Corp. (Chicago), David Zelnick - Atlas Corp., now
The U.S. Army Relief Map Division, whose chief was E. Bow- the Zed Corp. (Rochester, N.Y.), and Bow Stratton’s Auto-Vac
man (Bow) Stratton, developed a practical method of vacuum Corp. (Bridgeport, Conn.) all built well-engineered vacuum
forming 3-D topographic maps during World War II. When formers. These machines used cut sheets and required a rel-
the war ended, the army vacuum former was upgraded and the atively long heating cycle as the oven contained only top
Industrial Radiant Heat Corp. of N.J. was created to promote and heating elements. The formed shot was trimmed using knife-
sell this equipment. like steel rule dies in presses adapted from the printing or
Figure 1: Industrial Radiant Heat Corp. of New Jersey introduced this thermoforming machine — the first such model to be
offered widely for sale — at the 1952 NPE trade fair in Philadelphia, where it attracted substantial attendee interest and
spurred a number of competitors to enter the market.

shoe-making industries.
Every new thermoformed component
required its own mold and this expense
was amortized over the total number of
parts purchased. Customers placing ini-
tial small orders to market-test this new
process needed to minimize the cost of
each mold. Molds were built using a
model or a wooden pattern to vacuum
form individual plastics cavities. Liquid
epoxy or plaster was poured into these
cavities and cured to create an inexpen-
sive mold. Both cavity materials are poor
heat conductors, resulting in a very slow
thermoforming cooling cycle.
Inefficient machines and molds when
combined with low volume orders tended
to restrict new machinery sales and reduce
technical innovation during this early peri-
od.
In 1954, retail merchandising started to
shift from traditional clerk assistance to Unma
Unmatched
tched exper
expertise
tise
consumer self-service. This trend intro-
duced a change in product packaging in pla
plastics-joining
stics-joining ttechnology
echnology
favoring heat-sealed plastic blisters on
cards mounted on peg board displays. Branson, a business of Emerson, is trusted worldwide for its unmatched
This package gave thermoforming sup- materials-joining exper tise. When you involve Branson early in the
pliers a huge new market. Newly designed development process, you have access to industr y -leading suppor t for
roll-fed thermoformers and heat-efficient design, materials testing, protot yping, applications development, DOE,
aluminum molds were quickly designed to 3D modeling, and production.
supply the rapid increase in volume for
blister packaging. For the next four to five
Our process-neutral approach, offering technology options that include
years, most of the thermoforming techni-

ultrasonic, laser, vibration, hot plate, spin welding, and more, also means we
cal development aimed to improve existing

are able to recommend the best technology solution ffor or your specific needs.
machine designs.
In fact, our range of technology options has allowed us to ser ve the
The industry was not yet ready to pay
automotive industr y in a wide variet y of applications, including :
the cost to solve the problem of trimming • Instrument panels and under the hood
parts in-line from a continuous thermo-
formed web. In the late 1950s, Dow
• Clean- welded headlight or tail light lenses
Chemical, Maryland Cup and an ingen-

• Large or small par ts
ious inventor, Gaylord Brown of Beaverton,

• Simple or complex geometries
Mich., collaborated to mass produce plas- • High-speed production and automated systems
tic cups and lids. Their endeavor resulted
in successfully building a continuous sheet
In addition, Branson’s global resources offer you world-class qualit y,
forming and trimming inline system for

ser vice, and technical suppor t for a single location or multinational
food and drink containers.

operations.
Brown Machine Co.’s thermoformer bransonultrasonics.com • 203-796-0400

indexed a continuous sheet through a info@bransonultrasonics.com
multi-stage oven into a pressure-forming
press, and the web then moved on to a
free-standing trim press. The trim press re-
indexed the web into a punch and die
where individual cavities were trimmed
© Branson Ultrasonics Corporation 2016.
and packed. The older model roll-fed vac-

The Emerson logo is a trademark and service mark of Emerson Electric Co.

Don’t Miss the Year’s Most Innovative Use of Automotive Plastics

at the 46th-Annual SPE Automotive Innovation Awards Gala.
Submit your innovative plastics nominations today to the oldest and largest
recognition event of its kind in the automotive plastics industry. Learn more at:
http://speautomotive.com/inno and http://speautomotive.com/awa.
THERMOFORMING
ities were manually steel-rule die cut. The Brown thermo-

former’s capabilities enabled some tooling to be converted from
vacuum to pressure forming, and machine operators became
more expert at their jobs using the power of pressure forming.
In 1965, Jack Pregont, president of Prent Corp. in Janesville,
Wis., urged Gaylord Brown to build an inexpensive, roll-fed pres-
sure former with an inline steel rule die press (Fig. 2). It was a
great success, as it mainly eliminated manual die cutting and
soon larger, more sophisticated models followed. Almost all
thermoforming machinery companies now build similar
machines for the industry.
Figure 2. In 1965 Brown Machine developed this inexpen-

sive, roll-fed pressure former, which ushered in the mod-
ern thermoforming era. This machine, with its in-line steel
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
rule die press, produced thermoformed parts that emerged Stanley R. Rosen has spent half a century as a mechanical
from the machine trimmed and ready to be shipped. engineer, designing thermoforming machines. He found-
ed the Mold Systems and Hydrotrim companies in Valley
Cottage, N.Y. Those firms spe-
uum formers operated at 2-5 cycles/min., compared to the cialized in the design and
Brown pressure former that operated at 20+ cycles/min. A mold building of thermoform tool-
and die for the Brown thermoformer and trim press cost ing, sophisticated laboratory
more than a new commercial vacuum former. When produc- thermoforming machines,
ing 100 million lids the tooling cost per unit is negligible, but a and large hydraulic die cut-
100,000-unit blister order could not support the cost of this effi- ters. Rosen was elected
cient machine and its tooling. chairman of the board of the
Roll-fed thermoforming split into two branches: large, well- Society of Plastics Engineers’
capitalized food packaging suppliers, and the smaller custom Thermoforming Division, and
thermoforming firms that served a wide variety of businesses. has been honored as SPE’s
Several custom firms purchased Brown thermoformers and Thermoformer of the Year.
bought water-cooled, multipurpose master mold bases that He is author of the book
cycled at the intermediate speed of 8-12 shots/min. An in-line “Thermoforming: Improving
guillotine shear was used to cut-off each shot, and then the cav- Process Performance.”
Phenolic Phosphite Thioethers Blends

ETHANOX 310 ETHAPHOS 368 DLTP ALBLEND 181
ETHANOX 330 ETHAPHOS 326 DSTP ALBLEND 182 SI Group acquired the antioxidant business
ETHANOX 376 ALBLEND 184 from Albemarle in 2014 and is a major global
ETHANOX 314 ALBLEND 900
Custom Blends supplier of polymer antioxidants.
Powder, Granule and Pellet forms are available
w w w. s i i g r o u p . c o m | 2 75 0 B a l l t o w n R o a d | S c h e n e c t a d y, N Y 1 2 3 0 1 | 51 8 . 3 47. 4 2 0 0

