THE TICONA MAGAZINE

inform
10 Productivity and performance 15 Interview with aircraft manufacturing expert

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30 New from Ticonas research laboratory

Speed and quality determine success

12 . 2009

ED ITO RIA L

C O N TEN TS

E DITORIAL

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NE WS
03 04 04 05 05 06 06 07 08 Welcome Maria Ciliberti Armed for AdBlue Vectra LCP enables accurate sound Additional impact protetion in vehicles MetaLXTM grades Tank and fuel system Plastics processing seminars Plastic meets metal First place for charge air pipe made of Fortron PPS

Dear readers,
The Fakuma in October served as a good indicator of the mood in the plastics industry. We all hope to see the signs of recovery materialize. One thing is clear: Customers demands on processors will increase signicantly in the future. Business conditions will be dened in large part by manufacturers needs for more efcient, faster and more economical solutions. And materials suppliers will also play a more important role as a result. The current situation requires a partner who, based on actual research and further development of his materials, can provide answers for an endless series of new applications and is always there to help solve processing problems. The direction were headed is also apparent at major industrial trade fairs such as the International Motor Show (IAA). People spoke of an environmental offensive after all, some of the highlights of this years premiere exhibition included lighter, greener cars with alternative drive concepts. Basically its all about less CO2 today, not more horsepower. The topics of design and safety also remain top priorities. A glance at the automotive industry leaves no doubt: Composite materials, metal replacement and green electronics are more important than ever in the advancement of technological developments such as lightweight construction. And plastic solutions such as the brilliant, scratchresistant MetaLX metal-effect polymers are also fully competitive with metal surfaces from a visual standpoint. A broad, high-performance product portfolio is one thing and application engineering advice is another. Ticona has an ample supply of both to offer. Count on us.

RE LOCATION NE WS
09 Impressions of the new Ticona location

PRODUCTIVITY AND PERFORMANCE

10 Cover Story: Speed and quality determine success

E FFICIE NCY WITH COMPOSITES

12 Lightweights ex their muscle

DIALOG
15 Aircraft manufacture: Major breakthrough for PPS composites

GRE E N E LE CTRONICS
20 Uncompromisingly halogen-free

EFFICIENCY THROUGH METAL REPLACEMENT

22 Mobile without metal? Plastics go into high gear

APPE ARANCE
24 Strong on the inside, appealing on the outside

INNOVATION AND RE SE ARCH

27 GUR Vitamin E-enriched polymer provides protection against oxidation 28 Close to todays heartbeat: collective success 30 New from Ticonas research laboratory

TE CHNOLOGY AND SE RVICE

31 Technology FAQs

TICONA CALE NDAR

Kind regards, Henning Kll, Head of Communication Europe, Ticona
f henning.kuell@ticona.de 32 Fairs and events 32 Imprint

NEWS

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Welcome Maria Ciliberti

New Commercial Director
Maria Ciliberti was named the new Commercial Director for Europe in August, 2009. Maria Ciliberti has held positions of responsibility at Ticona since 2005. Among her other roles before moving to Kelsterbach, she was Global Automotive Director with responsibility for the development of Ticonas worldwide automotive strategy. In addition, Ms. Ciliberti is the Chair of the Automotive Division of the Society of Plastics

Engineers (SPE) where she also chairs the Innovation Awards Committee. She has established a solid reputation through a series of professional lectures and articles as well. Having earned degrees in Chemical Engineering and Business Administration from Ohio State University, Ms. Ciliberti has extensive experience in the plastics industry: over the course of the past 20 years she has worked for Dow Chemical, General Electric Plastics, Owens Corning and Composite Technologies Corporation. In her new European position, she heads a team of about 100 employees.
f infoservice@ticona.de

Maria Ciliberti

Four questions for Maria Ciliberti:

What is your goal for Ticona? My goal is for Ticona to be even closer to its customer. We can only be the best partner for our customers when we understand their existing needs and even anticipate their future needs. We aim to provide both consistent products and consistent support to our customers wherever their operations may be located. How did you become so passionate about polymers? Its amazing to watch so many things go from the initial idea to become a commercial reality. The solution to each and every new application represents a challenge whose commercial viability depends on engineering and design skills, materials expertise, application knowledge and business understanding. This is the essence of what makes it so exciting, because with plastics the possibilities are endless.

Are the polymer markets in America and Europe the same? Regardless of geography, I nd that our customers are under severe cost pressures. With this situation, we, Ticona must work even more closely with our customers to nd not only the best technical solution but also the most cost-effective solution to meet their challenges. But I believe there are also some key differences, too. I see new polymer solutions being adopted by European carmakers in new applications that I havent seen before in the US. For me, the blow-molded Fortron PPS charge air pipe on the VW Golf is a great example of this. I havent seen any blow-molded PPS parts being used in the US automotive market. But thats what makes this fun, too. Im sure blow-molded PPS will be used for under-thehood applications in the US before we know it. Do you have a motto for your work and your team? To put it simply: I believe in working hard, delivering on commitments, supporting the people, being open and having fun.

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RubberBall Productions

Armed for AdBlue*

Ticona materials suited for use in the SCR-system.
Tests have shown: The mechanical and chemical properties of the Ticona materials Fortron PPS, Hostaform POM and longber-reinforced Celstran LFRT with PPand PA-matrix are not changed, even when embedded in the reducing agent AdBlue in temperatures of up to 80 C. The materials can therefore be used in sensors, pumps, valves or valve body assemblies, for the polymers meet the requirements for plastics that are intended for use in emission control systems of modern dieselengined vehicles. In SCR-systems (Selective Catalytic Reduction), plastics come into contact with diluted carbamide solutions. The solution is responsible for the reduction of nitric oxides. The nitric oxides, as well as particulate matter, are generated during diesel combustion. However, in contrast to several other plastics, Ticona materials are able to withstand the aggressive media and thus do not lead to damage to the catalytic converter.

Vectra LCP enables accurate sound

The high-performance thermoplastic of the low warpage type enables a precise guidance of the laser.
Whether in a high-end system, an MP3-, DVD-, or CD-player in premium home entertainment equipment the precise playback of picture and sound depends to a high degree on the laser. In the so-called lens holder Vectra LCP E488i ensures an exactly controlled laser beam. In this application, the liquid crystalline polymer scores points in several areas, for example through stability even despite minimal wall strength. The low-warpage grade can thus provide the bracket with the necessary dimensional stability, in spite of its low weight. The new material, as all LCP-grades, is inherently ame retardant. It can withstand even temperatures as high as 260 C, is compatible with all standard soldering processes and can be soldered lead-free, an environmentally friendly method. Vectra LCP E488i thus meets the high re protection requirements (UL V-0), as well as the European environmental guidelines RoHS and WEEE. Ticona developed the new LCP grade to minimize the warp tendency of at electronic components. Material attributes such as ease of ow allow for a high degree of design freedom and efcient serial production. Lowwarpage Vectra LCP is the ideal material for environmentally friendly and highly precise electronic components, whether as a lens holder, a connector, processor socket or in the form of other electronic components.

*AdBlue is a registered trademark of VDA, German Association of the Automotive Industry

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2009 JupiterImages Corporation

NEWS

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Additional impact protection in vehicles

The interior of an automobile places high demands on vehicle safety. Emissions and wear are strictly regulated. Hostaform POM and Celstran LFRT comply with these regulations and are therefore used in the crashactive headrests of BMW 3 series sedans.
According to a statistic of the Federal Statistical Ofce, each year more than two million trafc accidents take place on German roads. More than 400,000 persons are injured in these accidents. One of the most common injuries is whiplash caused by a rear-end collision. In rear-end collisions, the head of the person struck from behind is rst propelled forward and then back again. Since last year, the safety of BMWs 3 Series sedans has been enhanced through the addition of crash-active headrests as standard equipment. In a rear-end collision of more than twelve kilometres per hour, a complex spring-driven mechanism shifts the front part of the headrests forward and upward within a fraction of a second, thereby reducing the risk of neck injury. This reduces the distance between the headrest and vehicle occupants head before the latter is propelled backward, thereby preventing neck injury due to hyperextension. The safety mechanism, which is triggered

by a collision, is a reversible system that can be reactivated with a few simple manual steps. The wear resistance of Hostaform POM copolymer makes it the ideal material for the functional components in the headrests of BMWs 3 Series sedans. Hostaform POM is predestined for the functional components, because the copolymer exhibits low wear. In addition, POM exhibits optimized slip-friction properties, so that no sound is generated when the headrests are adjusted. The long-ber-reinforced thermoplastic Celstran LFRT is used in the highly stressed structural components of the headrests. What is required here are light yet extremely strong materials. In the crash-active headrests of BMW Celstran LFRT are designed to absorb a major share of the elastic strain energy and thus ensures added safety during impact.

