LANXESS to showcase new products for mobility at K 2019

German specialty chemical company, Lanxess will present a broad portfolio of its new products at the international trade fair for plastics and rubber K 2019, in Dusseldorf, Germany from October 16-23, 2019.

The specialty chemicals company will focus primarily on the topics of new mobility, urbanisation and digitalisation. “Innovative mobility solutions and modern urban concepts are currently being developed worldwide. These are important growth areas for us and our customers. We are constantly developing sustainable material solutions and technologies for this purpose and are also focusing on new possibilities for digitalisation,” said Hubert Fink, member of the Lanxess board of management.

All in all, six of Lanxess' eleven business units – high performance materials, urethane systems, polymer additives, rhein chemie, inorganic pigments and advanced industrial intermediates – will be showcasing their products at K 2019.

Polyamides and polyesters for sustainable mobility
Lanxess' High Performance Materials (HPM) business unit will display a wide range of new products relating to electric mobility. “Our objective with our materials is to help the various types of drive system involved in electric mobility to break through on the market. We are focusing on a series of different technologies, from mild hybrid and plug-in hybrid to electric-only vehicles. Our developments are also aimed at additional mobility trends such as autonomous driving and digital connectivity,” said Michael Zobel, head of HPM. The company's new materials include orange, heat-stabilised compounds for high-voltage applications; materials that prevent electrical corrosion upon contact with live metal parts; and halogen-free, flame-retardant materials for components such as battery cell holders and cover plates.

In terms of lightweight design, Lanxess says it is working primarily on hollow-profile hybrid technology and thermoplastic composites under the Tepex brand. “Our composite material is becoming more and more established in structural lightweight construction in mass production. At K, we will be presenting an extremely durable seat shell and a highly integrated front-end carrier made from Tepex, both of which exhibit an excellent crash resistance,” said Zobel.

Blow-moulding systems and AI in product development
In addition, at the show Lanxess will showcase new compounds for cost-effective blow-moulding of components for air management in turbocharged combustion engines and of liners for vehicles powered by hydrogen and natural gas. “At our technical centre in Dormagen, we have commissioned a state-of-the-art blow-moulding system and set up a global team tasked with developing materials for special applications,” added Zobel.

Lanxess says it is aiming to make even better use of the benefits of digital technologies in the future: with digital business models, the introduction of new technologies throughout the value chain and the analysis and use of large amounts of data. The company is using AI to optimise formulations for glass-fibre sizings used to reinforce plastics. The company is collaborating on this project with Citrine Informatics, an AI company based in Redwood City, California, USA.

Michael Zobel, head of HPM, expalined, “We want to cut the development time for optimised formulations by more than half so that we can bring new, higher-performance products to market more quickly.”