Continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic resin can replace the traditional metal-based materials, and it can be said that it is the hottest technology for the automotive lightweight field. From the 2013 K2013 show, no fewer than 10 companies exhibited solutions for this technology. The TEPEXdynalite102-RG600(2)/47%-1.0mm Teflon® Nite® Bonded-Laminates Co., Ltd. seat shell manufactured from continuous long glass fiber reinforced thermoplastic composites was first applied to the OpelAstra OPC model, using materials This seat shell has extremely high rigidity and strength, and can absorb a large amount of energy in the event of a collision, thus greatly improving the safety.
Dr. Christian Obermann, General Manager of Bond-Laminates, said: “The weight of the new product is about 800g lighter than the previous product, and its performance can easily outperform products made of steel and long glass fiber reinforced plastic.†The technical hot spots in China and the impediments that LANXESS expects to use TEPEX's composite materials products will grow. Obermann said: “We have found great potential in other automotive structural components that require excellent load capacity, such as brake pedals, airbag housings, front and rear seat structures, front-end carriers and underbody protection components. So we are now expanding our TIPEX industrial production capacity at our Brilon manufacturing facility."
Owens Corning, the world's leading manufacturer of glass reinforced fibers and composite engineering materials, launched the PerforMax series designed for long-fiber reinforced thermoplastic polypropylene (LFTPP) that will be introduced to the Chinese market at the occasion of Chinaplas 2014. SE4849Type30 direct yarn, suitable for polypropylene resin long glass fiber granulation, continuous fiber melt impregnation, online long glass fiber reinforced thermoplastic and continuous fiber reinforced thermoplastic plastic sheet. The SE4849 achieves faster compound line speeds, increases efficiency and increases fiberglass load. Continuous fiber reinforcement has attracted much attention not only in raw material companies, but also equipment manufacturers have given keen attention to this technology. Leading injection technology providers Arburg, Engel, KraussMaffei, extrusion technology manufacturer BREYER, Milacron extrusion, Reifenhäuser, pressure forming technology provider Diffenbacher, and detection technology supplier IsraVision exhibited solutions for this technology at K2013. Undoubtedly, continuous fiber reinforcement technology, including other long fiber reinforcement technology, has become an important direction for high performance and lightweight. At the same time, the high price of high-quality materials keeps the cost of light weight increasing a lot. The short-selling of domestic self-owned brands in sales and R&D funds has made it easier for car companies to use modified plastics in automotive applications. Again hate.
In the face of increasingly strict automobile fuel consumption regulations, major car companies are looking for ways to reduce fuel consumption, including weight loss for the car body. Through the increase in the amount of modified plastics for automobiles, the weight of the vehicle body is reduced to achieve the purpose of reducing fuel consumption. In Europe, the amount of modified plastics for automobiles has become an important indicator of the level of automotive design and manufacturing. According to statistics, 1kg of modified plastic can replace 2-3kg of steel and other materials with high density, and the car's own weight decreases by 10%. Fuel consumption can be reduced by 6%-8%. Under the premise of ensuring the overall performance of automobiles, increasing the use of plastic materials can effectively reduce the weight of vehicles, reduce vehicle emissions, improve fuel economy, and at the same time reduce the cost of automobile manufacturing. The largest amount of automotive plastic bicycles in the world is Germany, and plastics account for 15% of the total amount of materials used. According to the European level in 2005, the average bicycle usage has reached 13%. However, there is still a big gap between China's single-vehicle plastics usage and the level of developed countries, which has greater potential for improvement.
In China, major brands have begun to increase the proportion of various lightweight materials such as alloys, ultra-strength steels, and engineering plastics in automotive products. Earlier this year, Ford announced the launch of the first light-weight body with the F150. The vehicle’s weight loss was 318 kg. It has recently announced that its SUV model explorer will be the first production model to adopt this lightweight design, followed by Sharp and Lincoln. The MKX and other models will also adopt relevant designs. However, compared with foreign brands, domestic self-owned brands have encountered considerable challenges in the lightweight road. As foreign material suppliers almost monopolized the technology in some core components, the purchasing price of independent brands remained high. Although some lightweight materials have obvious weight reduction effects, they are costly. For economic products, the cost of reducing one kilogram of vehicle weight to within 20 yuan is an acceptable range.
At present, in synthetic plastics, the price of foreign material suppliers is a few thousand dollars more per ton than local materials suppliers, and the average increase in cost per kilogram is tens of yuan. The products of local material suppliers are mainly used in bumpers, fenders, wheel covers, etc. In the supply of lightweight materials such as steering knuckles and chassis suspensions, they are basically used by foreign companies such as Bayer, BASF and Dupont. monopoly". For example, Bayer's polyurethane composites, polycarbonate plastics can provide materials for windows, new energy lithium batteries, and BASF's long glass fiber materials are mainly used for engine mounts, automotive impact components and other components. With increasingly stringent policies, automakers will face severe challenges in the weak links in the automobile industry chain such as material supply and lightweight design. The sales volume and capital of self-owned brand enterprises have no advantage over foreign investment. Currently, some companies represented by Chery Automobile have begun cooperation with component suppliers, light material suppliers, and car manufacturers.