DON’T MISS THE 18th ANNUAL

SPE AUTO TPO CONFERENCE
Record Sponsorship & Exhibits, 75 Technical
GOLD & EXHIBITOR –
Presentations, and Record Attendance
Forecast. Conference Showcases the
Importance of Engineered Polyolefin Materials
The 18th-annual SPE TPO Automotive Engineered Polyolefins Conference
returns on Monday, Oct. 3rd and runs for 2½ days. Exhibitor set-up is on Sunday,
Oct. 2nd, at noon. Sunday includes special workshops starting mid-afternoon
with a reception to follow — all happens at the Troy Marriott in the northern Dr. Sassan Tarahomi, IAC
suburbs of Detroit.
This year’s program “TPOs Delivering Performance” promises to set all kinds of records with the largest sponsorship/exhibition
in the event’s history and a professional technical program highlighting the latest global developments in TPO and engineered
polyolefin materials.
This year we’ll have five industry leaders as our keynote speakers who were specially selected to bring you the latest news about
our ever-changing industry.
Betsy Jackson, TPO Conference Executive Chair & Exterior Product Engineering Director, General Motors
Rob Morgan, Vice President, Advanced Composites Inc.
Bernard Rzepka, CEO, A. Schulman
Tom Pilette, Global Vice President Product & Process Development, Magna
Laurie Harbour, President & CEO, Harbour Results Inc.
Since 1998, the SPE TPO Automotive Engineered Polyolefins Conference has highlighted the importance of rigid and
flexible thermoplastic polyolefins (TPOs), thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs), and thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPVs) throughout
the automobile — in applications ranging from semi-structural composite underbody shields and front-end modules to
soft-touch interior skins and bumper fascia. Engineered Polyolefins have been the fastest-growing segment of the global
plastics industry for more than a decade owing to their excellent cost / performance ratio. This event has become the
world’s leading automotive engineered polyolefins forum and typically draws over 800 key decision makers and some of
the world’s foremost authorities on transportation polyolefin applications, economics, and market trends from 20 countries
on four continents who are interested in learning about the latest in rigid and elastomeric TPO as well as TPE and TPV
technologies. As such, it continues to provide outstanding networking opportunities with key members of the automotive
TPO, TPE, & TPV supply chain, and the opportunity to learn about designing lighter, less costly automotive components
using the latest technologies and applications for these versatile materials.
The sponsors registered for the 2016 TPO Conference as of August 10, 2016 are listed on the following page.
2016 SPE TPO AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERED POLYOLEFINS CONFERENCE SPONSORS:

––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––––––––––––––––––––– P L A T I N U M & E X H I B I T O R ––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––––––––––––––––––––– –––––––––––––––––––––––
GOLD & EXHIBITOR –
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––– G O L D & E X H I B I T O R –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––––––––––––––––––––– –––––––––––––
Formosa Plastics
®
ADVANCED MATERIALS
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––––– E X H I B I T O R –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––––––––––––––––––––– –––––––––––––––––––––––––
Chemro
C hemro
MRC Polymers
Engineered & Sustainable Resins
–– A D V E R T I S I N G ––
64-71 Industry News_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/20/16 11:30 AM Page 64
INDUSTRY NEWS
Science Campus at K 2016 to connect research & industry
Having met with a positive response at K 2013, the Science resource efficiency; Plastics Industry 4.0; new materials and
Campus at K 2016 in Düsseldorf, Germany, Oct. 19-26 will lightweight engineering, as well as on scientific training in
further intensify the dialogue between research and indus- macromolecular chemistry and plastics technology. Scien-
try in an enlarged area and with an increased number of tists of K 2016’s Innovation Circle and teams from their
participating scientific organizations. Supplementing the pre- institutes will prepare the key themes and present them in
sentations of universities and colleges, institutes and different formats.
sponsoring organizations, the Science Campus will focus on Expected to have a lasting impact on market development
the four key themes defined by the K 2016 Innovation Circle of the sector in the coming years, these themes will not only
– a panel made up of experts from science and representa- be the focus of the Science Campus at K 2016 but will also be
tives of K’s Exhibitors Council. reflected in the presentations of the exhibitors, the special
The Science Campus enables exhibitors and visitors at K show “Plastics Shape the Future” and the Innovation Com-
2016 to gain a concentrated overview of scientific activities pass.
and findings in the plastics and rubber sector and promotes At K 2016, more than 3,200 exhibitors from 60 nations will
an exchange of experience between companies and univer- present their latest developments in the fields of machinery
sities. The participants at the Science Campus will be presenting and equipment for the plastics and rubber industry, raw
pioneering materials and technologies and responding to the materials and auxiliaries, semi-finished products, technical
central challenges of polymer technology. parts, and reinforced plastics products. The eight-day fair is
The discussion and communication will focus on the key expected to attract some 200,000 trade visitors from all over
themes: innovation drivers of global change focusing on the world. www.k-online.com.
New styrenic TPE grades offer seal integrity
PolymaxTPE introduces two styrenic TPE grades engineered 010 and P32-011, can replace TPV elastomers in a variety of
to deliver low-compression-set performance expressly for applications that require high resilience for seal integrity,
gasket and seals application. These two new grades, P32- including gaskets, seals, valves, home appliances, and food
packaging. What makes these new products stand out is their
low compression set at elevated temperatures. Compres-
sion set is the measure of a material’s ability to recover from
deformation. The lower the percentage, the better the mate-
rial resists permanent deformation under a given deflection
and temperature range.
“The development of new TPEs with low compression set
for the seal industry reflects the focus of PolymaxTPE on R&D
and its strategy of working proactively with customers”, not-
ed Dr. Martin Lu, chief technology officer of PolymaxTPE. The
two new grades score further points for their excellent tear
strength, cold temperature flexibility, low odor, stability at
high temperatures, and weather resistance. The raw mate-
rials used to manufacture these two grades are compliant
with food-contact regulations. These materials can be used
in stand-alone injection molding, extrusion applications, or
New styrenic grades target gaskets and seals. bonded with polypropylene substrates.
Graphic courtesy of PolymaxTPE www.polymaxtpe.com.

SABIC to demonstrate “Chemistry that Matters™”
SABIC will showcase to K show visitors how “Chemistry that insulation. With its inherent high impact resistance, clarity
Matters™” is addressing global trends and the challenges in and durability, LEXAN™ sheet helps to maintain safety and a
key industries with solutions to help create a better future for clear view in indoor applications.
everyone. With a strong emphasis on sustainability, SABIC www.sabic.com.
says that at this year’s event it will high-
light its strong, collaborative approach
with customers to jointly develop and
produce global solutions, from con- W
Worldwide
orldwide Leader in Inject More value. More features.
cept to realization.
“Striving for a sustainable future
More productivity.
means looking at business practices
differently and being able to turn chal- HPM Model HST2 Full Line of Hybrid Machines
lenges into opportunities that add Toggle Clamp Machinery
Toggle M fr om 65 to 3500 U.S. T
from ons
Tons
lasting business value,” said Abdul-
rahman Al-Fageeh, Executive Vice
President - Polymers. “Our new organ-
ization brings us closer to customers,
enabling us to offer sustainable solu-
tions to the entire value chain and
Injection
move further toward our vision to be

a preferred world leader in chemicals.”
ion Mold
SABIC will feature new, sustainabil-

ity-enabling materials and technologies
Molding
it has developed. With the focus on key

industry segments such as packaging,
$
$GPGƂVU
GPGƂƂVVU Standard
Standar Features
d Featur es Include
construction, healthcare, transporta- energy

