Composite Resin Systems

Composite Resin Systems

For electrified vehicles, weight reduction translates to higher range and/or lower cost. Composite materials offer not only lower weight, but mechanical performance and corrosion resistance properties that are equal to or better than metal. Our lightweighting composite solutions enable OEMs to meet their sustainability targets by reducing the carbon footprint of vehicles usage during their entire life. Typical automotive applications for composites include body-in-white components, wheels, leaf springs, battery housings and pressure vessels.

Reliable Chemistry for Composite Resin Systems

A major challenge in making the transition to composite materials is keeping production cycle times low without sacrificing consistent part quality. Newly developed processes such as High-Pressure Resin Transfer Molding (HP-RTM), Dynamic Fluid-Compression Molding (DFCM) as well as well established processes such as Wet Compression Molding (WCM) allow semi-complex to complex shapes to be produced with extremely short cycle times. Huntsman offers an extensive range of specially formulated resin systems that are proven to meet the processing and performance requirements of composites for the automotive market.

Araldite® FST 40004 /
Araldite® FST 40005

UL 94 rating:
GFRP 2 mm: V0 / CFRP 2mm: V1

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
265 - 275°C

Suitable for:

  • HP-RTM

First generation, halogen-free and filler free system, combining fire resistance and very high thermal resistance. It enables the production of large parts such as battery housing.

Araldite® FST 40004 /
Araldite® FST 40007

UL 94 rating:
GFRP 2 mm: V0 / CFRP 2mm: V0

Tensile strength:
85 - 90 MPa

Suitable for:

  • HP-RTM

First generation, halogen-free and filler free system, offering high mechanical strength and fracture toughness in addition to improve fire resistant properties. Excellent candidate to produce battery housing with demanding structural requirements.

Araldite® FST 40020 /
Araldite® FST 40021

UL 94 rating:
GFRP 2 mm: V0 / CFRP 2mm: V0

Cure time:
3 - 5 min 115°C

Suitable for:

  • HP-RTM
  • Wet Compression Molding

Second generation fire resistant system dedicated to the mass production of battery housing parts. It offers excellent processability and fast cure.

Araldite® LT 3366

Softening point:
150°C

Preforming cycle:
20 s at 180°C

Suitable for: 

  • Preforming

Non-reactive binder for highly efficient mass-production of powdered fabrics and preforms. High softening point prevents ply-to-ply adhesion during storage and fiber distortion at injection temperatures up to 120°C.

Araldite® XB 6078

Softening point:
85°C

Preforming cycle:
120 s at 140°C or 60 s at 160°C

Suitable for:

  • Preforming

Reactive binder offering very high preform stability, even for injection temperatures exceeding 160°C. Recommended for production of thick preforms, such as for leaf spring manufacture, as well as for parts requiring high aesthetic quality.

Araldite® LY 3585 /
Aradur® 3475

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
120 - 130°C

Cure time:
2 min at 115°C (HP-RTM)
1 min at 140°C (WCM)

Suitable for:

  • HP-RTM
  • Wet Compression Molding

 

Fast cure solution offering enhanced processing (1 min injection window at 115°C), reduced curing cycle and improved toughness versus state-of-art technology (ARALDITE® LY 3585 / XB 3458). High clarity system for production of cosmetic parts.

Araldite® LY 3031 /
Aradur® 3032

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
110 - 120°C

Cure time:
30 s at 140°C

Suitable for:

  • HP-RTM
  • Wet Compression Molding

Very fast cure solution developed to improve productivity and meet requirements of structural automotive parts made by Wet Compression Molding (WCM) and Dynamic Fluid Compression Molding (DFCM).

Araldite®LY 3569 /
Aradur® 1571 /
Accelerator

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
130 - 140°C

Cure time:
3 min 150°C

Suitable for:

  • Sheet Molding Compound

Fast cure B-stage SMC system for serial production of automotive parts. VOC free. Resulting SMC retains very good drapability for 3 weeks at 23°C. 

