Today's KNOWLEDGE Share : Xenia presents new range of more impact-resistant thermoplastic materials

Today's KNOWLEDGE Share

Xenia Materials, global player in engineering and manufacturing reinforced thermoplastic composites, introduces the new ST Upgrade, a technology designed to enhance the impact resistance of its fibre reinforced materials.

Fibre-reinforced thermoplastics are well established for their exceptional balance of mechanical strength, stiffness and reduced weight. However, certain applications are subject to conditions that require performance superior to that offered by standard grades.

The ST Upgrade just launched by Xenia — in which ST stands for Super Tough — delivers a remarkable increase in impact resistance, achieving an average improvement of 60% compared with original formulations and ensuring reliable performance both at room and low temperatures. Simultaneously, it enhances flexibility and elastic behaviour, with elongation at break increased by an average of 40% compared with non-upgraded formulations.

The ST Upgrade can be selected and applied across a defined range of Xenia formulations, including the registered:

Xecarb – #carbonfibre reinforced thermoplastic composites

Xeglass – glass fibre reinforced thermoplastic composites

Xebrid (registered trademark) – thermoplastic composites engineered by combining carbon and glass fibre reinforcement

Xegreen – sustainable thermoplastic composites combining recycled carbon fibre and recycled polymers

The ST Upgrade can be applied to applications that demand advanced performance, from aerospace and motorsport, where lightweight and high-stiffness components are essential, to consumer goods requiring structural reliability, such as ski boots, bindings, mountain boots, hockey skates and shoe soles and plates.

#Xenia’s portfolio already includes carbon- and #glassfibrereinforced materials based on PA6, PA66, PA11, PA12, PA6.12, PA4.10, PA6.10, and PA10.10 upgraded with ST technology for enhanced performance. Thanks to its versatility, the ST Upgrade can be applied to any polymer base and reinforcement processed by Xenia, offering maximum design freedom and delivering tailored solutions for the most demanding applications.

source : Xenia Materials/Jeccomposites

Today's KNOWLEDGE Share : BYD's SHIPPING VESSEL

Today's KNOWLEDGE Share

BYD has developed a fleet of specialized shipping vessels, including the BYD Explorer No.1 and the BYD Shenzhen, to transport electric vehicles globally. These ships are designed to enhance BYD's logistics and support its international expansion, with a focus on reducing emissions through advanced dual-fuel technology.

Overview of BYD's Shipping Vessel

BYD Shenzhen Specifications:

Type: Roll-on-roll-off (RoRo) ship

Length: 219 meters

Width: 37.7 meters

Draft: 9 meters

Capacity: Up to 9,200 vehicles

Fuel Type: Dual-fuel (marine diesel and LNG)

Battery System: Hybrid 1 MW battery power system for low-emission zones

source : Massimo Galli

BASF, Porsche chemically recycle automotive waste in gasification pilot

In a first for the automotive industry, #BASF, #Porsche, and Bioenergy and Sustainable Technologies (BEST) have used gasification to recycle plastic waste from end-of-life vehicles into raw materials for new car components.

The project demonstrated the recyclability of automotive shredder residues a combination #plastics, foams, paints, and films together with biomass. The partners used BEST’s thermochemical #gasification technology to transform Porsche’s automotive waste into syngas and subsequently syncrude. BASF then used the oil to produce polyurethane foam for new steering wheels via a mass balance approach.

“Pilot projects like these allow us to evaluate how we can further develop the circular economy as a sustainability field at Porsche and how we can anchor chemical recycling in our strategy in the long term,” said Robert Kallenberg, head of sustainability at Porsche. “We are testing new recycling technologies with our direct partners in order to increase recyclate quotas, gain access to previously unusable recyclate sources and evaluate new processes for waste streams that are currently being thermally utilised.

The project comes as the #EuropeanUnion is readying to introduce mandatory recycled plastic quotas in new vehicles.

The pilot marks the first time that fossil inputs have been fully replaced by a blend of automotive waste and biomass in a gasification process. BEST, based in Vienna, adapted its gasification technology to handle plastic waste together with biomass. The research firm has experience in converting biomass like wood or straw into chemicals via gasification.

For BASF, the initiative underlines the company’s commitment to a broad recycling portfolio. “We prioritise mechanical recycling and continuously improve its efficiency. At the same time, the type of waste and the degree of sorting determine which technology is best suited. We are convinced that complementary technologies such as chemical recycling, which includes pyrolysis, depolymerisation and gasification, are necessary to further promote the circular economy and reduce the plastic waste that still ends up in landfills or is incinerated today.

