MATERIALS | WIRE AND CABLE
Right: SACO AEI Polymers holds a strong position in moisture cured HFFR XLPE cable
compounds
HFFR cable sheathing compounds, which it says it does by improving wetting and dispersability of fillers such as ATH, MDH and nano-scale silicates and clays. More recently, it has highlighted its role in development of polyolefin elastomer (POE) based formulations as an alterna- tive to PE/EVA-based compounds. According to Innospec, a
considerable price gap has developed between POE and EVA over the past year or so. This gives POEs a potential cost benefit in HFFR applications, provided the traditional drawback of dripping during burning can be overcome. The company has been working with iPool, a materials develop- ment spin-off from the Italian National Research Council, to develop POE-based formulations suitable for production of HFFR sheathing that complies with the EU CPR. At the AMI Cables 2022 conference in Germany
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in March, iPool Senior Technologist Dr Camillo Cardelli presented EN50399 CPR flame test results for five different flame retardant cable sheathing materials — a standard PVC, two low smoke PVC grades, a standard EVA/LLDPE HFFR formulation, and a new HFFR formulation based on POE/LLDPE using Innospec’s Viscospeed additive. Both HFFR formulations used a combination of fine precipi- tated ATH and natural milled MDH flame retardants and the formulations were similar aside from the base polymer and the use of the ViscoSpeed additive (which allowed the total flame retardant content to be increased from 60% to 64%). Data presented at the conference showed that the POE/LLDPE formulation gave a cable com- pound with improved crack resistance, heat release
performance, and low temperature flexibility at competitive cost compared to the standard EVA/ LLDPE HFFR formulation.
Tracking trends Mega trends such as urbanisation, electrifica- tion, the shift to alternative energy, and adoption of 5G communications will underpin growth in the wire & cable market over the next decade, according to Luca
Saggese, Chief Commercial Officer at is about to mark its 25th
SACO AEI Polymers. The company, which anniversary, supplies
grafted resins, compounds, masterbatches and additives for cable industry applications. Its technical expertise includes cross-linking, reactive compounding, and flame and smoke management, while its products meet global regulatory require- ments including UL, CPR, EIC, IEEE and SAE. The company holds a strong position in low
smoke and halogen-free XLPE cable compounds. Its Pexidan HF X/T and Pexidan HF V/T moisture cure UL 44 XLPE formulations have been success- fully used in building and transportation markets. It also has a range of compounds for photovoltaic applications. In the UL segment, its Pexidan X/T-UV and V/T2-UV grades are bulletined to meet UL4703 requirements for FV-1 and VW-1 respectively. In the IEC62930 segment, it offers the Pexidan HF SX650 zero halogen moisture cross linkable XLPE grade. SACO AEI has recently introduced several advanced products to support new cable designs in the data communication and fibre optical cable sectors. Based on low smoke, zero halogen technology, Thermodan HF TP343 is a jacket formulation that can achieve CPR ratings of B2ca. Thermodan HF TP852 is a high modulus grade
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