APPLICATIONS | WOOD PLASTIC COMPOSITES
Right: Consumers are requesting WPC colours that mimic trends in
indoor flooring surfaces, says Americhem
the functional requirements of WPC. The latest addition to that line is an HDPE high-performance compound for capping WPC that features the ability to control gloss and achieve rich, dark colors and scratch performance. “Our eCap product allows customers to offer a
more realistic wood appearance, darker colors, better weathering and durability while working with their preferred base resin,” says Mike Fair, Americhem’s Market Segment Manager for Architecture.“eCap can also help end-use products achieve better impact resistance, improved resistance to moisture whitening, scratch and mar resistance, adhesion of cap to substrates, and potentially a Class A fire rating.” In addition to bold colours and improved
scratch and mar performance, Kelly Gager, Amer- ichem’s Development Manager Building & Con- struction, sees requests for unique variations that mimic trends in interior flooring, such as distressed or hand-scraped looks. Control of gloss is also important, and colorants that provide a white- washed appearance (such as grey and grey blends) are also in demand. Flame retardance and control of static build-up are other demands in WPC met by additives. The high levels of fibre content in WPC and NFC
products require coupling agents, which create a chemical bond between the wood or natural fibre and the polymer, says Matthias Stuecke, Deputy General Manager at Mitsui & Co. Deutschland. He sees companies increasing the percentage of wood fibre in some compounds up to as much as 90% wood content. The company offers its PA- BOND line of maleic anhydride-based coupling agents, produced by Polymer Asia in Vietnam, for such applications. The additives reduce water absorption and improve flexural, impact, and/or tensile values in WPC, says Stuecke. Mitsui also offers stabiliser additive packages for WPC.
Right: Wacker’s Genioplast Additive for WPC was developed with the Wood Competence Centre in Austria
Improving flow Struktol Company of America’s Struktol TPW 617 and TPW 618 lubricants are designed for WPC processors that need to reduce viscosity and improve flow through the die without negatively affecting mechanical properties or functional requirements, such as adhesion to capstock compounds. The company says the new products work at loading levels up to 50% lower than other commonly used lubricants. Struktol has also introduced Struktol FPC 420, a low surface gloss, full-cap compound with improved scratch and mar resistance, and Struktol FPC 230, a masterbatch for polyethylene cap materials de- signed to provide low surface gloss, scratch and mar resistance together with substrate adhesion. Both products can be supplied with or without Struktol’s proprietary UV stabilisation package. Although lubricants and coupling agents are
often both used in WPC formulas, the combination can sometimes cause processing variability, according to Kevin Janak, Director of Application and Product Development, Coatings and Compos- ites at Lonza. In a presentation given at AMI’s Wood-Plastic Composites conference in November 2018, he explained that the company has experi- mented with a number of developmental lubricants to determine if coupling agents could be elimi- nated, or their use minimised, while still maintain- ing acceptable water repellency. The researchers’ thinking was that a reduced
level of coupling agents would benefit processing. Lonza’s experiments showed that an interaction exists even with non-metal-based lubricants, and that the presence of a talc filler sometimes causes negative interactions with lubricants. Experiments with a developmental, non-metallic lubricant in a formulation with talc did show lower water absorp- tion, he said.
48 COMPOUNDING WORLD | August 2019
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www.compoundingworld.com
PHOTO: AMERICHEM
PHOTO: WACKER
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