polymerguru

LG Chem is poised to expand its presence in the European mobility market by showcasing its high-value materials portfolio for future vehicles.   LG Chem announced today that it will participate in the International Suppliers Fair (IZB 2026), to be held Oct. 27―29 in Wolfsburg, Germany. IZB is a premier biennial global trade fair for automotive suppliers and component manufacturers. Originally a supplier showcase for the Volkswagen Group, it has grown into a leading international event where major suppliers and global parts and materials companies network to explore new business opportunities. This year’s exhibition is expected to draw about 850 companies from 33 countries and more than 40,000 visitors.   LG Chem is participating in IZB for the first time and will be the only Korean materials company at this year’s event. This debut follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Volkswagen Group in September to jointly develop future mobility materials, mar...

𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐒𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 : 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐇𝐲𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐧 𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐫 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 Type IV composite cylinders typically integrate a polymer liner for gas containment with a fibre-reinforced composite overwrap that carries the primary structural loads. The challenge is to develop liner materials that minimise hydrogen permeability without compromising mechanical properties, processability, dimensional stability, or long-term durability. Several promising research and development directions are attracting attention: 𝟏. 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 Optimising polymer chemistry, morphology, and processing conditions may help reduce hydrogen permeability while maintaining the mechanical properties required for demanding service conditions. 𝟐. 𝐍𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐞𝐬 Selected nanofillers may increase the tortuosity of diffusion pathways within a polymer matrix. However, their effec...

  𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐄 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 — 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲. In injection molding, the cavity is typically filled to only 95–98% capacity during the injection phase. The packing phase then pushes additional material into the cavity to compensate for volumetric shrinkage as the plastic cools. Holding pressure serves a distinct, subsequent function: it maintains equilibrium pressure to prevent molten material from flowing back out before the gate freezes. As Suhas Kulkarni of FimmTech explains, the practical distinction depends on gate geometry and system type: - Small gates (0.040 in. or less) freeze quickly, making a combined pack-and-hold phase acceptable - Larger gates and hot runner systems require separate pack and hold phases - Valve-gated molds require only a packing phase — holding pressure ...

𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐄 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐧-𝐏𝐅𝐀𝐒 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐢𝐝𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐦 𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 — 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡. As PFAS regulation intensifies across jurisdictions, producers of film processing aids continue to advance substitute chemistries. Non-fluoropolymer PPAs have made significant strides, particularly with newer polyamide-based chemistries that operate effectively at lower dosages. But the transition is not straightforward. Key challenges with NF-PPAs include: -𝐒𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐰 𝐬𝐥𝐢𝐩𝐩𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡 𝐏𝐏𝐀 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 - 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐚𝐝𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 - 𝐃𝐢𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐩 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐮𝐩 𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐲 𝐨𝐱𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐲𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐲𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 - 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐦 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐍𝐅-𝐏𝐏𝐀𝐬 𝐚...

  𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐄 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 🔧 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐌𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐆𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐅𝐢𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐬? ▶️ 𝐆𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐝𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐡. 💪 But they also create additional challenges for mold design. ⚙️ When working with materials such as PA GF30, PA GF50, PBT GF, PP GF and other reinforced polymers, the mold needs to be designed with the material behavior in mind from the very beginning. 🔍 Key points we consider at Star Moldes: ➡️ Wear resistance Glass fibers are highly abrasive. Mold components exposed to continuous material flow need appropriate steel selection and surface treatments. ➡️ Gate design The gate location and type can influence fiber orientation, filling balance, weld lines and the final mechanical performance of the part. ➡️ Runner system Runners...

𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐲'𝐬 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐅𝐔𝐋 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐭 “𝐂𝐚𝐧 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐌𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥?” When we are approached about a new material, we try not to simply say, “It’s difficult, so let’s not do it.” At SAYAMA MOLD, we have worked with more than 24 different resins through actual molding and development projects, including high-performance engineering plastics such as PEEK, PPS, LCP, PAI, PEI, PES, and PSU. These materials are not simply “expensive resins.” Some require very high molding temperatures. Some have poor flowability, making mold filling difficult. Others flow too easily, making even slight changes in conditions lead to flash. That is why we look beyond the material itself. We consider factors such as: • Flowability and shrinkage • Molding and mold temperatures • Venting and gate design • Mold material and wear • The process window for stable molding Many of the materials we have worked with started with a customer saying: “We want to use this material.” We have e...