Stronger engine parts

Stronger engine parts A GLASS fibre reinforced grade of high-flow polyamide (PA) designed for jet engine parts is now available. Stanyl ® 46HF4130, produced by DSM Engineering Plastics, is a 30% glass reinforced PA 46, a highly crystalline material with a melting temperature of 295oC. DSM says that the jet engine parts made of Stanyl 46HF4130 could replace current hand-built glass reinforced plastic (GRP) parts. The parts need to be thin and large (40 cm in length, yet only 0.8 mm thick in places) whilst having enough strength to withstand the impact of bird strikes at temperatures ranging from 50-150°C, as well as resisting warpage. According to DSM, the Stanyl materials have the toughness and high mechanical strength required to meet these demands. The compound was initially moulded into noise minimiser panels for the engine duct of the Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engine. This project was a joint effort between DSM Engineering Plastics, German

toolmaker and moulder Stückerjürgen and Austrian composites systems supplier FACC. The Trent 900 engine is used on the Airbus A380 passenger aircraft. “Extensive testing of candidate materials resulted in the selection of Stanyl for infill panels on the Trent 900 engine. Stanyl proved to have the right balance between lightness and strength,” says Neil Williams, a spokesperson at Rolls-Royce. DSM says that Stanyl 46HF4130 can also be used for connectors and other intricate parts featuring thin sections or complex geometries. Other Stanyl grades are found in automotive and electronic applications such as charge air coolers, chain tensioners, bearing cages, electrical connectors and components, electric motor end laminates and brush holders, and a variety of housings and shields for home appliances, lawn and garden tools and building products. DSM; website: www.dsm.com.

DSM’s Stanyl polyamides can be used for a variety of applications.

July/August 2004

REINFORCEDplastics

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