Plastics giants turn to clay for composites
15 Jan 2000
Polyolefins giant Montell and polyester specialist Eastman have both tuned into clay research to develop new families of composite materials.
Montell's North American division has linked up with General Motors and a Laporte subsidiary, Southern Clay Products, to refine techniques for incorporating montmorillonite clays into thermoplastic olefins. These so-called `nanocomposites', which have better mechanical, thermal, barrier and flame-resistant properties than normal polyolefins, would then be used by the automotive industry for internal and external components such as door panels.
Eastman, meanwhile, has signed an agreement with Nanocor, a US firm that specialises in producing `nano-sized platelets' of clays. Eastman plans to investigate the use of these clays in polyethylene terephthalate, where they improve strength, barrier properties and heat stability without affecting the clarity.