Araldite®LY 3569 /
Aradur® 1571 /
Accelerator 1573 /
Aradur® 1575

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
115 - 135°C

Cure time:
5 - 10 min 150°C

Suitable for:

  • Sheet Molding Compound

Medium Tg B-stage epoxy SMC system for body in white parts. VOC free. The system can be compounded on large sized SMC rolls and the resulting SMC retains very good drapability for 6 weeks at 23°C. A wide range of part thicknesses can be processed.

XB 50021 A /
Aradur® 1571 /
Accelerator 1573 /
XB 50021 B

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
160 - 190°C

Cure time:
5 - 10 min 160°C

Suitable for:

  • Sheet Molding Compound

High Tg B-stage epoxy SMC system for parts close to the engine. VOC free. The system can be compounded on medium sized SMC rolls and the resulting SMC retains very good drapability for 6 weeks at 23°C. Allows processing up to medium part thicknesses.

Araldite® LY 3585 /
Aradur® 917-1 /
Accelerator DY 080

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
120°C - 180°C (adjustable)

Impregnation technology:
Open bath and injection box

Suitable for:

  • Pultrusion

REACH compliant, robust anhydride solution with long pot-life, offering high surface quality for pultrusion parts. Cure profile and the resulting Tg can be adjusted depending on the application requirement.

Araldite® LY 3585 /
Aradur® 3831

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
125°C

Cure time:
5 min at 105°C

Suitable for:

  • HP-RTM

First generation system proven to withstand real-world fatigue loading under severe hot / wet conditions. A cured Tg of 125°C covers most customer leaf spring requirements.

Araldite® LY 3585 /
Aradur® 3834

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
140°C

Cure time:
5 min at 105°C

Suitable:

  • HP-RTM

Second generation solution offering a Tg in excess of 140°C without compromising fatigue resistance. Responds to the need for parts that can endure the harshest hot / wet conditions, such as those encountered close to the vehicle engine.

Araldite® LY 1135-1 A /
Aradur® 917-1 /
Accelerator 960-1

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
132 - 138°C

Pot life:
56 - 62 h at 23°C

Suitable for:

  • Wet Filament Winding

REACH compliant anhydride based system. Very long latency combined with low reaction exotherm. Mix viscosity of 600-1000 mPas at 25°C.

Araldite® LY 3608 /
Aradur® 917-1 /
Accelerator 960-1

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
115 - 125°C

Pot life:
> 48 h at 23°C

Suitable for:

  • Wet Filament Winding

REACH compliant anhydride based system. Very high fracture toughness (KIc = 1.5 – 1.6 MPa.m1/2) combined with very long latency and low reaction exotherm. Mix viscosity of 600 - 1000 mPas at 25°C.

Araldite® LY 1564 /
Aradur® 917-1 /
Accelerator 960-1

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
122 - 130°C

Pot life:
80 - 90 h at 23°C

Suitable for:

  • Wet Filament Winding

REACH compliant anhydride based system. Very long latency combined with low reaction exotherm. Mix viscosity of 450-700 mPas at 25°C.

Araldite® LY 1564 /
Aradur® 3474

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
115 - 120°C

Pot life:
260 - 280 min at 23°C

Suitable for:

  • Wet Filament Winding

Amine based system with high mechanical performance, low-temperature curing capability and higher reactivity compared to anhydride systems. Mix viscosity of 500-650 mPas at 25°C.

Araldite® LY 3508 /
Aradur® 1571 /
Accelerator 1573

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
140 - 150°C

Fracture Toughness:
0.9 - 1.1 MPa.m½

Suitable for:

  • Towpreg Winding

High temperature resistance system designed to satisfy the requirements of hydrogen vessels manufactured via towpreg winding. Very long latency for ease of use, optimized manufacturing viscosity profile and fast curing for high productivity.

Araldite® LY 3708 /
Aradur® 1571 /
Accelerator 1575

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
120 - 130°C

Fracture Toughness:
1.5 - 1.6 MPa.m½

Suitable for:

  • Towpreg Winding

Highly toughened system designed to withstand the extreme pressure-cycling requirements of hydrogen vessels manufactured via towpreg winding. Optimized manufacturing viscosity profile and fast curing for high productivity.