MetaLXTM grades
Ticona offers a broad range of plastics with attractive metallic look. Polymers with integrated metallic effect permit designers and processors to develop brilliant plastic solutions that resemble metal. The attractive look and feel is achieved without additional fabrication steps. And that reduces costs considerably, completely eliminating the need for further nishing processes. Along with the metallic variant of Hostaform (POM), Ticona now also offers Celanex thermoplastic polyesters (PBT), Riteex thermoplastic polyester elastomers (TPC-ET) and Vectra liquid crystal polymers (LCP) with metallic effect. That range includes unreinforced and glass-ber-reinforced grades (also available with a ame retardant system).

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N E WS

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Seminars
Tank and fuel system
Hostaform POM and Fortron PPS defy aggressive fuels
The proportion of organic fuels has risen continuously in the past years. In 2007 alone, 4.6 million tons of bio diesel, vegetable oil and bio ethanol were added to conventional fuels. The share of organic fuels is expected to increase to ten percent by 2020. Most manufacturers have already provided for this development and use especially resistant technical thermoplastics in the fuel sector. The inuence of alternative fuels on materials and components was also a topic at the 5th international CTI Forum Fuel tank and fuel systems, which was intended for automobile manufacturers, system manufacturers, fuel producers and plastics manufacturers. Ticona also presented at the forum, which took place from March 31 to April 1, 2009, in Stuttgart, Germany. Our materials Hostaform POM and Fortron PPS are the right choice in fuel system applications, where fuels in the future contain variable shares of organic fuels, says Ralf Langhammer, Emerging Markets Automotive. This was shown through long-term tests with a storage time of 5,000 hours. Even in gasoline with an 85-percent share of ethanol or in 100-percent bio diesel Hostaform POM and Fortron PPS demonstrated a high degree of durability.

Plastics processing seminars

Ticona instructed staff members of Robert Bosch and Continental Automotive
The audience learns about the design guidelines and properties of Hostaform POM.

Since the beginning of the year Ticona has been training major customers in using and processing plastics. Staff members of Continental Automotive and Robert Bosch of the Czech Republic were among the rst training groups. The all-day seminars were structured in theoretical and practical sections. Priorities of the training sessions were general injection molding method, design guidelines as well as the properties of the material Hostaform POM. The seminars are being met with a positive response and offer a high degree of added value for our customers, says Jrg Jander (Technical Service). It was demonstrated how costs can be reduced and manufacturing quality improved through processing optimisation. In the practical session, the material was recorded with an infrared camera during processing so participants could clearly observe the temperature change over time.

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NEWS

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Plastic meets metal

Ticona at the rst Innovation Forum for Process Integration
Joining together in a successful alliance thats what is happening now with plastics and metals. The rst Innovation Forum for Process Integration held in Dortmund at the end of June this year was dedicated to this forward-looking material combination. Nearly 100 company delegates from the metal and plastics processing industries participated in a high-powered twoday program. Ticona plastics and their many different advantages in hybrid technology featured prominently at the forum. individual materials, explained Hiekisch to the specialist audience. Wanted optimum material combination Process integration is one of the most important future topics for manufacturing industry. Technical solutions are required to combine the special properties of the complementary materials metal and plastic. The advantages of plastics are light weight and lower costs, while metals contribute high stiffness and conductivity. By ideally harmonizing the two materials, there is enormous potential for companies to increase their productivity and efciency. But the prerequisite for this, is to learn how to manufacture metal/plastic hybrid components intelligently in a single production line, concluded Hiekisch. The Innovation Forum for Process Integration took place in Dortmund on June 24 and 25, 2009. Under the umbrella of the Proform trade show, which is to open its doors every two years, the exhibition organizer, Messe Westfalenhallen Dortmund GmbH, will now arrange this high-powered conference in the years between the shows with the assistance of the Ldenscheid Plastics Institute (KunststoffInstitut Ldenscheid), the Institute of Forming Technology and Lightweight Construction (Institut fr Umformtechnik und Leichtbau) at the Technical University of Dortmund (Technische Universitt Dortmund) and the City of Dortmund Economic Development Agency (Wirtschaftsfrderung Dortmund).
f hiekisch@ticona.de

Participants at the Innovation Forum for Processing Technology in Dortmund (fth from the right: Rochus Hiekisch, Ticona)

In his presentation, hybrid expert Rochus Hiekisch provided fascinating insights into the properties of Ticonas plastics and illustrated these with successful practical examples. To achieve a high-strength bond, choosing the right primer or adhesion promoter, is crucial. Thats why, in addition to high-performance polymers, we also offer our customers information on the most suitable primer for each of our

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N E WS

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SPE Automotive Award 2009 and Grand Award

First place for charge air pipe made of Fortron PPS

Mid-June brought some very pleasing news. Rchling Automotive won not just one, but two of the coveted Automotive Awards from the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) for its charge air pipe made of Fortron PPS: 1st place in the Powertrain category together with the Grand Award in the collective category Parts & Components. VW uses this innovative component for two-liter diesel engines. It costs approximately 25 percent less than aluminum. One of the reasons for this is the new processing method, which cuts reject rates in comparison to welding, integrates several manufacturing steps, shortens cycle times, and increases the reliability of the production process, says Dr Fabrizio Chini, R & D Manager at Rchling Automotive. To manufacture these charge air pipes, Rchling has developed a method it calls JectBondingTM, a modied blow molding process that has now also been patented. It enables highly cost-efcient manufacture of the pipes along with brackets at the same time. This success owes much to the use of two different grades of PPS, Fortron 1115LO and FX4330T7. Both grades offer excellent durability and a long service life as well as high melt strength and viscosity. Functional parts made from our material are extremely resistant to both mechanical and thermal stresses. They also weigh about 30 percent less than the aluminum components previously used. And that helps reduce both fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. SPE: knowledge transfer for the plastics industry Some 20000 plastics experts in the elds of research, technology, marketing, and sales from over 70 countries belong to the SPE. Its goal is to support employees and companies in the plastics industry, especially through knowledge and know-how transfer, and to raise the industrys prole.

First place award for charge air pipe made of Fortron PPS the component was developed by Rchling Automotive and Ticona in close collaboration. From left to right: Ludwig Huber, Dr. Fabrizio Chini, Frank Johnning, Matthias Schmann, Dr. Bernhard Pfeiffer, Carsten Wrner.

f schuemann@ticona.de f www.4spe.org f www.roechling-automotive.com

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REL O C ATI O N NEWS

Impressions of the new Ticona location

Construction work is proceeding at full speed, so the new production plant can go into operation on schedule. The relocation of Ticona in the Rhine-Main area from Kelsterbach to Hchst Industrial Park will be completed by mid-2011. The thorough preparations have paid off, and now building construction is well underway. Initial samples of Hostaform POM are expected already next year.

