New thermoplastic production process impresses with stiffness values
When plastics replace metal
Technoform Kunststoffprofile GmbH, based in Kassel, has achieved an innovation: their new thermoplastic production process increases the stiffness of plastics, allowing metal to be replaced in many industrial areas while simultaneously reducing the ecological footprint.
New strength profiles
The experts at Technoform Kunststoffprofile GmbH have achieved a breakthrough: using a new thermoplastic pultrusion process, they produce plastic profiles that achieve similar stiffness values to metals but are significantly lighter in comparison. This brings significant advantages for use in various industries.
New material freedom for designers
Development Team Lead, Sindy Richter, has significantly advanced the process with her team:
"By using polyamides, such as PA6 and PA66 or polypropylene (PP), we achieve maximum material freedom with our process. This positively affects the properties of the pultrudates and the bonding possibilities to other plastic components. Additionally, the fiber content can be individually varied depending on the application. In the end, the weight of the finished product is even significantly lighter, with extreme impact and bending strength".
University confirms top values
The test results from the Institut für Werkstofftechnik (University of Kassel, Germany) confirm very high strength values and homogeneity in fiber distribution.
"Initial pilot projects show a significant reduction in the raw material-based GWP value, for example, compared to applications with aluminum profiles, which brings enormous advantages for our customers from various industries," explains Fabio Späth, Sustainability Manager at Technoform.
"Additionally, the recycling effort is significantly minimized, as the overall system can be designed with the same material," adds Späth.
This is a plus for many industries that want to reduce GWP (global warming potential) values and optimize their ecological balance by using the new plastics.
Plastic can replace metal in industries such as automotive, aerospace, wind energy, or construction, which require high-strength structural parts.
What is special about this newly developed pultrusion process?
Thermoplastic pultrusion is an advancement of the classic pultrusion process, where thermoplastic plastics are used as matrix material instead of thermosetting resins. In both processes, continuous fibers are impregnated with plastic, so each fiber element is surrounded by plastic and connected to the adjacent element under load, optimizing force transmission.
In thermosetting pultrusion, this is relatively easy because thermosets are very low-viscosity in the liquid state, allowing the fibers to absorb the matrix very well. However, thermoplastic materials have a much higher viscosity. Impregnating the fibers with this viscous material mass is therefore more difficult. Technoform has therefore developed a special process for thermoplastic pultrusion.
Press contact
Magdalena Aitken
magdalena [dot] aitken [at] technoform [dot] com
Technoform Kunststoffprofile GmbH
Otto-Hahn-Str. 34
34253 Lohfelden, Germany