Engineering Resins
The New Lightweights: Injection Molded 'Hybrid' Composites Spur Auto Innovation
A thermoplastic composite technology that emerged just a couple of years ago promises to make dramatic strides within the next two years in automotive mass production of structural components.
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Nylon Replaces Stainless Steel in Surgical Devices
WEB EXCLUSIVE: A 50% glass-filled Ixef polyarylamide (PARA, also known as MXD6 nylon) from Solvay Specialty Polymers USA, LLC, Alpharetta, Ga., delivers the high strength, rigidity, moldability, and ultra-smooth finish needed to replace stainless steel in new, single-use surgical devices.
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Ultra-Stiff Glass-Filled Nylon 66 in Photovoltaic Mounting System
WEB EXCLUSIVE: The new Aixtralight Clip rooftop solar-panel mounting system from Germany’s Aixtra Solar AG is made of ultra-stiff, 35% glass-reinforced, flame-retardant Ultramid A3WG10 nylon 66 from BASF (U.S. office in Wyandotte, Mich.). The plastic bracket is mounted on a roof, and the rails attached to the photovoltaic modules can be quickly and easily inserted into the bracket.Installing an Aixtralight Clip is said to avoid stresses caused by differences in the expansion coefficients of the trapezoidal sheet metal and the mounting rails.
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‘Breakthrough’ in Nylon Characterization
WEB EXCLUSIVE: Malvern Instruments, Westborough, Mass., has a novel gel permeation chromatography (GPC) method for characterizing nylon that is said to significantly reduce the cost of analysis while simultaneously improving safety, compared with existing methods.
Read MoreNew U.S. Production of Engineering-Resin Stock Shapes
ZL Engineering Plastics Inc., Lenexa, Kan., a supplier of stock shapes, has started up its first U.S. extrusion operation in response to growing demand.
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Resin Prices Go Up, Down and Sideways
Tight resin inventories and upward pressure from feedstocks were two factors pushing prices of PE, PP, and PVC higher last month.
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Novel Materials Stretch Process Capabilities
The potential for new or unusual materials to broaden the application potential of standard plastics processes was explored in a number of papers at April’s SPE ANTEC conference in Orlando, Fla.
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High-Flow PEEK Makes Small, Intricate Pipette Tips
WEB EXCLUSIVE: An unfilled grade of Victrex 90 Series high-flow PEEK from Victrex USA was used to mold small medical pipette tips.
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Noryl GTX in India’s First Injection Molded Plastic Fenders
WEB EXCLUSIVE: India鈥檚 first injection-molded plastic fenders are featured on the new global XUV500 SUV from Indian automaker Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M). They are made of Noryl GTX, a PPE/nylon blend from SABIC Innovative Plastics, Pittsfield, Mass.
Read MoreExpansions in TP Composite Materials
Polystrand, Inc., Englewood, Colo., is starting up a new and larger production facility for continuous-fiber reinforced thermoplastic composites in Montrose, Colo.
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