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Still computer simulation, but soon a reality

Construction of the new Ticona works begins on ten hectares (25 acres) on the west side of Frankfurt am Main, Germany

The plant is growing. By the time its completed, some 4,000 cubic meters of concrete, 600 kilometers of cable, 10,000 tons of steel and about 100 kilometers of pipe will have been used to build it. f relocation@ticona.com
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COV E R S TO RY: PR OD UC T I V I T Y A N D P ERFO RMAN C E

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Speed and quality determine success

Processors and system suppliers are under tremendous pressure to maintain and increase productivity. Their customers in the automotive industry, for example expect efciency improvements year in and year out together with optimal product quality. Processors face complex challenges in the market as a result. In the production process, every second counts provided the nished product ultimately meets the performance specications.
Today the demand for short production cycles is greater than ever before. And worse yet, products have to be ramped up from development to serial production in less and less time. This is primarily the result of erce competition along with rapidly changing trends. Thats why raising efciency and productivity is a top priority that OEMs, processors and material producers all have in common so they can continue to provide the right means of creating competitive products in the future as well. Take Ticona, for example, which has set the stage for efciency improvements of this kind by centralizing certain key in-house functions such as Supply Chain and Customer Service. A combination of broad expertise and high-performance polymers is letting customers realize cost-reduction potentials, improve efciency, and reduce the burden on people and the environment. Processing steps: Less is more Major cost and time savings are obtained through functional integration, for example, where elements such as switches or fastening clamps are directly integrated into the plastic component during production instead of adding them afterwards. Manufacturing costs can also be reduced through the use of plastics with a brilliant metallic appearance. Thats because this approach eliminates additional painting or coating operations otherwise necessitated by the cost-intensive processing of metals. And that also reduces, in turn, the burden on the environment and people, as it ultimately eliminates the need to handle pollutants that were previously required in order to achieve a special nish. Further cost reduction potentials can be realized through the shape, color and quality of the nal component. The resulting reduction in handling and logistics requirements can have a perceptible impact on productivity. Manufacturing: Efcient and innovative This explains to some degree why high-performance plastics are conquering more and more application areas. Processed into tapes and composites, for example, they are enabling the efcient and cost-effective implementation of lightweight construction trends in the aircraft and automotive industries. Composites based on plastics are also being used to create energy-efcient solutions in the construction of fans and exible piping systems. Here they provide longer service life or lower maintenance costs than metal assemblies used in the corresponding applications. These materials feature very high chemical resistance and mechanical strength, and their lower weight is also benecial during transport to the actual place of use, whether by land, sea or air. The high-tech materials can be processed efciently by means of established processing techniques primarily injection molding. As they ow well in the mold, for example, these polymers permit short cycle times. If cleaning intervals can be extended as a result, then the processor saves hard cash: they dont have to interrupt the production process nor do they have to provide personnel. Other methods used to process engineering thermoplastics include extrusion and

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C OVER STO RY: P RO DUC TI V I TY AN D P ERFO R MA NCE

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blow molding. Blow molding is also used to create complex geometries ranging from charge air pipes in vehicles to water tanks in ovens and reduces the number of manufacturing steps at the same time: there is no need to weld individual components like the water tanks together, and cycle times are shorter. A modied blow molding process makes production of the charge air pipes even more efcient despite their complex geometry, as brackets and clips are integrated directly. And theres an added benet: reject rates are lower than with welding. (See also inform page 8.) Special solutions promote productivity The ability to increase efciencies in this way, however, depends on the selection of a suitable material for the specic application. Qualied application engineers and process developers offer just the right advice here. Their aim is to provide suppliers, OEMs and injection molders with a plastic that has the ideal properties tailored to meet the specications already before processing. Additives of all kinds permit materials to deliver halogen-free ame retardancy (if not already inherently ame retardant), for example, or conductivity right from the outset. Engineering polymers can also be modied with UV protection, helping components subjected to ultraviolet rays maintain their function and appearance for years and years. In addition, Ticona plastics can be dyed in the mass with virtually any color and special effects such as metallic or matt nishes are also possible. More function and performance, less cost In the face of huge pressures from markets and competitors, long-lasting materials with good mechanical properties offer major advantages. They make it possible to square the circle, enabling the development of thin-walled components such as instrument panel carriers made of the long-ber-reinforced compound Celstran PP-LGF (long glass ber). This permits designers to reduce wall thicknesses from 2.5 3.0 mm to

just 2.5 1.5 mm in some places. Less plastic is required and the production process uses less energy at the same time. In this way, these high-performance materials meet the designers high expectations while giving them more design latitude to develop innovative products efciently products that would be impossible or prohibitively expensive to make from metals or other plastics. One particularly important consideration in the automotive and aerospace industries is the low weight of engineering polymers. An optimization of just 0.5 mm as in the example above already yields a weight savings of some 20 percent. And in aircraft construction, individual components such as the lumbar support in a seat backrest weigh as little as half as much as the comparable metal counterpart. With up to eight times less weight, these polymers ultimately result in lower fuel consumption and less CO2 emissions. Speed and quality without compromise The implementation of efcient solutions in combination with increased productivity has its limits in everyday life and that applies in geographic terms as well. Because if a material made from the identical recipe is not available in the markets of America, Europe and Asia, then the time-consuming preliminary work starts all over again for companies with global operations: clarifying application engineering questions, identifying suitable materials, verifying processing, comparing costs and quality, etc. When materials suppliers operate global infrastructures, on the other hand, and ensure long-term recipe uniformity in their materials all over the world, global players can develop and implement new products faster. Optimized processes also contribute to this acceleration no less than the actual performance characteristics of the materials used. Thats why polymer manufacturers like Ticona are continuously working on the further development of advanced materials, thereby setting the stage for new trends or else applying them when the right moment comes along.

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EFF ICIE N C Y W I T H C OM P OS I T E S

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Lightweights ex their muscle

The low weight of ber composites combined with their very high strength and stiffness is making them the material of choice for more and more demanding lightweight design applications in aeronautics, the automotive industry, construction, piping and even sports equipment.

Production of the wing leading edge nose assemblies of the Airbus A380 at Stork Fokker in the Netherlands. The composite sheets are made from carbon bers and Fortron PPS from Ticona.

Fotosearch

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EFFI C I EN C Y WI TH C O MPOSITES

Nature has perfected the art of lightweight construction for millions of years. Every honeycomb, every bone is stiff and strong and located precisely and exclusively where the load is high. Areas that bear lighter loads are all trimmed consistently to reduce weight. Material and component developers have long recognized nature as an ideal teacher. They have very successfully emulated natures designs for many years now, in order to satisfy the most demanding applications with a minimum of raw material. One means of achieving this is through ber composites or composites for short where bers made of glass or carbon are embedded in a thermoplastic matrix. Composites are stiffer and stronger than nonreinforced plastics. They offer a weight advantage of up to 25 percent over aluminum and up to 60 percent over steel. The interest in composites is correspondingly high in all industries where weight is a critical factor especially in aeronautics. Along with low weight and reasonable raw materials costs, two further aspects are of key importance to industry in the replacement of established metallic or thermoset materials: rational processing and broad design latitude. Ticona has a very wide range of products to offer here, ranging from Fortron PPS as basic material, Celstran LFRT pellets or Celstran LFRT composites in the form of tapes and semi-nished products. They can be combined with virtually any polymer (e.g. PP, PA or ABS) as a matrix material and with a variety of reinforcement bers (glass, aramid, carbon, etc.). Celstran LFRT: Thermoplastic composites Celstran LFRT long-ber-reinforced pellets provide impressive results, not only with their specic technical properties, but also with short cycle times and broad design latitude using established processing techniques. Moreover, so-called tapes (unidirectionally reinforced semi-nished products) are in increasing demand among processors: available in a variety of standard sizes as well as

customized dimensions, tapes based on different polymers and reinforcement bers can also be processed easily and particularly cost-efciently. Ticonas latest customer-friendly semi-nished products are rods developed especially for metal replacement applications. Lightweight construction in many elds The advantages of composites are readily apparent not only in the air, but also on the ground: in automotive construction, ber-reinforced Celstran LFRT grades from Ticona are used for different structural components such as instrument panels and door modules. In bridge construction, the low weight of composites permits the prefabrication of very large components, which can be installed subsequently at the construction site. Load-bearing assemblies made of composites are perfectly able to compete with concrete or steel bridges: depending on ber content, their strength in the direction of the bers is comparable to that of steel. Unlike traditional materials such as steel, reinforced concrete or wood, they neither corrode nor weather, thereby guaranteeing long service life and low maintenance costs. Fiber-reinforced plastics are also suitable for use in wind turbines, shipbuilding and piping systems. With their excellent processing characteristics, short cycle times and low creep, they are the material of choice for use in the fabrication of rotor blades for wind turbines, for example. In addition, components such as these have a long service life after which they can also be easily recycled. Fiber-reinforced Celstran LFRT can be used as a substitute for metal and metal alloys in the production of pipes for owlines, pressure lines and underwater pipelines: In oil and gas production, piping systems made of PPS also offer signicant advantages over metal pipes. With aramid reinforcement, for example, they are up to 90 percent lighter than metal, permit rapid, inexpensive installation and prevent parafn build-up.

