Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Middle East Foam & Polyurethane
  • UTECH Asia/PU China
  • UTECH Europe
  • UTECH Las Americas
Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Coronavirus
  • News
    • Asia
    • Americas
    • Europe
    • M & A
    • Financial results
    • Automotive
    • Japan's lacklustre PU production continued in November 2020
      PU prevents freezing damage to railway tunnels
      Huafon estimates 2020 profit will be up to 40% higher than 2019
      Construction starts for Jason Furniture plants in China and Vietnam
    • World automotive registrations recover in H2 2020
      Mlily to increase US market share following anti-dumping duties
      US footwear imports up 25% in November 2020
      Introducing UTECH Southeast Asia 2022
    • EC approves Kingspan's TeraSteel and Wetterbest purchases
      BTC Europe to distribute BASF’s polyurethane ingredients
      World automotive registrations recover in H2 2020
      Bosnian producer to invest in new PU panel factory
    • PPG buys polyurea company Versaflex
      Recticel buys FoamPartner
      Recticel upgrades Q3 outlook despite raw material tightness
      Covestro broadens PU portfolio with DSM purchase
    • Huafon estimates 2020 profit will be up to 40% higher than 2019
      Mlily to increase US market share following anti-dumping duties
      Stellar Q4 performance saves Wanhua 2020 earnings
      2020 proved fruitful for Vitafoam Nigeria
    • World automotive registrations recover in H2 2020
      Car sales down 25% in Western Europe in 2020
      Patchy coronavirus effects hit global car sales in November
      November continues fall in Western Europe's car sales
  • Data
  • Information
    • Country Overview
    • Market Sector overviews
    • Technical articles
    • Company profiles and strategies
    • China’s PU industry on the path to recovery; plans for technology upgrades
      Chinese cold chains grow bigger
      Flexible foam rises to challenges in the Middle East and Africa
      Life at the cross-roads: what does the GCC offer PU?
    • Europe's flexible foam makers face rising prices as outages hit markets
      Western European car registrations rebound slowed in September
      Western European car registrations regained some ground in August
      Western European Car registrations rebound continued in July
    • Take out the VOC with hybrid release agents
      Batteries give pultrusions power
      Seeing a way through VOC and FOG
      Aromatic polyols for simpler rigid PU formulations
    • Hennecke and Frimo: an automotive partnership
      Pushing ahead: AutoRIM drives KM’s UK growth
      BASF opens it first ‘Creation Center’ in Mumbai with a PU twist
      Persistence pays off for CTM
  • Events
    • Exhibitions
    • Conferences
    • Webinars / Livestreams
    • Become a Speaker
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Issues
  • Subscribe
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
January 18, 2010 12:00 AM

RIM potting with PU protects sensitive electronics

Utech Staff
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    Leverkusen, Germany - Polyurethanes may soon start to replace a range of other resins in potting compounds for electrical components, if machinery and systems developed recently take off.

    Machinery supplier Isotherm AG of Uetendorf, Switzerland, and BaySystems' polyurethane systems house in Otterup, Denmark, say they have jointly developed a cost-effective way to mould housings and protect sensitive electronic components, using polyurethane systems processed in a single step by reaction injection moulding (RIM).

    The developers say polyurethanes "outperform other materials and material combinations for this application, because they can be formulated precisely to meet individual requirements." They can make soft, solid elastomers or semi-rigid, impact-resistant integral skin foams and all types in between, so that a single material "can be customised to suit virtually any application."

    The RIM process allows finished parts to be removed from the mould in less than two minutes - giving a cost-effective combination of making a housing and electronic encapsulation in a single production line. The PU properties can be varied by selecting different starting materials. With their low viscosity, PU reaction mixtures flow to ensure that even areas that are difficult to reach are enclosed effectively, while low internal pressure in the mould means that RIM technology can be used with inexpensive synthetic resin and aluminium moulds, the companies stress.

    The "RIM process facilitates the production of moulded parts with wide variations in wall thickness," explains Gerd Viertel, an expert in PU encapsulation at BaySystems, in a 13 Jan announcement. This allows users to make thin housing shells that are "rigid and lightweight - with fully integrated reinforcing ribs, ventilation slits, spring locks and metallic design elements," Viertel added.

    For electronic components, the polyurethane reaction is appropriate, as it is rapid, gentle and gives little shrinkage. Curing is at 120°C at the most. The thermal conductivity of the PU - essential to dissipate heat in electronic assemblies -- can be raised by adding fillers, the companies note.

    Such encapsulation is becoming ever more vital in cars, for example, where delicate pin contacts have to be protected against oxidation caused by weathering: "Using polyurethane materials and modifying the RIM technology makes it possible to fill even the smallest spaces via, in some cases, very narrow flow paths. To this end, we have developed machines with low discharge rates of less than 15 g/s (or 10 ccm/s)," notes Daniel Lüthi, managing director of Isotherm.

    Another benefit of polyurethane is that shots of as little as 2 g are possible with specially developed metering equipment. Also, increasing flame retardancy requirements, such as the UL 94 V-0 (an Underwriters' Laboratory specification), demand higher filler levels, where Isotherm can offer filler-resistant piston metering machines for cable and connector encapsulation.

    "

    Recommended for You
    Japan's lacklustre PU production continued in November 2020
    Japan's lacklustre PU production continued in November 2020
    EC approves Kingspan's TeraSteel and Wetterbest purchases
    EC approves Kingspan's TeraSteel and Wetterbest purchases
    PU prevents freezing damage to railway tunnels
    PU prevents freezing damage to railway tunnels
    Latest Issue
    Click HERE for Free Download
    View All Archives
    Get our newsletters

    Breaking news and in-depth coverage of essential topics delivered straight to your inbox.

    Subscribe today

    Register to access our archive of leading information on the polyurethanes industry.

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • Twitter
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Youtube

    Follow us on social media for the latest polyurethanes industry news and event updates.

    Logo
    Contact Us

    Office 127,
    61, Willow Walk,
    London
    SE1 5SF
    E-mail us
    +44 (0) 203 287 5979

    Customer Service:
    +1 313 446 0450

    Resources
    • Advertise with Us
    • Media Kit
    • Staff
    • Careers
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2021. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • Coronavirus
    • News
      • Asia
      • Americas
      • Europe
      • M & A
      • Financial results
      • Automotive
    • Data
    • Information
      • Country Overview
      • Market Sector overviews
      • Technical articles
      • Company profiles and strategies
    • Events
      • Exhibitions
      • Conferences
      • Webinars / Livestreams
      • Become a Speaker
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • Issues
    • Subscribe