The pilot feeds into a broader push by the chemical and automotive sectors to unlock new circular pathways.

This month, the Global Impact Coalition (GIC), of which BASF is a founding member, announced a research collaboration with ETH Zurich and five major chemical companies to study the feasibility and environmental impacts of gasification on complex waste streams. The partnership will examine the technical feasibility and environmental impact of converting complex waste streams directly into chemical feedstocks through gasification.

source : BASF/Sustainable Platics

Borealis’ new compounding line in Belgium offers premium recyclate-based polyolefins

 Borealis is proud to announce that its new compounding line for recyclate-based polyolefins (rPO) is now fully operational in Beringen, Belgium. This milestone marks a significant step forward in helping customers meet their circularity and sustainability targets—without sacrificing performance and reliability.

Using Borealis’ proprietary Borcycle M mechanical recycling technology, the line combines post-consumer and virgin polyolefins into rigid polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE) compounds that meet the high standards required for demanding applications in mobility, consumer products, appliances, and energy.

The Beringen facility is not only designed to process a wide range of recyclate flakes, offering exceptional versatility to meet diverse customer needs, but it also serves as a platform for collaboration—enabling customers to co-develop and test new solutions that bring recycled plastics into high-value applications.

“This installation is more than just a technological milestone—it’s a clear commitment to our customers,” says Craig Arnold, Executive Vice President Polyolefins, Base Chemicals and Circular Economy Solutions. “By expanding access to high-quality recyclate-based materials, we’re enabling our partners to accelerate their circular transformation. This approach is fully aligned with our strategic ambition to drive sustainable growth through innovation and collaboration.

The new line complements Borealis’ recent acquisitions of Rialti and Integra Plastics, further strengthening its position as a trusted partner in the transition to a circular economy for plastics.

Samples of products made with recylate based polyolefins will be showcased at our booth during K Show 2025, Düsseldorf, Germany, from 8–15 October - Hall 6, Stand A43

source : Borealis

Today's KNOWLEDGE Share : Sensing Technologies for the Optimisation and Improving Manufacturing Fibre-Reinforced Polymeric Structures

Today's KNOWLEDGE Share

Review: Sensing Technologies for the Optimisation and Improving

#Manufacturing #Fibre-Reinforced #Polymeric Structures

by Thomas Allsop and Mohammad W. Tahir

J. Compos. Sci. 2025, 9(7), 343; https://lnkd.in/dVfv5iVd

Abstract

Over the last three decades, composite structures have become increasingly more common in everyday life, such as in wind turbines as part of the solution to produce clean energy, and their use in the aerospace industry due to their advantages over conventional materials. Most of these advantages are dependent upon the reliability and quality of the manufacturing process to ensure that there are no defects/faults or imperfections during manufacturing. Thus, it is critical to monitor the enclosed environment of moulds during fabrication in real time. This need has caused many researchers—past and present—to create or apply many sensing technologies to achieve real-time monitoring of the manufacturing processes of composite structures to ensure that the structures can meet their requirements. A consequence of these research activities is the myriad of sensing schemes, (for example, optical, electrical, piezo, and nanomaterial schemes and the use of digital twins) available to consider, and the investigations all of them have both strengths and weaknesses for a given application, with no apparent option having a distinct advantage. This review reveals that the best possible sensing solution depends upon a large set of parameters, the geometry of the composite structure, the required specification, and budget limits, to name a few. Furthermore, challenges remain for researchers trying to find solutions, such as a sensing scheme that can directly detect wrinkles/waviness during the laying-up procedure, real-time detection of the resin flow front throughout the mould, and the monitoring of the resin curing spatially, all at a spatial resolution of ~1 cm with the required sensitivity along with the need to obtain the true interpretation of the real-time data. This review offers signposts through the variety of sensing options, with their advantages and failings, to readers from the composite and sensing community to aid in making an informed decision on the possible sensing approaches to help them meet their composite structure’s desired function and tolerances, and the challenges that remain.

source : Journal of Composites Science

Today's KNOWLEDGE Share : PEEK vs PAI: why do Europe, China, and the US make different choices?

Today's KNOWLEDGE Share

PEEK vs PAI: why do Europe, China, and the US make different choices?