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Pipes made of Celstran LFRT composites offer high strength and require little maintenance.

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EFF ICIE N C Y W I T H C OM P OS I T E S

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Composites dampen vibrations better than steel and concrete, and their corrosion resistance lowers operating costs in the construction of bridges and buildings.

Thats why pressure losses are up to 50 percent lower, which means piping with smaller diameter can be used. In sum, the greatest possible efciency in terms of performance and costs from installation right through to maintenance. Today composites are even used in sports equipment. A leading manufacturer of golf clubs, for example, is marketing three new models with shafts made of carbon-ber-reinforced Fortron PPS. This composite increases the stability of the golf club on impact and improves energy transmission, thereby optimizing precision and range. With their wide range of extraordinary property proles, composites made from Ticona polymers give the start signal for the cost-efcient implementation of many demanding lightweight structural design solutions. Fortron PPS proven in the aeronautics industry Composites based on the polyphenylene sulde Fortron PPS from Ticona are already commonplace in aircraft construction. Inherently ameretardant, this thermoplastic combines high hardness and impact strength with excellent resistance to heat, chemicals and fuels. It maintains its properties across a very broad range of temperatures from minus 40C to plus 240C. Ideally suited for subsequent thermoforming and welding processes, these composites consist of alternating layers of Fortron PPS lms and carbon ber mats, which have been baked into an inseparable sandwich in an autoclave. Current aircraft applications include the large area prole components of the wing leading edge nose assemblies for the Airbus A380 jumbo airliner and the A340-500/600 series. With a length of

26 meters, the wing leading edge nose assembly of the A380 weighs just 200 kilograms about 20 percent less than a comparable assembly made of aluminum. Moreover, the design latitude that resulted from conversion to composite construction made an entirely new forming technique possible: the new J nose is more aerodynamic than the conventional D nose made of aluminum and also leaves room to house electrical cables, de-icing systems and other equipment. Will composites soon make up half of all parts? A total of more than 1,000 separate parts used in the Airbus A380 are made of PPS composites. Integrated into seat backrests, the new type of lumbar support made of Fortron PPS weighs all of 150 grams. A comparable support made of aluminum would weight nearly twice as much, says Peter Radden, Technical Marketing Manager Composites at Ticona. With 555 seats in all, that amounts to a weight savings of 72 kilograms. For airlines that want to reduce fuel consumption, extend carrying capacity and range, and ensure economical operation, every kilogram truly does count even in a large, heavy commercial jetliner that weights about 550 tons at takeoff.

Fortron PPS makes it possible to reduce weight economically with these seats too.

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DIA LOG

Aircraft manufacture
Major breakthrough for PPS composites
Gulfstream G650: Fortron PPS composites used in primary structural aircraft components for the rst time
Arnt Offringa smiles. For good reason. Stork Fokker has written another chapter in its 90-year history and the evolution of aircraft manufacturing. In an interview with inform, the R&D director takes a look at the most recent successes and explains what developments may be expected in future. In his view, thermoplastic composites and innovative technologies will be at the cutting edge of these advances. Thanks to high-performance composites in the form of prepregs and new welding methods, we can produce large, strong, homogeneous structural components without the usual additional costs for drilling and riveting work. Inform: The new business jet from Gulfstream, the G650, recently completed its rst ight. Can you briey describe what part Fokker has played in this? A. Offringa: Among other things, we developed the G650s rudder and elevator. When it ew for the rst time on November 25, 2009, the event marked the maiden ight of the worlds rst aircraft to rely on PPS thermoplastic composites for these control surfaces. This is a very major breakthrough in the aircraft industry. Until now, those assemblies had been made from a combination of thermosets and metal. Inform: Why are aircraft manufacturers using the new material combination instead of thermosets? A. Offringa: There are two key reasons for using thermoplastic composites. Firstly, they save time and handling costs in production, because they eliminate the very labor-intensive riveting and bonding operations required in individual component assembly. The second advantage of thermoplastic composites which, in the case of the G650, are based on Fortron PPS polyphenylene sulde is that they can be used to produce large prole sections that are some 20 percent lighter than those made from conventional materials such as metal and light alloys. All manufacturers today want to and must design lighter aircraft to cut fuel consumption per passenger. Inform: Thermoplastic composites have been used for quite some time in aircraft construction. What have been the important milestones in your opinion? A. Offringa: These composite materials have been used since the mid-1980s, although only in very small quantities at rst. The material primarily employed in those early days was a carbon ber-PEEK (polyetherether ketone) composite. Dassault and Airbus used it, for example, in the vertical n. At the end of the 1980s, PEI composites, i.e. polyetherimide, also arrived on the scene. They were used in applications such as oor panels inside the Airbus Beluga super

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 Stork Fokker

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With the Gulfstream G650, aircraft control surfaces made of thermoplastic composites will take off for the rst time in the history of aircraft construction. Aircraft manufacturer Stork Fokker uses Fortron PPS to manufacture the rudder and elevator of the new business jet from Gulfstream Aerospace.

transporter and in aircraft manufactured by Fokker and Dornier. And in 1995, Gulfstream brought out an aircraft that relied on a carbon ber-PEI composite in primary structural components. Inform: And when did the rst aircraft y containing a carbon ber-PPS composite? A. Offringa: That was the Fokker 50 in about 1997. It had a landing gear door made from PPS composites. But this had been preceded by discussions since 1992/93 between TenCate Advanced Composites, the Technical University of Delft in the Netherlands and Ticona. At about the same time, the developments that would later lead to the new wing leading edge nose on the A340 500/600 started at Airbus in the UK. Prole sections based on composites from TenCate and Fokker made it possible to design a new wing leading edge nose shape, the J nose. This has several advantages over the old D nose shape produced from aluminum. The components are reinforced with curved ribs made from PPS-carbon ber composites in a way that makes them exceptionally stiff in the direction of ight but able to accommodate wing vibrations in the transverse direction. In addition, the J nose is aerodynamically shaped and designed to house electric cables, deicing equipment and other systems. Instead of the usual ve aluminum components, only two structural elements are now required for the wing leading edge nose. Inform: What was the next crucial step? A. Offringa: The next great milestone without any doubt was the A380, the largest passenger plane today. Around 25 percent of the aircraft structure and components are produced from composites. And in the next generation of aircraft, the content of composites will double. For example, the A350 is expected

to take off for the rst time in 2011 with over 50 percent of its total weight made up of ber-reinforced composite materials. And also in the Dreamliner, the Boeing 787, which is due to make its maiden ight in 2009, half of the components are produced from composite materials. A measure of the trust now placed in lightweight structures can be seen in the advance orders: over 860 for the Dreamliner and nearly 500 for the A350. Inform: What has driven this development over the past years? A. Offringa: This rapid development has been driven by the signicant advances made in technologies and materials but also, of course, by economic and ecological pressures. Metals such as aluminum weigh more and, as I have already said, are more costly to process. Inform: How then are these large prole sections produced from thermoplastic composites? A. Offringa: PPS composites (so-called prepregs) are produced from Fortron lms, PPS matrix material and reinforcing bers at a temperature of about 300C under high pressure. Specialized suppliers to the aircraft industry such as Ten Cate or also Airbus itself manufacture ribs, stiffeners and other elements from the prepregs. The individual components are welded together to form a strong, inseparable unit. This process eliminates the need for costly drilling and riveting operations and achieves higher strength and safety while at the same time reducing weight. It also saves time and money.

