Engineered PP Compounds, TPO, Key In Grand Award Winner Of SPE Auto Innovation Awards

With tough competition on its heels, the Grand Award winner and winner of the Safety category of the 2014 SPE Automotive Innovation Awards was the Integrated Glove-Box Door & Airbag---an injection molded “active glove box” and integrated knee airbag system on the 2015 Ford Mustang. In fact, this integrated design is now standard on the mass-produced 2015 LHD Mustang and on 2016 Europe LHD and RHD Mustang.

 

It is produced by Faurecia Interior Systems, Auburn Hills, Mich., using engineered PP compounds from Advanced Composites, Sidney, Ohio: ADX 5028 a 20% talc-filled PP with high rubber content for cold ductility and ADX 5017, a20% talc-filled PP stiffer than 5028 to provide a reaction surface.

 

A third material used is a TPO from Mitsubishi Chemical Performance Polymers, Greer, S.C.  Developed for airbag doors, TT850N TPO performs well at high-strain rates in hot and cold temperatures.

 

Want to find or compare materials data for different resins, grades, or suppliers? Check out Plastic Technology’s Plaspec Global materials database.