polymerguru

The new Ford 3.5L and 3.7L engine  manifold  uses a cross-over  coolant  component made of DuPont™ Zytel® HTN  PPA  resin instead of brazed  metal , shaving one pound to improve  fuel economy . Behind the scenes, the running change illustrates the trend toward using  high performance  thermoplastic where it is essential. And it shows how collaboration in the value chain continues to drive cost and weight saving by developing and investing in innovative techniques to help the industry meet new fuel and emissions regulations. The team from  Illinois Tool Works , Inc. (ITW) in Ohio arrived at DuPont's Innovation Center in Troy to brainstorm how to integrate a crossover coolant component into a V6 engine manifold that is made of traditional nylon polymer. The crossover coolant component is a hollow port that allows engine coolant to bypass the manifold as it circulates through the engine. Traditional  nylon 6  polymer does...

The Environmental Protection Agency has honored the University of Delaware's Richard Wool with its Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award for his extensive work developing bio-based materials to support the green energy infrastructure. Wool was recognized during a presentation at EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C. Now in its 18th year, the EPA awards program recognizes the design of safer and more sustainable chemicals, processes and products. Awards are conferred annually in five categories: Academic, Small Business, Greener Synthetic Pathways, Greener Reaction Conditions and Designing Greener Chemicals. Wool, UD professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and director of the Affordable Composites from Renewable Resources (ACRES) program, is among the world leaders in developing safer chemical substances from renewable resources through processes that require less water and energy, and produce less hazardous waste compared to petroleum-based processes. The ...

Air Sentry, among the leading manufacturers of contamination control products, looked to Eastman Tritan™ copolyester to help create a new standard for its line of desiccant breathers. The company, based in Rockwall, Texas, selected Tritan, a new-generation copolyester, for its toughness and chemical resistance, and because it is free of bisphenol A (BPA). Guardian, Air Sentry's newest line of desiccant breathers, is the company's first product line to be made with Eastman Tritan™ copolyester. The devices are cylindrical with a clear, extruded tube made with Tritan at the center. The product is designed to replace the original equipment manufacturer breather cap or air filter on gear boxes, hydraulic fluid reservoirs, bulk storage tanks, oil drums, transformers and other fluid reservoirs. Downtime reduced; new applications realized: Moisture breaks down the properties of lubricants and fuels creating equipment wear as harmful as wear from debris. According to Air Sentry,...

With a level of purity approaching 99 percent, SEPURAN® Green high performance polymers from Evonik Industries make biogas processing much more efficient. For this achievement, the company has now received the 2013 German Innovation Prize for Climate and the Environment in the "Environmentally friendly technologies" category. The prize is awarded by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) and the Federation of German Industry (BDI). Dr. Dahai Yu, responsible for the Specialty Materials Segment in the Executive Board: "Innovations are a major contribution towards overcoming the challenges of the future. This also includes securing energy supplies practically from economical, ecological, and social aspects. With SEPURAN® Green, Evonik shows what the chemical industry can do to make this happen." Biogas, which consists mainly of the gases CO 2  and methane, is regarded as an environmentally friendly form of energy. B...

Toyota Boshoku Corporation, among the premier manufacturers of automotive interior systems, and Toyota Central R&D Labs., Inc., contributing to present and future businesses of Toyota Group companies through technological innovations, announce that they have developed an original technique to realize a bio-based plastic alloy with top-class impact strength. The bio-based plastic alloy (bio-alloy) is made from  polyamide 11  ( PA11 ), a 100% bio-based resin originating from plants and synthesized by castor oil *1  extracted from Ricinus Communis (castor bean plant) as a raw material, and  polypropylene  ( PP ) derived from petroleum-based resin. The performance of this high impact bio-alloy surpasses  polycarbonate  alloys. The impact strength of the bio-alloy was achieved by controlling the phase structure of  PP  and  PA11  at the nano level through a "salami structure *2 " mixture (dispersion) resulting in the world's fi...