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DIA LOG

Inform: In the Gulfstream 650, you are going a step further because here thermoplastic composites are being used in exterior primary structural aircraft components. Does a new technology or material lie behind this? A. Offringa: New technology, yes, new material, no. Because of its specially suitable property prole, Fortron PPS is the only thermoplastic, apart from PEI, PEKK and PEEK to be approved for aircraft composite structures by the US Federal Aviation Authority and other national authorities. Components made from PPS composites remain hard, impact-resistant, stiff and dimensionally stable, even when exposed to temperature variations of more than 100C. Fortron PPS is also resistant to aggressive media such as aviation fuel, engine and hydraulic oils, solvents and antifreezes. With its inherent ame retardancy, the material also meets the very high safety standards

example, to weld PPS ribs to large, at PPS components. Now we have moved forward another step and the relevant components are in serial production. Inform: Is this another reason for the surge in the use of ber-reinforced thermoplastics in aircraft construction and does it even spell the end for aluminum? Which material will win out your opinion? A. Offringa: Aluminum will certainly have to give an enormous amount of ground. But in the near future, it will not disappear completely even though Bombadier, for example, has developed an all-composites fuselage structure for the Learjet LJ85. Tape technology has a future as a production process simply because it offers important advantages. In this technology, long tapes are ultrasonically compressed and shaped. Other parts can be directly joined to the tapes in a fully automated process. Once again, this saves

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Stork Fokker

specied by the aircraft industry, such as the FST (re, smoke and toxicity) requirements. Inform: So essentially something has changed in the technology or processing A. Offringa: Thats right! The PPS components for the rudder and elevator of the Gulfstream 650 are produced using a welding method that is new to aircraft construction, known as induction welding, which has been developed by the Dutch KVE Composites Group. In simple terms, this is a very precise welding method, in which the components are only welded at the points where it is necessary. This method is used, for

time. For this reason, this is the technology of the future in my opinion. In terms of materials, however, there will probably still be some departure from the present route. I am rmly convinced that the future lies between the properties of PPS and PEEK. Although it is an excellent material, PPS comes up against certain limits here and there. PEEK is a very good but also very expensive material with a very high melting point in an autoclave. If we could succeed in producing a combination that exploited the advantages of both materials, we would have the perfect basis for new tapes.

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DI A L O G

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Inform: Have you set up special research or partner programs to help translate the increasing but very complex know-how surrounding lightweight construction from theory to practice in a quicker and more targeted way? A. Offringa: We are conducting research in many directions. But we cannot cover or take forward everything on our own. We are therefore cooperating, for example, with Boeing, TenCate Advanced Composites and the University of Twente in the Netherlands. We plan to establish a Thermoplastic Composites Research Center (TPRC) to accelerate innovations based on affordable, lightweight, eco-friendly thermoplastic composite technologies. And Airbus, too, is working in this area with the Dutch aircraft industry and therefore with us under the auspices of TAPAS, the Thermoplastic Affordable Primary Aircraft Structure project. This does not mean, of course, that all knowledge is thrown into one pot and mixed up. A couple of secrets remain because our aircraft manufacturing competitors are also pushing ahead with innovations and lightweight construction, so we are all eagerly awaiting future developments. Inform: Can you reveal to us neverthless what new things the near future might bring in aircraft construction? A. Offringa: It is certainly no secret any more to say that not only in the new A350 fuselage brackets but also in the new military transport plane from Airbus Military, the A400m, the fuselage ice protection plates are to be produced from this material. The horizontal tail is also in the development engineers sights. All in all, and this is not just my opinion, the future lies in the production of thermoplastic composites by the new tape technology I have already mentioned. This will allow more compact design and require less material, so that further considerable weight reductions can be achieved. In addition, tape technology will open up whole new design opportunities. For example, large structural components can be produced more cost-effectively.
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Inform: Will these developments exhaust the future of thermoplastic composites? A. Offringa: By no means. Then we can really take off in the aircraft industry and develop far more than the 1000 structural and non-structural interior and exterior parts installed on the A380, for example. Our designers eyes light up at the very thought, as no doubt do those of the material manufacturers, to whom rosy times will certainly come. And, of course, there are other industry sectors that benet from good lightweight construction materials. And Im not thinking just of the automotive industry here. For wind farms, trains, buses or trucks, high-performance composites are also the lightweight material of choice. Inform: Thank you very much for the interview.
The interview with Arnt Offringa was conducted by Henning Kll, Communications Manager Europe, Ticona. Further links f www.airbus.com f www.fokker.com f www.gulfstream.com f www.kve.nl f www.tencate.com

Delivery of the rst Gulfstream G650 is currently scheduled for 2012. It logged its maiden ight in late November 2009.

Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation

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Fortron PPS is an ideal high-tech thermoplastic for production with short cycle times. PPS is recyclable and consumes relatively little energy during processing.

PEEK
Polyether ketones (PEK) are high-temperature-resistant thermoplastics. The best known and most important representative of this group is polyetherether ketone (PEEK). Its melting point is 335 C. Polyether ketones are resistant to virtually all organic and inorganic chemicals. They are also resistant to hydrolysis up to about 280 C. On the other hand, they are not resistant to UV radiation, concentrated nitric acid, general acid-oxidizing conditions and some halogenated hydrocarbons. With a typical price per kilo for prepregs of about 350 (April 2009), PEEK is one of the most expensive engineering plastics.

Fortron PPS
Specic properties of polyphenylene sulde and its compounds: inherent ame retardancy, excellent hardness, stiffness and dimensional stability, high heat resistance with continuous service temperatures of up to 240 C, very good chemical and oxidation resistance, minimal water absorption, good electrical properties, low creep and excellent mechanical properties.

PEI
Polyetherimide (PEI) is a high-performance thermoplastic belonging to the high-temperature-resistant plastics group (up to about 200 C). Polyetherimide is inherently ame-retardant with low smoke development. Even in the unreinforced state, it has very high strength, which can be further increased by the addition of glass or carbon bers. PEI has high dielectric strength, is resistant to hydrolysis and very resistant to UV and gamma rays.
Braided cable sleeves made of Fortron PPS are used in many applications in aircraft construction.

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EFF ICIE N C Y W I T H T I C ONA GR E EN EL EC TRO N I C S

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Uncompromisingly halogen-free
Heightened ecological awareness on the part of consumers and new international environmental regulations are increasing demand for eco-friendly electrical and electronic equipment.
IT products are getting greener and greener. Three out of four buyers are now willing to dig deeper into their own pockets for such goods. A representative survey carried out by PricewaterhouseCoopers in 2008 came to this conclusion. When purchasing computers, televisions or cell phones, every second consumer indicated that they would agree to pay up to ten percent more for ecofriendly models than for conventional ones. Most consumers cant quite fathom what the term green actually means in the context of electrical and electronic products, however. This buzzword is generally associated with nothing more than low energy consumption. Hardly anyone thinks about material selection based on environmental considerations. Their use combined with clear, easily traceable identication for consumers opens up considerable opportunities for manufacturers to differentiate themselves from their competitors. Clear regulations from Brussels The requirements of environmentally compatible materials are clearly dened. The EUs RoHS and WEEE regulations impose tight limits on heavy metals and certain brominated ame retardants. Relevant requirements and restrictions apply for all materials used in production. That applies to the plastics as well as to the solder materials, with their extremely high solder bath temperatures. In its conversion to forward-looking, green solutions, the industry faces a series of complex tasks. It is looking for so-called drop-in materials that meet the ambitious sustainable development requirements. The new materials must also offer performance characteristics that are equal to, if not better than, those of the materials they replace while enabling environmental compatibility costeffectively at the same time. As a leading supplier of sustainability-conscious, high-performance thermoplastics, Ticona is prepared to assist

Stockbyte/Getty Images

Microswitches made of Fortron PPS and Vectra LCP meet the requirements of Green Electronics.

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EFFICIENCY WITH TICONA GREEN ELECTRONICS

Memory module sockets made of halogen-free Vectra LCP E471i are used in products such as laptops.

