Celanese XAP® Technology Helps Automakers Achieve Low-Emission Standards for Vehicle Interior Applications
Wed, May 7 2014
“Driven by international legislation, air quality in automobiles is
receiving renewed focus. Celanese is helping to set the global standard
for low-emission engineered materials with its Hostaform®
XAP® and XAP2™ POM grades that help the auto
industry reduce part emissions in vehicles,” said
Hostaform is an ideal engineered material for automotive interiors, which has led one of the world’s largest automakers to identify Celanese’s Hostaform as the preferred material in a specification standard for POM. Hostaform UV270Z XAP2 meets OEM performance requirements for automotive cockpit applications with a combination of:
- high flow;
- UV stability;
- colorability;
- scratch resistance;
- impact strength.
One automotive interior application for the use of this Celanese engineered material is speaker grills. Hostaform UV270Z XAP2 can be injection molded in one shot, and then snap-fitted or ultrasonically inserted in the support element. One recent set of front and rear door speaker grills posed specific challenges since they required a perfect fusion of function and form to ensure excellent sound transmission, as well as aesthetics.
“This grill pattern design, with its small and thin pattern and small
and tight holes, pushed the material and processing envelope,” said
Another challenge involved color matching. The Celanese color technology
team needed to adapt the formulation to match interior colors without
losing any of the low-emission properties. Formulating a color-matched
material to meet the OEM color approval process required numerous
formulation iterations and molding trials,” said
Colorants were specifically selected to match each color. All colors were approved with the first submission in plaque form to the design studio. The challenge came in translating a solid molded plaque to a speaker grill with hundreds of holes on the appearance surface. Offsets to the official master were developed in the laboratory and trialed in the actual part until part appearance approval was achieved.
“Part placement in the vehicle was also challenging for these colors,” added Mulholland. “Color harmony in the vehicle had to be achieved between solid plastic trim, soft leather trim and these speaker grilles with holes and curvature.”
Additional automobile applications
The latest XAP2 technology of low-emission Hostaform POM products from Celanese is an excellent material for parts in the passenger compartment of the vehicle. Components such as door modules or seatbelt pre-tensioning systems increasingly call for low-emission materials. Other potential applications include head rests and lumbar support, fastening solutions in the door area and trim for door elements, instrument panels and center consoles.
“Celanese is a leading supplier of low-emission engineered materials
thanks to Hostaform POM with its XAP
technology,” said
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Engineered Materials:
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Relations Americas
Stephen.Cushard@celanese.com
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