• Reduces ener consumption
gy consumpt ion • Hybrid “Servo Pump”
ing Machines
tion, consumer goods and electronics, up to 80% technology

SABIC will display specific applications, • HPM Command Control
Contr ol System • barrel
Bimetallic barrel and
such as renewable packaging, fuel-effi- • High speed toggle decreases
decr eases hardened
harrdened screw
screw
cient transportation solutions, and cycle ttimes
imes cores
• Dual cor es and air blast
easily constructed, reusable buildings. • Backed by the HPM Thr Three-Year
ee-YYear • SPI Robot Interface
Stand visitors can gain deeper knowl- Golden W arranty and support
Warranty • 480 voltage
edge about these technologies through throughout North America on
throughout • ANSI/SPI 151.1
interactive, digital content. the machine, softwar
softwaree and parts, • Mount & leveling
The striking design of the stand will there’’s no bet
there’s ter value in
better machine pads
feature interior and exteriors walls con- the
the industry.
industry .
structed of SABIC’s LEXAN™ sheet,
Free
• Free delivery to
customer location
which is 50% lighter and 250 times
more impact-resistant than glass.
These materials help to reduce trans-
port and labor costs, facilitate easy and
fast installation, and provide excellent
UV and fire resistance. The UV-pro- NORTH
HPM NOR TH AMERICA CORPORATION
RPORA
CORPORA ATION
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tected outer surface offers long-term 1193 Pole Lane Road, Marion, OH 43302
weatherability and its multiwall struc-

Tel: 740.382.5600 Fax: 740.382.2008
Tel:
ture provides profound thermal

www.hpmmachinery.com
www.hpmmachinery.com

INDUSTRY NEWS
INDUSTRY NEWS
Semiconductor material wins patent allowance in China
SmartKem, UK-based developer of the truFLEX® semicon- strengthen our existing position within the Chinese display
ductor platform for the manufacture of flexible displays and sector with our ground-breaking semiconductor platform.”
electronics, has had notification of The primary target applications include new wear-
patent allowance for its able technologies, mobile devices, automotive,
semiconductor material in embedded, and transparent displays, but the tech-
China. This is a key market nology is a key enabler for the many products that
for the roll-out of its tech- are helping to build the Internet of Things, such as
nology platform with display gesture and touch control, fingerprint recog-
manufacturers across Asia. nition and wide range of sensor
Steve Kelly, CEO and applications.
founder of SmartKem, said: “The global market for OLED and
“Successful collaboration flexible OLED are set to
is crucial in helping China to grow rapidly in the
become a key stakeholder next two to three years
and competitor in the global and we are very much
OLED display industry. focused on the indus-
“As the Chinese trialization and
OLED industry matures, SmartKem's truFLEX® semiconductor platform commercialization of
China’s capabilities in both tra- helps to enable flexible displays and electronics. our truFLEX® organic
ditional and flexible OLED production will only Photo courtesy of SmartKem semiconductors to
increase as it turns its focus to designing and enhance and further
developing its own products rather than manu- strengthen our position
facturing someone else’s. There is a clear in this sector. Patent
commitment to encourage high-tech research and develop- allowance in key territories within Asia such as China is an
ment and there are benefits in place to incentivize innovation important milestone in achieving wide-scale market adop-
and high technological standards. Our new patent allowance tion of our technology platform,” Kelly continued.
places SmartKem in an excellent positon to consolidate and www.smartkem.com.
Clariant unveils new tools for stretch-blown PET bottles
Clariant announces availability of new blow-molding tools and the broad, flat panels were not as representative of the
that can help customers evaluate how Clariant color and addi- shapes that producers of liquor bottles and other beverage
tive masterbatches perform in real-world applications. The containers are looking for today.”
new single-cavity tool, which is intended for reheat stretch The tooling can be used to evaluate not only color, but also
blow molding of clear or colored PET polyester resins, pro- performance-enhancing additives and barrier properties, as
duces a 12-oz (355-ml) round bottle with a long neck and curved well. Prusak says that the way plastic materials stretch to cre-
sides. The design is intended to reflect current design trends ate a bottle’s shape can vary depending on the color and other
for liquor bottles, but can also be used to evaluate wine, soft- ingredients in the compound. A resin/masterbatch combina-
drinks and other food and beverage containers, too. tion that works well in one shape can develop cosmetic flaws
“This new mold includes the details that customers told us or unacceptable physical properties in another. This is why it
they wanted in prototype tooling,” explains Peter Prusak, head is so important to produce shapes that more accurately mim-
of marketing for Clariant Masterbatches North America. “The ic the actual end-product containers.
tooling we’ve had in the past produced flask-shaped bottles, www.clariant.com.

Covestro PC sheet helps new pedicab roll
Frustrated by equipment malfunctions and lack of options,

Ben Morris, chief pedicab officer, Coaster Pedicab, set out
to create the pedicab he believed the market was missing.
Using feedback from its mechanics, professional drivers, pas-
sengers and the management team, the company began
developing the next-generation pedicab. When they were
finished, all that remained of the previous vehicle’s standard
design was the three-wheel concept. With the design set, the
team began its search for the ideal material to bring it to life.
Lightweight and formable Makrolon® SL polycarbonate sheet
from Covestro LLC fit the bill. Gauge selection, color and tint
definition, fabrication, form, fit and function were all key driv-
ers for this unique application. Makrolon SL polycarbonate sheet helped to remake this
“Other possible materials could not satisfy the needs of pedicab. Photo courtesy of Covestro.
this demanding application,” said Justin Bruce, chief operat-
ing officer of Coaster Pedicab. “Fiberglass was too heavy, and
other plastic materials prototyped could not withstand the In addition to the material advantages provided by the
abuse a pedicab endures. Makrolon® SL polycarbonate sheet, polycarbonate sheet, Coaster Pedicab also benefited from
on the other hand, offers lighter weight, greater durability, the support offered by Covestro’s technical experts. “Cove-
higher impact strength and a brighter, cleaner look. stro has a long history of supplying polycarbonate sheet to
Makrolon® SL polycarbonate sheet is used for the pedi- the transportation industry,” said Celeste Dunn, segment
cab siding and canopy, which provide structure, protection manager for transportation, polycarbonate sheet, for MS
from the elements and a backing surface for applying adver- Global AG, a Covestro company. “Working with Coaster Pedi-
tisements. There are currently three models of Coaster cab resulted in an outstanding end product that exceeded
Pedicabs on the market – Pro, Luxe and Luxe All Weather – everyone’s expectations.”
all of which use Covestro’s polycarbonate sheet. www.covestro.com.
CUSTOM-ENGINEERED
C
CUST
S TPE
Whether manufacturing products from the consumer, automotive or indus-
trial ma
markets: THERMOLAST® K TPE compounds provide optimal flexibility
andd adhesion
adhe i to vavarious substrates…why not create the difference with
KRAIBURG TPE?
KRAIBURG TPE Corporation Phone: 1 678 584-5020 E-mail: info-

info-america@kraiburg-tpe.com
-americ www.kraiburg-tpe.com

INDUSTRY NEWS
INDUSTRY NEWS
Infrared systems said to save time, money
Heraeus Noblelight plans to showcase at the K 2016 show