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companies as they develop and rene their products through the optimization of materials, application and processing. The consultants from Ticona have a broad range of products at their disposal. Modied for specic applications, RoHS and WEEE-compatible grades of Celanex PBT, Fortron PPS and Vectra LCP withstand high temperatures during processing, assembly and use. In so doing, they retain their dimensional stability and do not give off any substances that could damage sensitive electronic components. And thanks to their inherent ame retardancy, Fortron PPS and Vectra LCP also help impede the spread of re. Despite miniaturization and reduced wall thicknesses,

designers need not compromise on strength. Easily processed, these materials enable high productivity, and their environmentally compatible composition facilitates recycling.

The Ticona label stands for the use of halogen-free and re-safe polymers.

Ticonas eco-friendly approach With its RoHS-compliant grades, Ticona underscores its consistent focus as a company for which eco-friendly solutions represent both an objective and a core competence. Celanex PBT is a polybutylene terephthalate with high strength, stiffness, dimensional stability, impact strength and creep strength as well as good chemical resistance. Recent additions to this product range include non-reinforced and glass-ber-reinforced grades of the XFR series. Flame-retardant (UL94 V-0 at 0.8 mm), halogen and antimony-free, and lightweight, they can be processed without emitting

corrosive substances and offer high electrical tracking resistance properties at the same time. Their patented ame retardant system is based on highly effective, organic phosphor compounds (so-called metal phosphinates) that remain stable at temperatures of up to 300 C. Fortron PPS (polyphenylene sulde) is an inherently ame-resistant, high-temperature thermoplastic with a melting point of 285 C that exhibits an outstanding combination of thermal, mechanical and chemical resistance. Liquid crystalline Vectra LCP is ame retardant without any additives whatsoever and has a low thermal expansion coefcient. Its

dimensional stability and chemical resistance, on the other hand, are very high. Vectra LCPs outstanding heat resistance permits leadfree soldering. Its excellent owability in the melt in combination with the molded parts high strength let designers create thin-walled components, thereby saving material, reducing cycle times and increasing productivity. The ability to produce parts with up to 50 percent regrind content also offers cost-reduction potentials. Typical applications include connector strips, lamp sockets and bases, coils, switches, connectors, chip carriers and sensors.

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 Volkswagen AG

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Mobile without metal? Plastics go into high gear

Engineering polymers are pioneering our automotive future: offering customized properties and light weight, they are replacing components made of metal, improving both performance and safety, and helping reduce fuel consumption and therefore CO2 emissions.
The evolution of Volkswagens 1974 Golf I to the current Golf VI has been far more than just a facelift: it has also endowed the model with highly enhanced active and passive safety systems and more dynamic handling characteristics, not to mention a comfort-oriented, upscale ambiance in the interior. But now the new generation has a problem: it has developed a prosperity paunch and a substantial one at that. It weighs in just short of 1.3 tons, a full 50 percent more than the founding member of the Golf dynasty. Much of the blame lies with luxury equipment like power steering or air conditioning and safety systems such as ABS and airbags features that todays drivers consider absolutely indispensable. Over the past 15 years, passenger cars have become about 30 percent heavier on average solely as a result of such features. Modern gasoline and diesel engines are certainly far more fuel efcient than their predecessors. But the price of fuel at the pump has nearly doubled since 2004 and legislators are in the process of tightening climate protection regulations, so the issue of fuel consumption is more urgent than ever. Beginning from 2012, for example, new cars sold in the European Union may not emit more than 120 grams of CO2 per kilometer. This corresponds to a fuel consumption rate of about 5 liters of gasoline or 4.5 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers (47 mpg and 52 mpg, respectively). Compare that with the CO2 emissions of the top 14 automakers eets in 2006, which still averaged 162 grams per kilometer. In view of these requirements, vehicle weight reduction will be a major development priority, says Johannes Winterhagen, Editor in Chief of ATZ. Because according to a study by the European Federation for Transport and Environment (T&E), every percentage point of weight reduction corresponds to about 0.8 percent less CO2. Lightening the load with more plastic Modern engineering polymers like the ones Ticona has been developing and delivering to the automotive industry for more than 40 years are helping reduce the weight of vehicle components by an average of 30 percent. The share of plastic in todays vehicles is about 15 percent. According to experts, the weight of a mid-size car containing about 900 kilograms (2000 lbs.) of steel and metal parts can be trimmed by another 300 kilograms (700 lbs.) through the consistent use of plastics in place of metal and through appropriate composite or hybrid solutions.

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EFFI C I EN C Y THRO UG H METAL REP L ACEMENT

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And plastics provide other benets as well: they enable highly versatile product design, can be colored in many different ways, and make it possible to create even extremely complex components cost-effectively. Injection molding is a particularly useful means of producing material and component combinations in a single operation. This so-called assembly injection molding helps reduce fabrication costs signicantly. Another special bonding process developed by Rchling Automotive known as JectBondingTM is also making a major contribution here. Ticona diet plan From among the broad range of Ticona materials, Celstran LFRT, Hostaform POM and Fortron PPS are the most widely used by a large number of automakers in structural, functional and aesthetic components. They feature excellent mechanical properties along with resistance to chemicals, corrosion and high temperatures. Three examples illustrate the diversity of applications in exterior and interior components and even in components used in the engine compartment. Take Celstran+PP long-ber-reinforced polypropylene, for example, which is particularly well suited for automotive structural components such as front end carriers, door modules and instrument panel carriers or control unit boxes and seat shells. This material exhibits an advantageous combination of high impact strength and notched impact strength an important factor for passenger protection in the event of a crash. It is also characterized by high stiffness and strength as well as low creep and warpage. In the case of the front end used on Mercedes most recent Vito and Viano models, it enabled designers to cut the weight of the component to half that of its predecessor. Through the integration of further assemblies such as headlamps, radiator and fenders,

it has also facilitated assembly and reduced production costs. The simple and inexpensive fabrication of metallic-effect components for vehicle interiors includes a new special grade of Hostaform POM polyacetal copolymer. One example of a current application is the door handle of the Honda Accord in high-quality metallic look, which is durably colorfast and scratch-resistant. These injection-molded parts have this nish right out of the mold. This has eliminated the need for the additional operations that were necessary in the past, such as coating, painting or vacuum metallization along with the considerable costs associated with them. Fortron PPS linear polyphenylene sulde offers high hardness and stiffness, resists aggressive media such as fuels and lubricants, and even withstands continuous service temperatures of over 200 C. Application areas in the engine compartment include air intake modules and charge air pipes in turbocharger systems. Moreover, a charge air pipe made of Fortron PPS weighs only 500 grams, for example, which represents a weight savings of 30 percent over the comparable aluminum component. At the same time, the production costs are about 25 percent lower. A safe, roadworthy, high-quality lightweight car is a feasible objective and the keys to achieving that goal include engineering plastics that are currently available and under continuous further development. Ticona is playing an active role in shaping this development as a system partner to automakers and their system suppliers. The material experts range of services includes support in the selection and development of materials as well as extensive advice on engineering applications from component design to mold layout and CAE modeling right through to the optimization of production processes.