Araldite® LY 3508 /
Aradur® 3478

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
110 - 115°C

Fracture Toughness:
1.4 - 1.6 MPa.m½

Suitable for:

  • HP-RTM

Highly toughened system designed to withstand the extreme pressure-cycling requirements of hydrogen vessels manufactured via the HP-RTM injection process.

Araldite® LY 8615 /
Aradur® 8615

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
210 - 220°C

Tensile strength:
40 - 45 MPa

Suitable for:

  • HP-RTM

First generation system with high thermal resistance designed for the production of hybrid and full-composite wheels by RTM and HP-RTM. The system is OEM qualified and has proven performance and reliability from several years of on-road service.

Araldite® LY 1560 /
Aradur® 917-1 /
Accelerator DY 079

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
195 - 205°C

Tensile strength:
70 - 80 MPa

Suitable for:

  • HP-RTM

Second generation system with increased strength and toughness, plus high aesthetic properties for the most demanding wheel designs. Adjustable accelerator technology allows optimum fast-curing to be tailored to a given wheel design.

Araldite® LY 3585 /
Aradur® 3475

Glass transition temperature (Tg):
120 - 130°C

Impregnation technology:
Injection box

Suitable for:

  • Pultrusion

 

Rapid cure epoxy / amine system for achieving fast line speed and productivity, whilst offering clean pultrusion processing. For automotive applications with medium Tg requirements.

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Lower Costs, Faster to Market Whatever your Process

Lower Costs, Faster to Market Whatever your Process

Our leading composite expertise, broad product range and unique simulation capabilities can reduce development cycles by up to 50 %.

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New Solutions for Hydrogen Pressure-Vessel Manufacturers

New Solutions for Hydrogen Pressure-Vessel Manufacturers

Huntsman Advanced Materials offers innovative solutions that support manufacturers in the design and production of composite pressure vessels for hydrogen storage and transportation. 

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Frequently Asked Questions

What are some advantages of composite materials for specific automotive applications?

The Huntsman portfolio of resin systems enables automotive engineers to push the boundaries of composites in highly demanding fatigue- and impact-resistant applications. Designers of battery housings can now use our unique halogen- and filler-free FST chemistry to manufacture lightweight fire-resistant composites. Huntsman chemistry also enables the use of composites in aesthetic parts such as wheels, without compromising on performance or productivity.

How are Huntsman’s resin systems optimized for composite processes?

Huntsman’s resin systems for High-Pressure Resin Transfer Molding (HP-RTM) applications exhibit very low viscosity (<300 mPas), adjustable reactivity (pot life, curing), low shrinkage (<2%), low reaction exotherm and good wetting of reinforcement.

Huntsman also offers a resin solution designed for the Wet Compression Molding (WCM) process, which offers much faster reactivity than HP-RTM resins.

For applications in which structural composite processes such as HP-RTM may be too expensive, Huntsman’s Dynamic Fluid Compression Molding (DFCM) technique offers not only reduced cost, but also the potential for significant performance benefits and enhanced design freedom.

How do Huntsman’s simulation capabilities help customers to develop custom resin systems?

At Huntsman’s Composite Center of Excellence in Basel, Switzerland, process simulation is used to help design a production process tailored to each specific part. New resin selection, flow patterns, injection concepts, curing time and temperature can be modeled at the computer, and the optimal mold layout can be determined. High-speed refinements identify any necessary improvements, resulting in tailor-made solutions for each part requirement.

Tailored Technical Support

Simulation

Simulation exercises can quickly demonstrate the limitations or the achievable characteristics for various sets of resins and processing parameters, thus reducing the number of real-world trials that must be conducted.

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Materials Testing

By putting our products through a wide range of physical and mechanical tests, we also generate the characterization data that is required to generate accurate digital simulations.

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Processing

Your production processes need to combine superior efficiency with exceptional end-product performance. With our processing help, you’ll need fewer trials to reach optimal quality and performance for each part.

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Resin Systems for
Composite Parts

Discover our wide range of composite applications to improve safety, efficiency and integrate alternative fuels into your designs.

Applications for Composites

The Right Solution for Your Manufacturing Process

Discover our leading composite expertise, broad product range and unique simulation capabilities to reduce development cycle times.

Processes for Composites