EXHIBITION REVIEW | PLAST 2018
Above: Trinseo over-moulded samples ready for peel tests Image: Trinseo
the duration of the product,” according to the company. Use of heat sinks is considered manda- tory; most are still in aluminium. However, Electro- magnetica, a leading producer of electrical and electronic equipment based in Romania, decided to buck the trend, focusing on thermally conduc- tive plastic compounds to develop a new industrial projector built with COB LED light sources. The Castor 2M industrial projector houses two
COB modules with a total power close to 70W and has a heat sink produced in Laticonther 62 GR/70, a PA6 compound containing 70% graphite. Tiziano Vitali, in Lati’s techno-commercial operation, said the compound has an effective thermal conductiv- ity well above the benchmarks of other compounds from Lati and its competitors, regardless of the orientation of the graphite flakes. Trinseo was emphasising its new capabilities in
over-moulding thermoplastics with thermoplastic elastomers, which it has gained through its acquisi- tion of Italian TPE specialist API and its broad portfolio of materials for soft-touch applications. Aldo Zanetti, Manager of the Packaging and Medical BU, also highlighted the company’s expertise in bio-based compounds. He noted that one interesting possible application is in coffee capsules, where production in materials that can be composted together with the used coffee grounds would be a highly attractive solution. API was (together with three other Italian partners) part of a recently-concluded EU “Life” project called PLA4Coffee, which was aimed at demonstrating that a system for producing biodegradable coffee capsules is commercially viable. Estimates of the number of coffee capsules used
per year around the world vary. Martyna Fong, Unit Manager Packaging at AMI Consulting (part of the group that publishes Compounding World and which runs conferences in Europe and the US on
62 COMPOUNDING WORLD | July 2018
single-serve capsules) puts the figure at close to 60bn. Some of these are manufactured in aluminium, but around 75% are produced in plastic – polypro- pylene, polystyrene (in North America), some in PBT, and a few in bioplastics. Zanetti said Apinat Bio biodegradable thermo- plastic polyester elastomer (TPE-E) meets various criteria for replacing PP. It can be used with moulds originally designed for PP, for example. It also has the necessary heat resistance and displays a barrier to oxygen that is around seven times that of PP. Most importantly, however, the resin can be considered compostable at part thicknesses up to 1.7 mm. Apinat Bio is based on polylactic acid (PLA) blended with another biopolymer, PBS (polybutyl- ene succinate), and a filler. PLA alone is typically quite brittle and features limited thermal resistance, toughness and resiliency. However, API claims that judicious blending and compounding has enabled it to overcome these drawbacks. API also offers non-degradable bio-based compounds suitable for injection moulding and blown film extrusion. For example, Apilon 52 Bio TPUs have a biomass content of 55% and show good prospects in footwear, according to Zanetti. API is working with fashion designer Stella McCart- ney in this field.
German compounder Kraiburg TPE also said at the show that it is starting an ambitious campaign to develop custom-engineered thermoplastic elastomers containing variable proportions of renewable raw materials. “Part of the challenge involves taking into account the environmental balance of the materials’ whole life cycles, includ- ing their impact on ecosystems and people’s health,” said CEO Franz Hinterecker. “It has also become apparent that what our customers expect from the properties of ‘bio-materials’ varies widely depending on the application.” With this in mind, the company said it has opted to take a basically customer-specific approach.
CLICK ON THE LINKS FOR MORE INFORMATION: �
www.mariscorp.com �
www.icmasg.it �
www.comacplast.com �
www.farrel-pomini.com �
www.promixon.com �
www.plasmec.it �
www.domochemicals.com �
www.eurotec-ep.com/en �
www.lati.com �
www.trinseo.com �
www.apiplastic.com �
www.kraiburg-tpe.com
www.compoundingworld.com
PHOTO: TRINSEO
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