Saudi Arabian petrochemicals and plastics giant Sabic (Riyadh; www.sabic.com) has announced the launch of its “LNP Colorcomp WQ117945” compound, a material based on advanced nanotechnology that facilitates efficient production of PET foams for core materials in sandwich structures.

This new compound improves control over nucleation and cell growth, resulting in decreased cell size and uniform, narrower cell-size distribution, the company said. These attributes can reduce the foam’s weight by minimising resin uptake in sandwich structures, Sabic said. It can also potentially improve shear strength/strain properties for better fatigue performance.

The compound can be used in multiple industries, including marine, building and construction, packaging and wind energy, Sabic noted. Possible applications include building insulation and cladding, boat hulls and decks, and the core of wind-turbine blades. In the production of wind energy particularly, disposal of wind blades is becoming a global concern, with most blades currently being sent to landfills, due to their big size and complexity.

According to Sabic, the adoption of PET foams for the core of wind-turbine blades offers the industry a strong, light, recyclable option over incumbent materials, such as balsa wood and PVC foam. Weight reduction is also a key issue in wind-blade design. Extending blade length to increase the amount of captured energy adds significant weight to the blade. SABIC’s “LNP Colorcomp WQ117945” compound can significantly reduce foam cell size (as much as three-fold) compared to standard nucleating agents such as talc, while decreasing cell-size disparity by a factor of up to five. These factors help reduce resin uptake by the foam during composite manufacture, resulting in a lighter-weight blades.