how its optimally matched infrared systems help to form
plastic automotive parts so efficiently that significant savings
in time and energy result. In the same vein, global car parts
supplier Faurecia has reduced cycle times by 20 seconds in
the forming of dashboards by using infrared emitters from
Heraeus, while car manufacturer Bentley relies on IR tech-
nology to ensure perfect fitting of roof liners in its luxury car
bodies.
Faurecia uses carbon infrared emitters to form the dash-
board of a car under heat, and coat it with a sound-proofing
layer. Previously, the heat had been provided by a combi-
nation of metal foil emitters and steam, but this method was
proving incapable of meeting the desired increased pro-
duction speeds and was identified as the limiting factor in
the overall production process. The plant was significantly
improved by fitting carbon medium wave emitters. Carbon
emitters transfer large amounts of energy very quickly, such Automakers and tier suppliers are putting infrared systems
that the company was able to dispense with the costly steam to good use. Photo courtesy of Heraeus Noblelight
that had been used for pre-heating. The components to be

molded are now heated directly in their molds. As a result,
Faurecia was able to increase the heat-up rate by 16% and a suitable heat source, as the new adhesive needed to be
reduce the heating stage through-put time by about one- heated to an activation temperature of 65°C to maintain the
third from the previous time of 60 seconds. process stage cycle time. The solution to the problem was
Roof liners for Bentley cars consist of three components: provided by a custom-built, trim-handling system incorpo-
a carrier fabric, an adhesive and a decorative leather facing rating infrared emitters. Here, the carrier fabric is first sprayed
piece. Ideally, this combined structure should maintain its with adhesive and the leather cladding is precisely fixed in a
integrity for the life of the vehicle. When Bentley introduced vacuum press. The infrared system then brings the adhesive
a new adhesive, which allows a fivefold increase in the bond up to the required 65°C in less than three minutes.
strength of the materials being joined, it then had to look for www.heraeus-noblelight.com
Songwon stabilizer targets automakers

Songwon recently launched its latest product for the auto- Commenting on the new product, Thomas Schmutz,
motive industry. The South Korean firm developed the new leader for Global Technical Service & Application Develop-
Songxtend® 2124 stabilizer specifically to meet the stringent ment, said: “Songxtend® 2124 demonstrates our drive to
demands of the automotive industry where weight and cost support the automotive industry. With this new addition,
reduction are dominant factors. Songwon now offers a full range of stabilizers for unfilled,
Songxtend® 2124 stabilizer improves the long-term ther- talc- and glass-filled PP. Providing a cost-efficient alterna-
mal stability of the short- and long-glass-fiber-reinforced tive to the existing products available, Songxtend® 2124
polypropylene used in interior applications for molded already has enabled one of Songwon’s global customers to
parts, and can match the LTTS performance of 1000 h and reduce costs in its glass-fiber-reinforced PP application while
beyond at 150°C. The new stabilizer contributes to making exceeding 1000 h at 150°C, providing long-term thermal
it possible for molded parts to be thinner and lighter while stability.”
still having similar mechanical properties as unfilled parts. www.songwon.com.

INDUSTRY NEWS
INDUSTRY NEWS
Arizona Instrument introduces new moisture analyzer
Arizona Instrument LLC announces the Computrac® Vapor

Pro® XL (VPXL) – its latest in a long line of accurate, reliable
and easy-to-use moisture analyzers. The Vapor Pro® XL is a
chemical-free, moisture-specific alternative to Karl Fischer
titration. It features an upgraded heater, which increases the
upper limit for testing temperatures to 300°C and allows for
improved control over testing temperatures. The VPXL is also
compatible with multiple sizes of sample vials and is equipped
with stepped temperature testing capabilities for enhanced
method development. From plastics to petroleum products,
pharmaceuticals to chemicals, the VPXL is a good fit for a
wide variety of applications.
The Vapor Pro XL is can be used in accordance with ASTM
D7191-10: Standard Test Method for Determination of Mois-
ture in Plastics by Relative Humidity Sensor, and ASTM
D7546-15: Standard Test Method for Determination of Mois-
ture in New and In-Service Lubricating Oils and Additives by
AI has rolled out its latest moisture analyzer. Photo courtesy of Relative Humidity Sensor.
Arizona Instrument LLC www.azic.com.
Conair to highlight vacuum-conveying system at K
The patent-pending R-PRO™ dense-phase vacuum-conveying

system developed by Conair to minimize pellet fracturing,
“angel hair,” and equipment wear caused by conventional
dilute-phase conveying, will make its first appearance at a
European trade show when K 2016 begins in October. Other
innovations on display will include a new FLX-128 Plus con-
veying control, which now can be set up to operate the R-PRO
system, a new Mobile Drying/Conveying (MDC) system with
standard color touchscreen control interface, and several
examples of equipment from Conair’s new MedLine® range
of clean-room-ready auxiliaries.
The Resin Protection Conveying System (R-PRO™) is a new
approach to vacuum conveying. Pellets move at slow speeds
in dense slugs of material. This can be compared to conven-
Conair says its latest system offers ‘a new approach to vacu-
tional, high-speed, dilute-phase conveying, where pellets smear um conveying. Photo courtesy of Conair
against the sides of aluminum tubing, deforming and creat-
ing long streamers or “angel hair” that can clog the system.
Consisting mainly of standard vacuum-conveying compo-
nents, R-PRO results in slower flow and less resin damage even be retrofitted to existing systems, Conair says.
without limiting throughput. It is cost-competitive and can www.conairgroup.com.

Registration Is Now Open!

Successful Plastic Part Design –
Doing It Right The First Time!
October 25-26, 2016
Portland, Oregon USA |McMenamins Kennedy School
• One track of Injection Molding design (2 full days)

• Alternate track on thermoforming design (1 day) &
composites design (1 day)
• Networking events (food & live music!)
• Tabletop exhibits
• Sponsorship opportunities
Who should attend:
• Injection, thermoforming and

composites part designers
• Plastics process engineers
• Sales engineers
• 5HVLQVSHFLȴHUV
• Set-up personnel
• Design managers
• Industrial designers
Leave this event with valuable and practical part design

fundamentals that you can successfully apply right away
for these three plastics processes!
• Injection Molding
• Thermoforming
• Composite Molding
Presented by: The SPE Product Design and Development Division (PD3)
Hosted by: The SPE Columbia River Section | Learn more: http://www.spe-pd3.org
Supported by: The SPE Thermoforming Division
Ed Probst, Conference Chair | ed.probst@probstplastics.com | 414-476-3096
72-75 Patents_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 10:53 AM Page 72
INDUSTRY PATENTS
By Roger Corneliussen
ethylene alpha olefin copolymers, propylene alpha olefin

