CHINAPLAS 2021 opened at Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center on April 13, 2021 and was held for 4 days with more than 3,600 exhibitors from 50 countries and regions. Lightweighting in plastics and rubber was once again the highlighted topic at the event. What can be the solutions of lightweighting and how does Crerax with 10+ years of experience in new polymer materials innovative to respond to such strong remand? Other than our expandable microspheres (used as foaming agents and lightweight fillers for plastics and rubber) and some of the typical applications out of 120+, we also showcased our functional masterbatches as our newest innovative solutions customized to bring lightweighting to different materials.
- EN series PP & engineering plastics functional masterbatch: applied in PP、SGFPP、LGFPP、TPR for injection molding.
- EV series common plastics & engineering plastics functional masterbatch: suitable for common plastics, engineering plastics, thermoplastic elastomers.
- BAS series functional masterbatch for PVC injection molded shoes: applied in PVC shoes for injection molding to reduce shoes weight and dust pollution.
Crerax@PlasPlus is our most recent innovative technology with which we created solutions of lightweighting and other matters for plastics and rubber.
Anti-shrinkage:
Shrinking/deforming is the change in the shape and size of plastic articles during injection molding due to stresses and other factors. Crerax@PlasPlus technology can greatly prevent such cases. For example, adding 1-3% Crerax functional masterbatches to GFPP can reduce the shrinkage rate by 75.91% and the standard deviation of shrinkage rate by 45.66%.
One of our clients as a flower pots manufacturer used to have difficulties in solving the issues of the deformation and warpage of the bottom of pots. Crerax’s products effectively helped fixing these issues. Not only was the molding shrinkage rate reduced, but the appearance and feel of the pots were both refined. In addition, the anti-slip characteristic of the bottom of the pots was strengthened.
Anti-warpage:
Plastic interior door panels for automobiles are usually thin and largely sized. Due to these characteristics, warpage is one of the main injection molding defects, and dimensional stability becomes the main quality indicator of such type of products. To prevent warpage and optimize the outcome, normally it is necessary to look into many aspects such as raw materials, molds, product structures, molding processes, gating system, etc., an optimization procedure that is costly and time consuming. However, simply by adding a small amount of Crerax’s products, the issue of warpage can be easily solved.
Lightweighting:
Not only do our products and solutions solve issues such as warpage and shrinkage for our clients from both home and abroad, but also bring lightweighting to their products. For instance, adding 2% of our functional masterbatch can reduce product weight by 25%~30%.
Now more than ever, the world is pursuing lightweighting solutions. Automobiles, airplanes, rail transit, 5G, home appliances, etc. have always been leading the plastics industry, and lightweighting is essential to the industry’s future development. Plastic materials, therefore, are bound to be made lighter along with the characteristics of high-performance and convenient application.
For the automobile industry, for instance, replacing steel with plastic is the main trend today. The amount of plastic used in automobiles has even become an important indicator of the quality of the automobile design and manufacturing. According to data from the American Chemical Society and the European Plastics Association, the amount of plastic used by automobiles in 2017: 202.2kg in the United States, 257.7kg in Europe, and only 169.8kg in China. By 2025, China’s vehicle needs to achieve the goal of reducing weight by 20% compared to 2015.
Throughout 10+ years of R&D and innovation, Crerax has successfully developed a series of products and solutions including our most recent functional masterbatches that bring the characteristics of lighweighting and anti-warpage to plastic parts while maintaining other excellent material properties.
In the future, Crerax will further expand our products series with Crerax@PlasPlus being applied in the rubber and plastics industry to meet the diverse needs of our clients. We will also continue the journey of developing end products such as boron-free super lightweight clay and MABA multi-application base agent that all come together to form Crerax’s new material ecosystem. With our mission being to create endless possibilities with our new material technologies, we will continue to innovate and contribute to building a safer, more comfortable and sustainable future.
