High Performance, Low Cost Polypropylene Solutions for Automotive Applications

There is continual motivation in the automotive industry towards low cost materials which combine low density with a portfolio of good mechanical properties. This paper describes a novel combination of polypropylene based materials, now close to full commercialization, which offers a range of properties which hitherto have often been mutually exclusive - namely high performance and low cost.

The material, a laminate comprising a core of wood flour filled PP with skins of self-reinforced PP composite, combines the balanced mechanical properties and thermoforming characteristics of the core with the exceptional impact resistance, stiffness, strength and surface finish of the skins in a simple low cost solution.