Cheaper Carbon Fiber Composites copolymers, propylene ethylene copolymers, styrene poly-
U.S. Patent 9,365,685 (June 14, 2016), “Method of Improv- mers or ionomers. These materials do prevent long-term
ing Adhesion of Carbon Fibers with a Polymeric Matrix,” ballooning for packaged gassing cheeses while preventing
Frederic Vautard, Soydan Ozcan and Felix Leonard oxygen diffusion.
Paulauskas (UT-Battelle LLC, Oak Ridge, Tenn., USA).
Epoxy carbon-fiber-reinforced composites are known for
their outstanding mechanical properties and low density.
However, they are expensive and difficult to process, mak- Portable Pyrolysis
ing broader application to consumer markets too expensive. U.S. Patent 9,365,775 (June 14, 2016), “Waste Recycling Sys-
Furthermore, the mechanical properties of cheaper resins tem,” Gaylen La Crosse, Jeremy La Crosse and Michael Galich
do not match that of high-performance epoxy resins. Vau- (YAGS LLC, Evanston, Ill., USA).
tard, Ozcan and Paulauskas functionalized carbon fibers These days, the volume of plastics discarded by consumers
with partially cured epoxy or amine-sizing agents. Epoxy- is enormous, leading to ever-growing landfills. Recycling is
reactive groups include hydroxyl (OH), carboxyl (COOH) and becoming more popular but separation, selection and trans-
amino (NH2) groups. These fibers can be used in vinyl poly- portation continues to be a challenge. Pyrolysis is promising
mers as well as condensation polymers with good results. but catalysts are expensive and transportation is, still, a
Amine groups can covalently bond with a variety of poly- problem. La Crosse, La Crosse and Galich developed a
mers, including polycarbonates, polyesters, acrylics, nylons, portable reactor system for pyrolysis that can easily be scaled
polyether ether ketones, polysulfones, polyvinylalcohol and up or down and is operated without a catalyst. This system
polyimides. consists of two reactor sections connected to a condenser.
The waste is heated at pressures less than atmospheric pres-
sure to 500 to 800˚ C to convert the waste hydrocarbons to
gaseous hydrocarbons. The product is transferred to con-
Breathable Film for Cheese Packaging densers forming liquids. Char is removed in the second
U.S. Patent 9,365,687 (June 14, 2016), “PVDC Formulation reactor. Candidate industries include paper mills, waste rub-
and Heat-Shrinkable Film,” Dimitris Gkinosatis (Flexopack ber tires, and animal and agricultural wastes.
S.A. Plastics Industry, Koropi, Greece).
Special foods such as gassing cheese products require
special packaging that release carbon dioxide gas that caus-
es package ballooning. At the same time, oxygen permeability Rotomolding Large Structures
must be low enough to prevent oxidation. The majority of U.S. Patent 9,370,882 (June 21, 2016), “Cost-Effective and
heat-shrinkable film uses polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) Efficient Air Circulation System for a Vehicle having Roto-
resins to stop oxygen diffusion, which also prevents carbon molded Body Assembly,” Nigel Giddons and John William
dioxide diffusion. Gkinosatis developed a special polymer Taylor (Tata Technologies Pte. Ltd., Singapore).
blend consisting of a PVDC copolymer, ethylene vinyl acetate Effective vehicle air circulation and ventilation systems
copolymer, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), epoxidized oil and oth- require custom-fabricated duct work. This means increased
er additives. Their material contains less than 2 wt% ethylene manufacturing costs for tooling and installation as well as
vinyl acetate copolymer with 40 to 50 wt% vinyl acetate per maintenance. A low-cost molding system that does not
weight of PVC content, 0 to 2 wt% silica, talc and other mate- require elaborate assembly is needed. Giddons and Taylor
rials such as silicones, high-density polyethylene or developed a cost-effective and efficient air circulation system
tetrasodium pyrophospthate. In addition, multilayer film is for vehicles formed by rotational molding. The rotational
developed with a PVDC layer. The other layers may contain molding can be multilayered and includes foam layers for

functional improvements. The foam is created as separate enhoefer and Lappe developed a storage and conditioner for
layers within the cavity formed by the inner and outer sol- preforms with a tempering space before molding. The pre-
id plastic skins. The foams layers are formed so as to leave forms can be treated and heating so that the condition,
a continuous, air-filled cavity within and throughout the body including temperature, is substantially constant for mold-
walls. The rotomolded body assembly consists of lower and ing. The preforms needs to be kept in storage at least 15
upper bodies that are joined or fixed together after mold- minutes and the final preform temperatures should not vary
ing. Candidate resins include polyethylene, polyamides, more than 2˚ C.
polypropylene and their copolymers or blends.
Strain Hardening Nanocomposites

Conditioning Preforms U.S. Patent 9,358,730 (June 7, 2016), “Dynamic Strain Hard-
U.S. Patent 9,358,719 (June 7, 2016), “Apparatus and Method ening in Polymer Nanocomposites,” Pulickel M. Ajayan and
of Producing Plastics Material Containers,” Konrad Senn, Brent Joseph Carey (William Marsh Rice University, Hous-
Florian Wickenhoefer and Ulrich Lappe (Krones AG, Neu- ton, Texas, USA).
traubling, Germany). Polymeric nanocomposites often lack stiffness or strength
Blow molding containers require forming preforms and, which cannot be easily enhanced. Ajayan and Carey
later, blow molding the containers. Sometimes, there is a enhanced stiffness by 50 to 30% with a dynamic stress.
considerable lag between preform fabrication and the final These composites consist of a polymer matrix and nanofillers
blow molding step. This results in degraded preforms lead- with an interphase between matrix and fillers. Stiffness and
ing to preforms with different properties during blowing, strength of the composite can be increased permanently in
resulting in defective containers and discards. Senn, Wick- response to the applied stress. It also increases the storage
annual blowmolding conference
B
BLOWMOLDING
LOWMOLDING

INDUSTRY PATENTS
modulus, decreases the loss modulus and loss tangent. In stretch the film by 75% in the longitudinal direction. This
these cases, the applied stress rearranges the interphase. material is a two-layer, coextruded film from linear low den-
This stress can be mechanical dynamic, static or cyclical sity polyethylene (LLDPE) and low density polyethylene
stress. The nanofillers include carbon nanotubes, graphite, (LDPE) with ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), ethylene butyl acry-
carbon black, nanofibers and nanoparticles. The polymers late (EBA) or ethyl methacrylate (EMA).
range from polyethylene to polyimides, as well as elastomers.
A Better Polypropylene for Capacitors

Stretch Film U.S. Patent 9,353,203 (May 31, 2016), “Process for the Prepa-
U.S. Patent 9,358,760 (June 7, 2016), “Prestretched Agricul- ration of Polypropylene with Improved Productivity,”
tural Stretch Wrap Film,” Michael Huyghe (Combipac BV, Wolfgang Neissl, Dietrich Gloger, Thomas Horill, Martina
Hardenberg, Netherlands). Sandholzer and Gregory Potter (Borealis AG, Vienna, Aus-
Prestretched agricultural stretch wrap films have a num- tria).
ber of drawbacks, including air and water penetration and Polypropylene is the material of choice for film capacitors
strength. The adhesion between layers is often poor, per- because it lacks polar groups that orient under electrical
mitting oxygen diffusion and degradation. Huyghe developed stress. However, in case a Ziegler-Natta catalyst is used in
a prestretched agricultural stretch wrap film for baling grass, polymerizing the resin, considerable amounts of polar
maize, sugar beet pulp, malt, straw or household refuse. residues, such as chlorine, aluminium, titanium, magnesium
This film is produced by prestretching a coextruded poly- or silicon remain. Thus the resin must be cleaned by wash-
ethylene blown film with two layers. This film must retain ing, which is time consuming and costly. Neissl et al
an elongation capability in the longitudinal direction of at developed a sequential polymerization process using at least
least 310% so that a force of less than 6 N is required to two polymerization reactors connected in series with a
Connect | Engage | Learn .
Engaging with plastics industry professionals around the world to

