New development of the hottest plastic metal mixtu

New progress in plastic metal mixtures

plastic metal mixtures are rapidly replacing all steel components in the front end of automobiles. As more methods of manufacturing this mixture are developed, the manufacturing technology of this mixture is also improving

plastic metal hybrid modules used in many new cars and trucks are load-bearing components that combine thin-walled steel stamping sheets and glass reinforced thermoplastic into a whole. According to the polymer Department of Bayer company, with the improvement of the manufacturing technology of this plastic metal mixture, it will be used more as other automotive components, such as dashboard, bumper girder, door compartment, and tailgate. At the same time, its application in the non automotive industry is also increasing

at present, Bayer has designed an assembly method, which uses punch holes calibrated on two or more metal parts to consolidate the metal parts on the super molded nylon products

Bayer has played a leading role in the transformation of automotive front-end modules from steel components to hybrid components. For this reason, their super molding injection molding method has also achieved special benefits. Before 1968, the world consumption was less than 1000 tons. This molding method has been used by Volkswagen, Audi, Nissan and Ford since 1996

in the process of manufacturing semi-structural automobile load-bearing parts, eller United Company, located in Akron, Ohio, put forward its own views on the use of mixture system and direct composite long fiber polypropylene composites. The company believes that although these two methods can promote the integration of functions, all plastic composites have greater potential in reducing weight and cost than mixture system

with the continuous progress of all plastic products technology, the hybrid system will open up new fields in the application of higher performance

broaden the scope of the mixture system

the mixture system developed by Bayer illustrates the fact that strengthening the opening part and the lateral support effect of the U-shaped steel stamping sheet can greatly improve the bearing strength of the parts. The metal insert with bell shaped through hole made by stamping is put into the injection mold, and the super molding is carried out with 30% short glass fiber reinforced nylon 6, and the cross rib shaped support member can be made. The combination of metal and nylon is due to the penetration of nylon into the through hole after melting to form rivets, forming a mechanical linkage. Because the injection press is only opened in one direction, in the mixture system developed by Bayer, the cross-linked rib components are initially limited to a two-dimensional structure. News from Bayer said that now they have developed a method to design multi-directional rib frames

although Bayer's mixed structure impact test machine has openings, its bending strength, axial strength and torsional strength are better than many closed box structures. Using Bayer's technology, the wall thickness and weight of metal stamping sheets can not only be reduced by 40% to 60%, but also have good load-bearing strength. In the front and rear modules of Audi A6 and the format enhancement system of Ford Focus, the application of this technology has brought remarkable results, reducing the cost and weight by at least 10%

at present, in the United States, "box" door modules do not have strong enough load-bearing capacity, but the consolidation between components proves the cost advantage of the mixture. In addition, the concept of a chassis frame for door components (the frame connects the inner door and the outer door with a long strip of bonding wire on the side) is also being demanded by the market. These will be conducive to the development of hybrid materials

Brose GmbH, a car manufacturer of tier one in Kober, Germany, assembles about 100 million parts for door assemblies, seat adjusters and window adjusters every year, which are generally composed of a large number of cheap steel parts. It is said that at present, they are exploring the special application of hybrid compounds, and have designed an experimental model of window regulator made of mixture, which is an integral component and reduces the secondary processing process. However, due to the consolidation between components, the repair and design adjustment of some complex components become more difficult, which hinders the wide application of mixtures

the different requirements for the crashworthiness of both sides of the vehicle make the application of mixed materials in the instrument panel beam more difficult. Although the market demand tends to the application of single materials, mixed materials will still occupy a place in the future

other feasible methods

according to Dow, Volkswagen has applied Dow's system to the production of front-end parts in the 2006 plan because the mixed material system introduced by Volkswagen in the experimental model of front-end modules has strong bonding performance

Dow uses a proprietary low-energy surface binder to bond glass reinforced polypropylene to metal. The adhesion of acrylic epoxy system makes it work without penetrating polypropylene. This kind of bonding can produce continuous coupling effect and minimize stress concentration. At present, the system has been applied to high-speed automatic machinery

using Dow's mixed materials, closed members with high bearing capacity can be made. The box shaped outline opens the way for the multifunctional of mixture components, such as installing the airbag directly on the IP beam or embedding the air or water circulation system into the door

one of the technologies is the super molding of metal, which was applied in the production of front-end modules of 2004 light trucks in South America. In metal supermolding, a steel stamping sheet is placed in the injection mold cavity, and the bottom of the mold cavity is wrapped by a reinforced nylon layer. In the second process, high-speed automatic methods such as ultrasonic are used to weld the plastic surface of the metal insert with the nylon part, and the final result is a closed member with continuous bonding line and high bearing strength. This core-shell structure has the function of dust prevention and can compress cables and air or water channels

the hybrid component technology developed by Rhodia in the production of front-end modules, brake pedals and doorknobs 1 Experimental force: 2kg-20kg has great potential. At present, plastic metal assemblies have become Rhodia's choice to further reduce costs. The assembly adopts a U-shaped steel stamping sheet with stamping holes, and its nylon parts are molded separately. The punching holes on the stamping sheet are locked by pillars or hot forming pins, and riveted ends are generated by ultrasonic or hot piling methods to connect plastic and metal

a year ago, BASF introduced the metal column ring connection method, which is to punch a 5mm diameter column ring on the metal stamping sheet, and then press the metal parts into the molded 30% glass reinforced nylon 6 or nylon 66 parts with cold pressing. The cutting groove of the column ring fixes the metal in the plastic, and the position of the column ring can be changed at will

according to Scott Schlicker, senior R & D Manager of BASF, the metal column ring connection method can be seen from the lower part of the force measuring cylinder at first, which is used in the production of front-end parts and other aspects of cars. He believes that the main advantage of the metal column ring connection method compared with the super mold molding is that the separate injection molding of nylon parts can produce a closed member with three-dimensional cross-linked ribs, which increases the torsional strength. BASF claims that its technology has better structural stability and lower metal resilience, while the scrap rate and chip rate are also very low

used outside the automotive industry

bayer is trying to expand the application of hybrid components to equipment enclosures, portable computers, sporting goods, fitness equipment, water pumps and oil pumps, and office appliances

in the hybrid components of the automotive industry, steel plays a leading role, while nylon only plays an auxiliary role. According to Bayer's prediction, the role of steel and nylon in hybrid components will be different in other industries. According to Platte, plastic dominated mixture systems will gradually be applied to other industries. At the critical stress point of these plastic dominated mixture systems, the amount of metal inserts will be reduced as much as possible, while in shelf materials and water pump suspension systems, metal can not be used as the main frame. In bicycle frames and axial sliding devices, metal may only be used as the main load-bearing components, while plastic will be used to a great extent to reduce the number and weight of parts and increase the diversity of shape design