Across the globe, OEMs face the same question: how do you insulate ever-smaller, ever-hotter hairpin windings? But as evidence shows, the solutions they pick are not just shaped by raw performance.

🇪🇺 Europe leads the PEEK charge.

Sustainability regulation is flipping the script. In 2025, the EU implemented the CAFE regulation, which sets a CO2 emissions limit of 93.6 grams per kilometre. Other significant regulations include EU Battery Regulation 2023/1542, which mandates design-for-recycling and carbon-footprint disclosure. As a result, solvent-free and re-meltable materials such as PEEK are quickly becoming the smarter choice for high-voltage insulation used by E-motor references like Schaeffer and ZF.

🇨🇳 China leans on enamel (for now).

Main-stream 400V models keep costs low with traditional thermoset coatings. With average EV sticker prices running about half of Europe’s, it’s all about volume. Cost is king!

However,  flagship 800V cars - such as Nio’s new Evs - are piloting PEEK to accommodate extreme voltages and correspondingly high charging speeds. With premium brands making the first moves, this signals that domestic PEEK capacity is ready to grow.

🇺🇸 The United States remains more the forefront.

Premium high-voltage architectures, like Lucid’s, choose PEEK for extra thermal headroom, while mass-volume 400V programs from legacy OEM’s remain committed to standard technology enamel until fast-charge networks catch up.

Additionally, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) incentives paired with concerns over China-centric midstream push OEMs to favor materials that can be produced domestically. Hence the local supply chains can focus on the introduction of the newest solutions by setting-up extrusion capacity for PEEK coatings.

TLDR? Wherever sustainability policies, high-voltage efficiency, or supply-chain security outweigh first-cost pressure, PEEK wins. Or why I strongly believe Ampact’s future will be bright!

source : Vincent Vermeersch

Specialty Polyfilms to Highlight Innovations in Surface Protection and Food Wrapping Films at K 2025

Specialty Polyfilms, a global innovator in Surface Protection and Non-PVC Food Wrapping Films, is set to participate in K 2025, the world’s leading trade fair for plastics and rubber. Industry stakeholders, packaging experts, decision-makers, and sustainability consultants will have the opportunity to explore the company’s latest advancements in surface protection and food wrapping films at Hall 8B / D61.

Driving Innovation in Protective Films

Specialty Polyfilms will highlight its Maskit® range of Non-Glue Masking and Thermoforming Protective Films for different substrate / surfaces like PMMA, HIPS, PVC Foam, PC, PET, PETG, ABS, Metals, Glass and other types of plastics etc. Engineered to safeguard surfaces during pre-manufacturing processes and post manufacturing handling of finished products, these films deliver reliable performance without adhesive residues on the surface of the Products.

The Maskit® Thermoforming Protective films range provides tailored protection for deep-draw / deep thermoforming, shallow thermoforming and other complex applications, ensuring both durability and efficiency for the plastic sheet and moulded component manufacturers and plastic sheet converters.

Future-Ready Food Wrapping with Forvara® Non-PVC Films

The company will also present its Forvara® portfolio of Non-PVC, recycle-ready food wrapping films—a health-safe, eco-conscious alternative to conventional food wrapping films for fresh cut meats, produce, cheese, mushrooms and Culinary Preparations in Commercial Kitchens. Free from plasticizers like Phthalates, BPA, BPS; stabilizers like Lead, Mercury, Chlorine content and PFAS, Forvara® films include solutions for fresh cut Meats, Produce, Mushrooms, Retail Cling films, and Catering applications.

Forvara® Non-PVC films are designed to:

Match and surpass PVC films important characteristics like clarity, softness, tackiness and Automatic Tray Wrapping Machine Runnability.

Enhance the shelf life, freshness and color of produce and meat products through improved breathability, achieved by high oxygen transmission rate (OTR) and controlled water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) in the formulation.

Resist extreme cold temperatures up to – 30 Degree Celsius / – 22 Degree Fahrenheit, ensuring reliability of packaging across global long distance cold – supply chains.

Enable downgauging due to inherent better mechanical properties, reducing plastic consumption by up to 40% leading to savings in the cost.

Offer recycle-ready, compostable and biodegradable options, aligning with circular economy goals.

Recognized at leading international trade shows around the world, Forvara® empowers brands, meat processors, produce growers and packers and retailers to transition toward recycle-ready, safer, future-ready packaging without compromising on machine performance or shelf appeal.

source : Specialty Polyfilms