ȴQGVROXWLRQVWR\RXUWHFKQLFDOTXHVWLRQV
thechain.4spe.org

Ziegler-Natta catalyst. The first reactor is a slurry reactor

and the second stage is a gas-phase reactor with fluidized Increasing Polyethylene Melt Strength
bed. The result is a resin with very low catalyst residue that U.S. Patent 9,346,897 (May 24, 2016), “Peroxide-Treated Met-
does not require a final washing step and can be used direct- allocene-based Polyolefins with Improved Melt Strength,”
ly to form capacitors. Lili Cui, Ashish M. Sukhadia and Vivek Rohatgi (Chevron
Phillips Chemical Co. LP, The Woodlands, Texas, USA).
Many applications of polyolefin films such as linear low
density polyethylene are large-scale applications such as
Medical Implants agriculture. However, large-scale processing is a problem
U.S. Patent 9,345,806 (May 24, 2016), “Manufacture of Med- because of the low melt strength of polyethylene resins. Cui,
ical Implants,” Claudio Tonelli, Piero Gavezotti and Ritalba Sukhadia and Rohatgi developed ethylene-based polymers
Lamendola (Solvay Solexis SpA, Bollate, Italy). with good melt strength for blown film processing without
Extensive investigations have been undertaken over degrading properties. These resins are produced by treat-
many years to find materials that will be compatible with ing a metallocene-catalyzed resin with peroxide. The base
body fluids. Fluorochemicals are useful but they tend to resin is mixed with the peroxide compound at the melt pro-
diffuse into tissue when contacted with body fluids. Tonel- cessing temperature from 120˚ to 300˚ C. The base resin
li, Gavezotti and Lamendola produced medical implants may be fluff, powder, granulate, pellet, solution, slurries or
by reacting a mixture of nonfunctional, monofunctional emulsions. A resin masterbatch of the peroxide can be mixed
and bifunctional perfluoropolyethers with hydroxyl ter- with base resin after melting with good results.
minal groups. The high functionality developed a network
that prevents chemical extraction by biological fluids. Exam-
ples include fluorinated polyurethane polyethers and
fluorinated polyesters.
Materials
Data b a s e
Access ‘tons’ of materials in the world of plastics!
For more details: 4spe.org/materialsdatabase

76-79 Events_046854 IndustryNews.QXD 8/19/16 10:01 AM Page 76
UPCOMING INDUSTRY EVENTS
Oct. 25-26, 2016. successful Plastic Part Design - the

SPE CONFERENCES Fundamentals revealed
Site: McMenamins Kennedy school, Portland, Or
Sept. 20-22, 2016. VinYltEc 2016 Contact: Ed Probst
Site: Woodbridge renaissance Hotel, iselin, nJ Tel.: 414-476-3096
Contact: Mark lavach Email: ed.probst@probstplastics.com
Tel.: 610-878-6985 Website: www.4spe.org/events
Email: mark.lavach@arkema.com
Nov. 9, 2016. 46th sPE automotive innovation awards
Website: www.4spe.org/events
competition & gala
Site: Burton Manor, livonia, Mi
Sept. 20-22, 2016. 12th thermoplastic Contact: Jeffrey Helms
Elastomers tOPcOn Tel.: 248-459-7012
Site: Hilton Fairlawn Hotel, akron, OH Email: jeffrey.helms@celanese.com
Contact: Viv Malpass Website: www.4spe.org/events
Email: vivian.malpass@tek-mark.com
Website: www.4spe.org/events Dec. 6-7, 2016. cyclitech 2016
Site: newport Beach Marriott, newport Beach, ca
Sept. 26-28, 2016. sPE thermoforming conference Contact: carine roos
Site: renaissance schaumburg convention center Hotel, Email: croos@4spe.org
schaumburg, il
Contact: lesley Kyle
Feb. 26-March 1, 2017. international Polyolefins
Email: thermoformingdivision@gmail.com conference
Website: www.4spe.org/events Site: Houston, texas
Contact: chuck crosby
Oct. 2-5, 2016. automotive tPO conference Tel.: 713-469-2394
Site: Detroit-troy Marriott Hotel, troy, Mi Email: charles.crosby@braskem.com
Contact: sassan tarahomi Website: www.4spe.org/events
Tel.: 218-455-3981
Email: starahomi@iacgroup.com March 21-22, 2017. thermoset conference
Website: www.4spe.org/events Site: scottsdale, ariz.
Contact: shelane nunnery
Email: shelane@gvineme.com
Oct. 3-5, 2016. annual Blow Molding conference 2016
Site: crown Plaza revina, atlanta, ga
Contact: ron Puvak May 8-10, 2017. antEc® anaheim
Email: r.puvak@plastictechnologies.com Site: Hilton anaheim, anaheim, calif.
Website: www.4spe.org/events Tel.: 203-775-0471
Email: customerrelations@4spe.org
Oct. 9-12, 2016. FlexPackcon Website: www.4spe.org/events
Site: the Peabody, nashville, tn
Contact: Donna Davis
Email: donna.s.davis@exxonmobil.com
SPE E-LIVE® WEBINARS
Sept. 22, 2016. “Plastic insert Joining Failure”
Oct. 20, 2016. “Fatigue”
Oct. 16-18, 2016. Polymer nanocomposites conference
Nov. 10, 2016. “thermoplastic Elastomers”
Site: lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pa (all webinars begin at 11:00 a.m. U.s. Eastern time,
Contact: Patrick Kelley unless otherwise noted)
Tel.: 570-202-4503 Contact: scott Marko
Email: pkelley@plasticfencing.us Tel.: +1 203-740-5442
Website: www.4spe.org/events Email: smarko@4spe.org
Website: www.4spe.org/Events/webinars.aspx

