Dow Corning (Europe: Seneffe / Belgium; www.dowcorning.com) has introduced a silicone masterbatch developed to optimise processability of highly mineral-filled PE compounds for wire and cable applications. The company said that "MB25-502" is the first in the industry to combine best-in-class processing with an affordable cost – by reducing screw torque, die build-up and die pressure, the material can improve extrusion throughput by up to 110% compared to PE compounds without a processing additive.

The material raises throughput of PE compounds with mineral loadings of up to 70% by weight by reducing screw torque by as much as 30%. By targeting processability issues instead of including extra functionality, the masterbatch achieves improved results at a competitive price, the company said. It is compatible with LDPE, LLDPE and cross-linked XLPE and is supplied in pellet form.