From left to right: (1) Door handles made of POM metaLX: no subsequent painting or metallizing operations required (2) Door module made of Celstran LFRT saves up to eight kilograms. (3) Charge air pipe made of Fortron PPS weighs 500 grams (made of aluminum: 870 grams)

AP P E ARA N C E

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Strong on the inside, appealing on the outside

High functionality with a perfect visual appearance at an acceptable price consumers make high demands. Increased quality, durability, environmental friendliness, lowered weight and increased cost efciency in production are key reasons to bet on high performance polymers during the development of new products or components.
Product designers and marketing experts appreciate the manifold design- and processing options, the mechanical attributes such as good slip and abrasion properties, excellent heat resistance, high durability even versus aggressive substances or an improved environmental record. But it is not just the inner values that are pivotal when choosing the right material, the external characteristics are also important. Plastics provide us with extensive freedom in the design of components or the nished product. This concerns colors, surface feel and shapes. New features can also be easily integrated with the aid of plastics. The materials of the twenty-rst century eliminate existing constraints and give us additional space for creativity, says professor Andreas Schulz from University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Hildesheim, Germany. Through continuous advancements product designers possess a limitless variety of materials. Ticona alone offers a portfolio of some 400 different polymer grades. Among these are full-color plastics of diverse hues, plastics with a particular surface feel or special appearance, such as MetaLXTM variants, which possess a metallic look. Additives provide polymers with further characteristics, for example the long-term resistance of a material against UV irradiation. Additives also optimize plastics for additional processing steps, such as durable labeling through laser marking or assembly with decor elements using so-called In-MoldDecoration. True beauty comes from within Often it is the combination of several strengths that makes a plastic the material of choice. For example, shower heads manufactured with Hostaform POM would hardly win a beauty prize, would they not also be able to withstand limescale, chlorine and aggressive cleaning agents. Baking dishes made of Vectra LCP must be suitable for foodstuffs and be able to withstand temperatures of 280 C. The surface quality of oven handles made of Celanex PBT makes little sense without low heat conduction. And metallic shimmering door handles in automobiles cant have a tendency toward hairline ssures and have to withstand cockpit cleaning agents as well as temperature uctuations in the vehicle interior. Environmental considerations also play a role when using technical plastics. Manufacturing surface materials with polymers lowers the number of processing steps. This saves resources in raw materials, energy and logistics. Pollutants such as specic lacquers or metals are avoided altogether to protect man and the environment. However, the existing portfolio is not the only thing that is available for designers and manufacturers. Plastics experts target existing materials for modication or are developing additional products for new applications. Almost always, we have the option to individually tailor the properties of high performance plastics. This provides thermoplastics with very many and very specic application options, explains Dr. Tilo Vaahs, Manager Market Development at Ticona. The future will show which products will be successful in the market. Of one thing we can be certain: high performance polymers will play a role.

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AP P EA R A NCE

Plastics bring color into play Before processing even begins, pellets and granulated material are mixed on a molecular

level. This provides the component or product with the appropriate hue. Colored through and through, they are less susceptible to visible scratches. Cost intensive paint work or surface coating, which also usually burden the environment, are thus superuous.

Glittering effects with MetaLXTM MetaLXTM-polymers provide designers with glittering metallic plastics solutions that cannot be distinguished from real metal surfaces neither visually nor through surface feel. The appropriate appearance is achieved without additional processing steps. This lowers costs signicantly and helps avoid elaborate nishing processes altogether. As the components are colored in the mass, they are particularly scratch-resistant and their paintwork does not crack. Lasers make permanent marks Special plastics types can be marked with a laser for functional or decorative applications. Even after a long time, the abrasionproof and high-contrast characters and labeling can be read as readily as on the rst day. The highly precise laser labeling takes place immediately after the injection molding. Even components with complex geometries can be processed rapidly with this method.

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Defying the sun The sun bleaches plastics and makes them brittle. Components made from UV-resistant polymers withstand ultraviolet rays. Even after years of use, they maintain their functionality and appearance through the use of specic additives.

Neoperl

IMD: inseparably bonded In-Mold-Decoration (IMD) offers extensive design freedom for complex components. With this method materials such as metals, fabric, wood veneer or glass can be bonded into one formed component with technical plastics. Using IMD, one can manufacture completely new decors and surface effects such as Cool Touch, a metallic look as well as scratch-proof, heat-resistant or structured surfaces with a specic surface feel.

Beauty from within Attractive appearance and pleasant touch on their own are not enough. Inner qualities are no less important. Take oven handles made of Celanex PBT, for example: the low thermal conductivity of this plastic makes it suitable for use on ovens and in other heat-related applications.

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Plush Studios/Getty Images

Articial knee joints and prosthetic hips are fabricated from GUR UHMW-PE.

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I N N OVATI O N AN D RES EA R CH

The vitamin E-enriched polymer provides protection against oxidation

At the beginning of this year, Ticona released two new ultra-high-molecular polyethylenes for test purposes: GUR 1020-E and 1050-E. Orthopedic implants made from these vitamin E-modied grades do not oxidize or age. inform met with Dr. Rainer Walkenhorst and Gunther Redeker, both of Technical Marketing GUR, and asked them for details.

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Dr. Walkenhorst, when our readers think of vitamin E, they tend to think of food and not plastic. What was the idea behind mixing this vitamin with a plastic? When working with polymers for use in medical applications, this isnt nearly so far-fetched as it might seem. Half of the compounds we know under the collective term vitamin E have an antioxidative effect. After all, theyre really nothing more than fat-soluble substances known as tocopherols. One of these is the alpha-tocopherol that we use. What exactly is the vitamin E in implants designed to do? Many implants are pre-treated with modern radiation techniques, in order to sterilize them and improve their effectiveness. This can generate free radicals in the material, possibly causing oxidation and thereby accelerating the rate at which implants age. This might, in turn, adversely affect mechanical properties and reduce wear resistance. A plastic modied with vitamin E improves oxidation resistance.

Mr. Redeker, does this impair the mechanical properties of the plastic? No, according to the information we have today, this is not the case. The new material complies with ASTM* F648 and ISO 5834-1. All of its mechanical properties are comparable with those of UHMW-PE Premium, which are already widely known. Here GUR 1020-E and 1050-E meet the requirements relative to purity and processability, and furthermore exhibit excellent vitamin E homogeneity. How is the plastic produced? The polymer is produced using the Ziegler-Natta polymerization process and takes the form of a powder. Due to its high viscosity, it cannot be processed like other thermoplastics. Instead, compression sintering or ram extrusion is used to process it into sheets and bars. The implant is machined into its desired form through chip removal during subsequent processing operations.

*ASTM = American Standard Test Method

f redeker@ticona.de f rainer.walkenhorst@ticona.de

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Close to todays heartbeat: collective success

The business climate in the German economy has brightened, as the IfoIndex (Ifo-German institute for economic research) shows in November. There are increasing indicators for an end to the crisis. However, economic recovery is not yet stable. Now, more than ever, a competent partner is needed. A partner with whom one can set the correct course for sustained business success through initiative, market knowledge and imagination as well as processing- and technology know-how and a global presence.
Today, better quality, decreased weight and lower costs are core reasons for companies to place their bets on high-performance plastics instead of metals, ceramics or other materials. Whether processed as composite materials in airplanes or automobiles, as laments in technical textiles or as a primary material for the manufacture of parts from large to very small Ticona materials satisfy the most discerning customers through their individually tailored attributes. Today, the company, which belongs to Celanese, provides more than 400 speciality grades worldwide. Selecting the correct material is, however, just one side of the coin albeit a very important one. The other comprises a number of factors which, in total, play a key role in economic success. For example, companies benet by having a partner who can competently advise them regarding innovations and entry into new markets, as well as one who offers well-founded expertise and is present in the important regions. Innovations: Breaking new ground using best practice methods There is no single key to successfully entering a new market. Knowledge of existing markets and experience offer a good basis. Effort, expenditures and risks in developing potential markets are thus signicantly reduced. Ticona offers specially developed innovation workshops for exactly this scenario. Participating customers can more readily recognize the strengths of their company and (learn to) use those strengths more intensively. For the potential of an idea increases disproportionately if entrepreneurial skills are taken into account from the start when searching for new business models. This allows for utilization of existing know-how and appropriate knowledge transfer. Innovations become especially cutting edge if societal megatrends, which are intensively scrutinized by Ticona, are considered during this knowledge transfer phase. Using existing markets

Ticona hosts innovation workshops for customers.