UPCOMING INDUSTRY EVENTS
Nov. 10-11, 2016. International Conference on

OTHER UPCOMING EVENTS Sustainable Bioplastics
Site: Alicante, Spain
Sept. 21, 2016. Plasticity Forum London Tel.: +1 650-268-9744
Site: RSA House, London, England Email: bioplastics@conferenceseries.com
Tel.: +(852) 9020-3949 Website: bioplastics.conferenceseries.com
Email: doug@plasticityforum.com
Website: www.plasticityforum.com Dec. 15-16, 2016. PPES (Plastics Processing Exhibition
SPE-Partnered Event Series) 2016, 3rd ed.
Site: Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Center
Sept. 26-29, 2016. CAMX: The Composites and Advanced (BITEC), Bangkok, Thailand
Materials Expo Tel.: +66 2-933 0077
Site: Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, Calif. Email: expo@technobiz-asia.com
Tel.: +1 801-512-2547 Website: www.plasticsprocessing-expo.com
Email: info@thecamx.org
Website: www.thecamx.org March 7-8, 2017. The Medical Plastics Conference
SPE-Partnered Event Courtyard by Marriott Brussels Hotel
Contact: Kinga Gradalska
Oct. 19-26, 2016. K 2016 Tel.: + 44 (0) 208 253 9640
Site: Messe Düsseldorf Fairgrounds, Düsseldorf, Email: KGradalska@crain.com
Germany Website: www.4spe.org/events
Tel.: +49 211 4560-7600 SPE-Partnered Event
Email: infoservice@messe-duesseldorf.de
Website: www.k-online.com
#
67
Injection Molding: get the right motor Actions:
While the motors of hydraulic injection molding machines • Examine all the motors used in the injection molding
are the largest energy users in the complete system, much machines.
progress has been made in controlling this over the past 20 • Produce a list of the motor/pump types used and find out
years. These developments mainly concern slowing the what the options are for retrofitting new motors and
motor down when hydraulic oil is not needed or reducing the control systems to reduce energy use.
need for oil by other methods. In some cases, this means that • Consider retrofitting older machines with electric screw
new hydraulic machines are not far away from achieving all- drives (if available) to reduce the peak power needed and
electric standards of energy use. downgrading the main motor (if possible).
However, there are still many older machines in service that
• Consider retrofitting older machines with servomotor
pumps/fixed speed pumps
use old technology (fixed speed pump/fixed volume pump)
and these have very high energy demands. Fortunately, motor
and control system developers have produced a wide range
of solutions using variable-speed motors, variable-volume
pumps and now servo motors with fixed speed pumps. These Dr. Robin Kent — ©Tangram Technology Ltd.
are available for many older machines and can dramatically (www.tangram.co.uk)
reduce energy use if retrofitted to older machines.
Note: Dr. Robin Kent is the author of Energy Management in Plastics Processing, published by Plastics Information Direct, and managing director
of Tangram Technology Ltd., consulting engineers specializing in energy management in plastics processing. rkent@tangram.co.uk.

80-84 Market Place_editorial 8/19/16 1:55 PM Page 80
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80-84 Market Place_editorial 8/22/16 5:44 AM Page 82
EDITORIAL INDEX
Society of
Plastics Engineers
AOC LLC ..............................................23 iD Additives Inc. ..................................35 EDITORIAL STAFF
American Chemistry Council ......50, 51 Industrial Radiant Heat Corp. ..........58
Editor-in-Chief
Arburg ..................................................32 Kopla Co. Ltd.......................................24 Briana Gilmartin
Arizona Instrument ............................70 Krones AG............................................73 Managing Editor
Ascend Performance Materials....15, 18 Kyoraku Co. Ltd. ................................36 Robert Grace
Atlas Corp. ..........................................58 Madison Group ..................................44 Contributing Editors
Auto-Vac Corp. ....................................58 Maryland Cup......................................59 Dr. Roger Corneliussen
BASF ..................................13, 16, 29, 32 Messe Düsseldorf ........................28, 61 Jon Evans
Dr. Robin Kent
Battenfeld-Cincinnati ..................31, 32 MuCell Extrusion Inc. ........................36
Borealis AG ..........................................74 NVH Korea ..........................................25 Marketing & Communications
Sue Wojnicki
Branson Ultrasonics ..........................38 Owens Corning ..................................24
Brown Machine Co.......................59, 61 PolymaxTPE ........................................64 Branding & Design
Carbon Revolution Pty. Ltd. ..............24 Prent Corp. ..........................................59 Liz Martland & Kim Wakuluk
Chevron Philllips Co. LP ....................75 Replas Australia ....................................9 Art Director
Clariant ................................................66 Royal DSM ..........................................32 Gerry Mercieca
Coaster Pedicab..................................67 SABIC..............................................25, 65 Publisher
Combipac BV ......................................74 Sill Industries ......................................58 Steven Ottogalli
Comet Corp. ........................................58 SK Chemicals ........................................9
2016–2017 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Composite Castings LLC ....................14 SmartKem............................................66
Conair Group ......................................70 Solvay Advanced Polymers ..............15 President
Scott Owens
Continental Structural Plastics..........23 Solvay Solexis SpA ..............................75
Covestro LLC ....................29, 31, 32, 67 Songwon ..............................................68 CEO, SPE
Dauntless Racing Cars ......................14 SPE ..........................6, 22-26, 34, 61, 76 Willem De Vos
Dow Automotive Plastics ..................20 SPI: The Plastics Industry President-elect
Dow Chemical ....................................59 Trade Assn. ................................54, 55 Raed Al-Zu’bi
Dresden Optics Pty. Ltd. ................8-10 Tangram Technology Ltd...................78
Senior Vice President
DSM Engineering Plastics ..................18 Tata Technologies Pte. Ltd. ..............72 Thierry d’Allard
DuPont ................................................14 Trucost PLC ........................................51
Vice President
Duromer Products Pty. Ltd. ................9 UT-Battelle LLC....................................72 Brian Landes
EMS-Grivory ..........................................9 Vert ........................................................9
Engel ....................................................31 Wacker Chemie AG ............................29 Vice President
Jaime Gómez
FCA US LLC ..........................................25 William Marsh Rice University ..........73
Flexopack SA ......................................72 Wittmann Battenfeld USA ................57 Vice President
Rodney Joslin
Ford Motor Co. ..........12, 16, 24, 25, 50 W. Müller USA Inc. ..............................34
General Motors Co. ............................22 YAGS LLC ............................................72 Vice President
Heraeus Noblelight ............................68 Zed Corp. ............................................58 Monika Verheij
Hyundai Motor Group ................23, 24 Zeiss Vision Care ..................................9 2015–2016 President
Dick Cameron
Plastics Engineering (ISSN 0091-9578) is published monthly, except bimonthly in July/August and November/December, by Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., a Wiley
Company, 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030 USA. The magazine is compiled and edited by the Society of Plastics Engineers, Editorial and Business Office, 6
Berkshire Blvd., Suite 306, Bethel, CT 06801 USA. Telephone +1 203-775-0471, Fax +1 203-775-8490. SPE Home Page: www.4spe.org. Communications should be
sent to the Editor. Send address changes and undeliverable copies to the Circulation Manager at the SPE address given above. Send subscription orders and
claims for non-receipt to Wiley Subscription Services at the Wiley address given above. SPE members receive the magazine as a
benefit of membership. Subscription rate for nonmembers is $151 for 1 year; add $100 per year for subscriptions outside North
America. Single-issue price is $20. Plastics Engineering is printed by Dartmouth Printing Co., a Sheridan Group Company. Copyright
2016 by the Society of Plastics Engineers, Inc. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Plastics Engineering, 6 Berkshire Blvd., Suite
306, Bethel, CT 06801 USA. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Plastics Engineering is
indexed by Engineering Information Inc.
Neither Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., nor the Society of Plastics Engineers, nor Plastics Engineering is responsible for opinions
or statements of facts expressed by contributors or advertisers, either in the articles published in Plastics Engineering or in the
technical papers that are presented at the meetings of the Society. Editorials do not necessarily represent the official policy of
Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., or the Society. Display and classified advertisements are included as an educational service to
Printed in the U.S.A.
readers of Plastics Engineering. Advertising appearing in Plastics Engineering is not to be taken as an endorsement, expressed or
implied, of the respective company’s processes, products, or services represented in the ad.

