The potential of using bio plastic materials in automotive applications

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to present an overview of the trend of using, on a wider scale, plastics in the automotive industry. It is presented the realization of PLA-TPU-Blends with a biogenic mass greater than 90%, by mixing thermoplastic Polyurethan (TPU) with Polylactid-Acid (PLA) at IKT University of Stuttgart. In order to estimate the possibilities of use of bio-materials made from PLA and TPU, the properties were compared with standard thermoplastics such as Polypropylen (PP), Polyethylen (PE), Polyamid (PA), as well as with better performing materials from the engineering thermoplastics range. PBT, ASA and their derivatives. Notable are the properties of PLA-TPU-Blends compared with standard thermoplastics PP, PE, PA. The results show PLA-TPU-Blends superiority in Yeld strength compared to the types of Polypropylene homopolymer (PP-H), block-copolymer (PP-B) and randompolymer (PP-R), the properties being adaptable by flexible modification of the ratio between the components, according to the requirements of the application. Using suitable additives to make components compatible, there were created blends which were partially cross-linked, but their properties remain of thermoplast. When reinforcing PLA-TPU-Blends with fibers (glass and natural), the components also react with the groups (-OH) on the fiber surface, thus making a good connection between fibers and blends, which prevents the so-called pull-out-effect. PLA-TPU-Blends reinforced with natural fibers can be used to make the interior body elements of vehicles. The paper also presents a comparison between bio-materials made at IKT University of Stuttgart with Polyethylen (PE) and other industry standard bio-materials.