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as a launching point, new, protable markets can be developed for example, in the automotive industry trends such as safety, the environment and lightweight construction, comfort or individual appointments can be considered. Processing- and technology know-how Setting the course for the success of a plastic component or product takes place as early as the planning phase. Because of this, Ticona offers its extensive process and technology expertise from the outset in development partnerships in the form of consultancy, seminars and troubleshooting. Which material is best for the planned component? Which processing technology is best suited for the job? How must the component and consequently the mold be designed to be appropriate for the particular plastic used? The most commonly used processing method for plastics is injection molding. Just one fault when setting up the machine can already create a component that does not meet requirements. If extensive knowledge of the material exists, then a simple visual check is sometimes all that is needed to decide what needs to be changed. Especially important: When using the injection molding method, the tools must be tailored exactly to the particular plastic, the component to be manufactured as well

as location of operation and intended function. To avoid lasting difculties or even faults during subsequent production, the mold designer and mold maker rely on data existing for Ticona plastics. Global presence in the important regions So that know-how and the right products are available in fast-growing locations, Ticona is committed to regions such as Asia. Customers who manufacture products there, can access polymers and services locally and prot from quicker delivery times, increased exibility and decreased costs. Today, Ticona manufactures Hostaform POM, GUR UHMW-PE, and Celstran LFRT locally. The main pillar is China. In addition to world-scale monomer-, polymer- and compounding facilities, a development center for customer applications has been in operation in Shanghai since 2008. The center is an important element of the global support network, which also includes similar centers in Kelsterbach, Germany, Auburn Hills, Michigan and Florence, Kentucky, USA.

f infoservice@ticona.de

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New from Ticonas research laboratory

Unbeatably tough and efcient: Hostaform S 9362 and S 9363
As POM market leader, Ticona has been continuously optimizing its Hostaform POM range already for nearly half a century. Now two new high-impact-strength grades of the next generation raise production efciency while offering an improved property prole at the same time. In order to meet growing demands also in the future, Ticona has done more than merely expand the property prole of the Hostaform S product family. Hostaform S 9362 and S 9363 also permit processors to increase their productivity considerably: Cooling times can be shortened by up to 30 percent and reduced mold deposit minimizes downtime, thereby yielding signicant cost savings over processes that use competitors impact-modied POM products. Product developers at Ticona have also managed to improve the performance prole of these new grades. They provide up to 200 percent higher weld line strength versus other TPU impact-modied polyacetals and feature signicantly greater heat deection resistance, a higher elastic modulus and enhanced mechanical per*impact-modied POM products of competitors

formance properties. The modication also gives Hostaform S 9362 and S 9363 more favorable slip/friction properties and improved chemical resistance. Typical application areas for these new products include automotive safety systems, fastener elements, and clips and buckles as well as sports and leisure articles.
f wieth@ticona.de

Lower chlorine content for a broader range of applications

Ticona introduces a new grade of Fortron PPS. The production of eco-friendly products has long been one of Ticonas top priorities. Thats why certain materials are already inherently ame retardant and free of ame-retarding agents that contain halogens. These special polymers include Celanex PBT XFR and Vectra LCP, for example and now the new generation of Fortron PPS Low Chlorine joins their ranks. Fortron PPS Low Chlorine reduces bromine and chlorine content to below 900 ppm. The 1140LC6 grade can also be used as a drop-in solution in ecofriendly components. Fortron PPS is part of our range of plastic grades whose qualities can

benet nearly every industrial segment in the development and production of molded parts designed to withstand high mechanical and thermal stress, says Frank Johnning, Marketing Manager LCP. Thats why Fortron PPS Low Chlorine is also used in the electrical/electronics sector, and especially wherever robust properties are required, such as in switches, connectors, relay parts, etc. In electronics applications, the materials extremely low ionic contamination represents a distinct advantage over other products, explains Johnning. Fortron PPS Low Chlorine is suitable for use wherever ammability class V-0 is required. European and American manufac turers are already complying with the international environmental regulations of RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive), which prohibits the use of brominated ame retardants. And many manufacturers also monitor chlorine content in production now. Fortron PPS Low Chlorine offers them yet another opportunity to make their products eco-friendlier.
f frank.johaenning@ticona.de

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TEC HN O L O G Y AN D S ERVICE

Technology FAQs
Interest frequently focuses on long-ber-reinforced thermoplastics. inform asked Ticonas Technology and Service Department which questions are posed most often.
What is the minimum required length of the bers in the nished part? In order to ensure superior properties versus short ber products, the mean ber length in the component must exceed a critical length. With Celstran LFRT PP, for example, the mean ber length in the component after the injection molding process must be at least two millimeters. At the same time, full impregnation of the long bers (pultrusion process) during Celstran LFRT production ensures optimal ber/matrix bonding. How can the customer determine the ber length in the component? There are several possibilities. With Celstran LFRT PA and PP, the easiest method by far is to analyze the ber structure after ashing the component. In this case we recommend the following temperatures: heating for one hour at 400 C and then one more hour at 600 C.

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Dont long bers cause higher warpage and greater shrinkage than short ber products? Long bers tend to align themselves less in the direction of ow than comparable short ber products. So proper processing techniques form a ber structure without a prevalent ber orientation. This results in a reduced tendency to warp. The ber structure also impedes shrinkage at the same time, so shrinkage behavior is also better than that of short-ber-reinforced thermoplastics.
f infoservice@ticona.de

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Celstran Long-ber-reinforced

Short-berreinforced

Is mold wear generally higher with LFRT? Mold wear is lower with long-ber-reinforced products than with comparable short-ber-reinforced grades. At equal lling ratios, long-ber-reinforcement leaves fewer free ber ends, thereby reducing the abrasive effect.

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TICO N A CA L E NDA R

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Fairs and events

October Ticona at Fakuma 2009 Under the banner Productivity & Performance, Ticona had its own stand for the rst time at this years FAKUMA. In four main areas Composites, Metal Replacement, Green Electronics and Appearance the plastics producer from Kelsterbach showed manufacturers and suppliers in different industries how to take full advantage of plastics technologies and high-performance materials. Exhibits highlighted concrete competitive edges like weight and CO2 reduction through lightweight construction, and cost and energy-efciency, as well as innovations in products, manufacturing processes and design. The Ticona stand presented new materials and applications, including major exhibits from the aeronautics and automotive industries. January January 27, 2010 ZVEI Working Group Halogen-Free Products Frankfurt am Main, Germany Halogen-free ame-retardant plastics Dr. Alexandra Jacobs-Hattwig Ticona GmbH, Kelsterbach, Germany February February 24-25, 2010 SKZ Wrzburg Engineering polymers Performance potentials and trends Professional conference including, among other topics: POM, a surprisingly versatile engineering polymer Dr. Kai-Uwe Tnnes, Ticona GmbH, Kelsterbach, Germany LCP, the sophisticated material class Dr. Achim Hofmann, Ticona GmbH, Kelsterbach, Germany SKZ Wrzburg SKZ uses its facilities to host, among other things, professional conferences and seminars covering all facets of plastics and interdisciplinary topics. www.skz.de

October 13-17, 2009 Fakuma International Trade Fair for Plastics Processing Hall B1, Stand B1-1117 Friedrichshafen, Germany

IM P RIN T
Published by Ticona GmbH Editorial team Monika Besant (V.i.S.d.P.), Beate Sauer, Marcel Rzymann (SWK Semnar & Wolf Kommunikation GmbH) Editorial address Ticona GmbH, Monika Besant, B2B Communications, Prof.-Staudinger-Strae, 65451 Kelsterbach/Germany Design/layout SWK Semnar & Wolf Kommunikation GmbH, Frankfurt/Germany, www.swk-ffm.de Printing JD Druck- und Medienhaus GmbH, Lauterbach/Germany Picture credits Ticona GmbH, unless otherwise stated Ticona products Hostaform POM, Celcon POM, GUR UHMW-PE, Celanex PBT, Impet PET, Vandar (polyester alloys), Riteex TPC-ET, Vectra LCP, Fortron PPS, Celstran LFRT, Compel LFT Notes for users The information contained in this publication should not be construed as an agreement or guarantee regarding certain properties of our products. It is the sole responsibility of the user to determine the suitability of a particular material and component design for a specic application. We strongly recommend to users that they obtain the latest manufacturers instructions on the use of the selected materials and to follow these. With the exception of GUR UHMW-PE, our products are not intended for use in medical or dental implants. Any existing industrial property rights must be observed.
TI-BR 1082-DE-12.2009

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