80-84 Market Place_editorial 8/21/16 8:54 AM Page 84
AD INDEX
ADVERTISING SALES
Aaron Equipment Company www.aaronequipment.com/sniff ....................81
Allgrind Plastics www.allgrind.com ................................................................80
ANTEC 2017 antec.4spe.org ..............................................................................52 FOR PRINT AND ON LINE DIGITAL
Arizona Instruments www.azic.com/vpxi ......................................................27 ADVERTISING SALES in
Ascend Performance Materials www.ascendmaterials.com/pa66auto......2-3 Plastics Engineering magazine
Atlas atlas-mts.com ........................................................................................33 please contact:
Battenfeld-Cincinnati www.battenfeld-cincinnati.com/usa ..........................19
BASF construction.basf.us ................................................................................43
Global Sciences Sales Director
Branson www.bransonultrasonics.com ..........................................................59
Dan Nicholas
Conair www.conairgroup.com/support ..................................................Cover 4
Connect With SPE www.4spe.org ..............................................................20, 83 Tel: +1-716-587-2181
Coperion K-Tron www.coperionktron.com......................................................17 dnicholas@wiley.com
DAK Americas www.dakamericas.com ............................................................51
Dover Chemical Corporation www.Doverchem.com/LGP-11 ......................21 Sr. Account Manager
Entek www.entek.com ........................................................................................7 Print & E Media Advertising
HPM North America Corp. www.hpmmachinery.com ..................................65
Roland Espinosa
IMS Company www.imscompany.com/G4 ......................................................49
Tel: +1-201-748-6819
Instron www.instron.com..................................................................................57
J.P. Curilla Associates Email: jpcecl@aol.com ................................................80
E-mail: respinosa@wiley.com
Japan Steel Works www.jswcompounding-usa.com ......................Cover 2, 80
John Anderson & Associates www.plasticsjobsearch.com ............................80
Kraiburg TPE Corp. www.kraiburg-tpe.com ....................................................67 Product and news releases for
Perstorp www.perstorp.com/plasticizers ........................................................53 Plastics Engineering can be sent
Plastic Flow www.plasticflow.com....................................................................80 directly to PEreleases@wiley.com
Plastic Process Equipment, Inc. www.ppe.com ............................11, Cover 3
Polyhedron Laboratories, Inc. www.polyhedronlab.com ............................80
Process Design & Technologies www.processdesigntech.com ....................80
Rheo-Plast Associates, Inc. www.rheoplastusa.com......................................80
SAM North America www.sam-na.com • Email: info@sam-na.com ..............80
Shepherd Color www.shepherdcolor.com ......................................................47
SI Group www.siigroup.com..............................................................................61 111 River Street
SPE at K Show 4spe.org ....................................................................................56 Hoboken, NJ 07030 USA
SPE Auto TPO www.auto-tpo.com ................................................................62-63
SPE Blow Molding Conference www.blowmoldingdivision.org........................73
SPE Career Change www.4spe.org/careers ....................................................77
SPE FlexPackCon www.4spe.org/flexpackcon2016 ........................................37
SPE Got Membership? www.4spe.org ............................................................79
SPE Materials Database www.4spe.org/materialsdatabase ..........................75
SPE Medical Plastics Conference www.medicalplastics-conference.com ....69
SPE Technical Journals www.4spe.org ............................................................81
SPE The Chain thechain.4spe.org ........................................................................74 6 Berkshire Blvd., Suite 306
SPE Plastic Part Design Conference www.spe-pd3.org ................................71 Bethel, CT 06801 USA
SPE Innovation Awards www.speautomotive.com/inno ..................................60 www.4spe.org
Struktol www.4struktol.com ............................................................................25
Tangram Technology www.tangram.co.uk ....................................................80
Turkish Machinery www.turkishmachinery.org ..............................................5

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Plastics Engineering 2016 - Automative Lightweight Composite

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Plastics Engineering 2016 - Automative Lightweight Composite

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00 Cover_Layout 1 8/19/16 5:40 AM Page cvr1

Plastics in Automotive: Lightweighting

6 Preparing to reflect, and to forge ahead

8 Sustainable Eyeglasses from Down Under, with a German Flair

Plastics in Automotive: Material Advances

22 Automotive Composites: Mass Reduction for Mass Production

34 New Developments in Blow Molding

About the cover:

www.plasticsengineering.org | www.4spe.org | SEPTEMBER 2016 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | 1

Driving PA66 Performance

To learn more visit: www.ascendmaterials.com/pa66auto

Hydrolysis Resistance E/E Performance for Severe Environments

Vydyne PA66 Solutions for Automotive

Performance Materials to deliver performance Powertrain 왔 왔 Air bags

with the highest quality materials, technical Cooling Systems 왔

and application development support, and 왖 Clips & Fasteners

supply assurance so they can manufacture 왖 Exterior

cost-effective, innovative products.

44 Plastics — It’s All About Molecular Structure

50 Plastics Sustainability, through the Lens of Natural Capital Costs

54 Assessing the Brexit Impact, plus The FLiP Files

4 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

6 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

Sustainable eyeglasses from

8 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

www.plasticsengineering.org | www.4spe.org | SEPTEMBER 2016 | PlaSTicS EnginEERing | 9

prescriptions on the road. the dream,” Dresden says, “is to

10 | PLAstiCs EnGinEERinG | sEPtEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

ELIMINATES, REMOVES & DISSOLVES A USER

SAFE - POWERFUL - BIODEGRADABLE

PLASTIC PROCESS EQUIPMENT

12 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

www.plasticsengineering.org | www.4spe.org | SEPTEMBER 2016 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | 13

Polimotor 2, developed by Matti Holtzberg, is

14 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

but likens it to compression molding without heat and pres-

The project is generating interest. Holtzberg is building

www.plasticsengineering.org | www.4spe.org | SEPTEMBER 2016 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | 15

16 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

>extruders >feeders >components >pneumatic conveying >complete systems

>>Integrated compounding and bulk materials handling systems.

Bulk Materials Handling

18 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

rial combinations common to many such parts. DSM says

20 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

330-343-7711 • 800-321-8805 • Fax: 330-364-9626 • www.doverchem.com

Approved Introducing Doverphos® LGP-11, a safe, suitable

When it comes to phosphites,

Learn more: www.Doverchem.com/LGP-11

New sizing chemistry for tougher hol-

22 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

Injection molded long-glass PA 6/6 and

www.plasticsengineering.org | www.4spe.org | SEPTEMBER 2016 | PlaSTicS EnginEERing | 23

Ford Motor Co. last year intro-

24 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

www.plasticsengineering.org | www.4spe.org | SEPTEMBER 2016 | PlaSTicS EnginEERing | 25

sequently welded these flanges to the rocker during injection

A plastic/metal hybrid floor

26 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

28 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | SEPTEMBER 2016 | www.4spe.org | www.plasticsengineering.org

www.plasticsengineering.org | www.4spe.org | SEPTEMBER 2016 | PLASTICS ENGINEERING | 29

BASF’s Ultrasim simulation tool can predict the behavior of

In contrast, other companies will be highlighting their efforts

>extruders >feeders >components >pneumatic conveying >complete systems

>>Integrated compounding and bulk materials handling systems.