Polycarbonate had earned the tag because the most suitable material to use from the automotive industry. However, in recent times, Polymethyl Methacrylate, the PMMA polymer or commonly known acrylic plastic, has efficiently risen on the growing demands with the automotive industry in replacing polycarbonate for the best important utilization in the industry, namely, automotive glazing.
Long established to use in several vehicle applications such as decorative trim, ambient lighting and door entry strips, automotive glazing is among those fields that supply the best growth prospect of PMMA.
Related key top features of acrylic plastic which render it well suited for the entire process of automotive glazing are discussed below.
Light weight
To generate a comparison with a erogenous level, PMMA is half the weight plus more transparent than glass, thereby providing magnificent visibility even just in true of fluctuating and unstable temperatures. Due to its molecular structure, thermoformed polymer resin have become used almost only for car window glazing where all of the necessary requirements for light-weight materials that are safe, simple to process and perform in all of the weathers are met.
At the top of Scratch Resistance
Another significant requirement for glazing is scratch resistance. Standard PMMA already contains the highest surface hardness coming from all thermoplastics regardless if uncoated. However, for automotive glazing, you will find stringent conditions to get fulfilled to satisfy the optimal condition of scratch resistance. The usage of a coating is thus mandatory. Due to the fact PMMA is intrinsically UV in addition to weathering-resistant, a single-step coating is successful. On the other hand, thermoplastics which have low capacity weathering require a two-step coating system. This results in relatively high costs for coating.
New design possibilities
PMMA glazing is Forty to fifty percent lighter than conventional glass, which piques a person’s eye of automobile manufacturers. Together with the advantages being immediately obvious, PMMA has become seen as the right fit for automotive glazing. Weight savings apart, the transparency of acrylic plastic along with its quite high weathering resistance, pleasant acoustic properties, and exceptional form ability allow freedom enabling entirely new design possibilities.
Less anxiety birefringence
PMMA exhibits very little stress birefringence which operates as a major benefit over other thermoplastics such as polycarbonate, that was primarily used for glazing in the past. Compared with traditional materials such as polycarbonate, moulded PMMA, offers a distinct possibility of functional integration – reducing recess depth and assembly costs.
Environment-friendly
The brand new goal from the automotive industry is to build up clean low fuel consumption vehicles. In the awareness and also the need for eco-friendly initiatives with the current economic general scheme of things, PMMA operates as a perfect option to glass from the automotive glazing segment. As vehicle manufacturers push the bounds of design, so too is automotive glazing evolving.
SUMIPEX® PMMA polymer offers characteristics that match the latest challenges from the transportation sector. It’s a monumental challenge for auto makers that want to sit in recent environmental requirements and therefore are thinking of alternatives that reduce greenhouse gas and save fuel. Oahu is the perfect partner in this movement as it makes cars lighter.
As a leading manufacturer of SUMIPEX® PMMA polymer, Sumitomo Chemical is satisfied to help you out to understand its properties and the way it ideal to automotive glazing.
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