A new polyolefin elastomer has been launched by The Dow Chemical for automotive TPOs. The ENGAGE XLT offers a number of benefits when combined with polypropylene. Such benefits are not possible with other types of TPO impact modifiers.
The new material delivers several advantages to vehicles manufacturers, molders, compounders and users. The enhanced impact efficiency of the ENGAGE XLT allows lower elastomer loading within the automotive TPO, but still delivers exceptional impact performance. The lower loading leads to high melt flow and TPO stiffness and enables thin-walling that reduces weight of the final parts. With the use of computer simulation processes, it has been shown that the total weight of a component produced with the polyolefin elastomer is reduced by nearly 10%. In addition, it has been demonstrated that decrease in wall thickness enhances the molding cycle times.
The launch of the ENGAGE XLT polyolefin elastomer demonstrates Dow’s commitment towards development of products and solutions to meet the requirements of the automotive industry. The ENGAGE XLT reinforces the company’s position in TPO impact modification.
The material has an ability to support the production of lightweight and larger parts with a rapid mold time. This characteristic will help compounders as well as manufacturers to produce high-quality, fuel-efficient vehicles in a cost-effective manner.
Dow’s ENGAGE XLT is available in free-flowing pellet type for easy handling in large-scale compounding operations.
Source: http://www.dow.com/