MATERIALS | THERMOPLASTIC ELASTOMERS
Right: 50 Shore A wood-filled TPE from United Soft Plastics
sporting goods and dunnage”. Jonathan Plisco, New Business Development Manager at Teknor Apex, says: “This introduction represents the first of several sustainable product launches slated for this year – that include other types of recycled content, bio-based raw materials, and carbon negative additives.” United Soft Plastics announced in late March the development of a series of sustainable TPEs. Currently in different stages of development, they will be pro- duced from renewable, post-consumer, post-indus- trial, and bio-based sources. Rudi Herbst, President and CEO of United Soft
Plastics, says the first commercially available grades, based on SEBS, are made from up to 100% PCR and PIR sources. They provide typical soft touch, anti-slip properties along with adhesion and haptics. These injection moulding grades are available in 45-65 Shore A hardness for a range of consumer applica- tions including personal care. The company is
IMAGE: USP
hoping to achieve FDA compliance for food contact applications. Three other series of sustain- able TPE solutions are currently under commercial develop- ment. Also based on SEBS, they contain renewable fillers: up to 70% of wood flour, rice hull, and/or hemp. They offer a limited perfor- mance threshold, and so will not be aimed at engineering applications.
Other compounds in the pipeline are grades with up to 100% renewables content. Herbst says these TPEs
show the greatest promise in terms of market impact and carbon emission reduction. Bio-based TPEs deliver performance comparable with stand- ard materials for injection moulding applications, although availability is likely to be limited. There will also be “bio-hybrid” TPEs, which can combine renewable, post-consumer, post-industrial, and bio-based content up to 100%. Mocom recently launched Alfater XL Eco, a thermoplastic vulcanizate (TPV) produced from recycled PIR PP and/or partly bio-based raw materials such as bio-EPDM. The EPDM has a bio content of 70% and is derived from bioethanol. The rPP content and the bio-based content of the TPV have a close relationship to its hardness, says Mocom. The rPP content for hard Alfater XL Eco grades (e.g. Shore D50) can be more than 80%, while in soft TPV the bio-based content is high. “With this mix of raw materials, the production
of sustainable TPV materials with different levels of CO2
saving potentials is possible,” says Mocom Example of CO2 saving potentials for Mocom Alfater XL Eco (PP+EPDM,
Shore A 60) in relation to raw materials used Source: Mocom
(see bar chart). “As an example, if the virgin PP in Alfater XL Eco with Shore A60 is replaced by rPP, CO2
savings of about 20% are achieved. If in addition the fossil-based EPDM is replaced by bio-EPDM (70% bio-based content), CO2
savings of
more than 50% can be achieved. And if, further- more, the mineral oil is replaced by a bio-based oil, CO2
savings of more than 90% can be achieved.”
PP recyclate (rPP) and bio-based content is linked to hardness of Mocom’s Alfater XL Eco grades Source: Mocom
20 INJECTION WORLD | May 2022
Materials supplier Covestro and Vaude, a manufacturer of outdoor equipment and footwear, have collaborated to develop a partially bio-based foam midsole for Vaude’s new Lavik Eco outdoor hiking boot. It is based on thermoplastic polyure- thane (TPU) foams from Covestro’s Desmopan EC 33000 series, which use non-GMO raw materials. The durable foams meet the outdoor brand’s Green Shape criteria without sacrificing performance. Vaude says the Lavik Eco is the first outdoor
www.injectionworld.com
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