Automobile industry exteriors

Thermoplastic polyurethane elastomers can be molded and extruded to produce flexible articles. Applications include wire insulation, hose, tracks for all-terrain vehicles, solid tires, roller skate wheels, seals, bushing, convoluted bellows, bearings, and small gears for high-load applications. In the automobile industry thermoplastic polyurethanes are used primarily for exterior parts. Their ability to be painted with flexible polyurethane-based paints without pretreatment is valuable. 

All of the plastics, rubbers and composites described previously for their use in the automobile industry may or may not show any health hazard, depending on their preparation and contents. In this context, certainly the ones that are used in interiors are of the utmost importance and should be considered and examined more critically. On the other hand, the ones used in exteriors, should also be considered, not for their health hazard considerations, but mainly on different grounds (i.e., the loss of light stabilisers by migration from automotive finishes, which can significantly reduce the durability of coatings on plastic substrates [14]). 

WPCs are mainly used for interior and exterior floor covering, but also for the construction of patios, stairs and terraces (Figure 9.4.10). Furthermore, WPCs are used for promenades, noise barriers, docks, fences, railings, window frames and doors.Future markets could be found in the furniture and automobile industry. ... 

Automobile exteriors are coated with multi-layer polymeric coatings for protection and appearance. The electrical coat and primer layers provide corrosion protection and better adhesion to the steel substrate. The basecoat provides the color component. The topcoat protects the other layers from the environment and is responsible for the glossy appearance. The automobile industry and its customers have long demanded that these coatings retain their initial attractive appearance despite weathering and chemical and mechanical damage (7). 

The automobile industry uses reactive polyester in the form of sheet molding compound (SMC) to mold exterior panels - lift gates, doors, side panels - for the General Motors mini-vans (Lumina APV, Silhouette and Transport). Exterior panels are also made for the Camaro, Firebird and Corvette. SMC uses 5 to 10 xm ground calcium carbonate at about 200 phr and oriented glass fiber to produce a composite offering stiffness, resistance to temperature and a smooth paintable surface. 

P.Y.97 is used in a variety of fields. Even in pastel shades, it is used in industrial finishes while its full shades lend color to automobile refinishes. In emulsion paints, both its medium and full shades are suited to exterior application. The printing ink industry uses P.Y.97 in high grade printing products, especially where excellent fastness is required, such as in stable posters, etc. It lends itself without difficulty to all printing techniques. However, lack of fastness to monostyrene and acetone and therefore a certain tendency to bleed in these media precludes its application in deco printing inks, i.e., for decorative laminates. 

The section on metallic corrosion clearly indicates that the conventional method of classification of environments into marine, industrial, and rural no longer is adequate. More specific information is needed about the actual chemical components in the atmosphere as well as humidity and other factors. Specific environments also are addressed in the metallic corrosion section. For example, the automotive environment in the northeastern United States is particularly severe because of the combination of acid deposition and the use of road de-icing salts. These factors exert a synergistic effect on the corrosion behavior of auto-body steel and on exterior anodized aluminum automobile trim. 

Because they are relatively expensive, epoxy polymers have not been used very widely as binders in PC products. Therefore, epoxy PC is used for special applications, in situations in which the higher cost can easily be justified, such as mortar for industrial flooring to provide physical and chemical resistance, skid-resistant overlays (filled with sand, emery, pumice, quartz) in highways, epoxy plaster for exterior walls (e.g., in exposed aggregate panels), and resurfacing material for deteriorated areas (e.g., in flooring). Epoxy PC reinforced with glass, carbon, or boron fibers is used in the fabrication of translucent panels, boat hulls, and automobile bodies [2,6],... 

In present-day high-speed assembly line operations, adhesives are applied robotically. The adhesive bead is apphed quickly and evenly to parts on a conveyor line just prior to being fitted. These operations, especially the need to handle the adhered substrates soon after assembly, demand fast-curing adhesive systems [65]. Two-component adhesives are used to bond metals to plastics in automobiles, to laminate panels in the construction industry, to laminate foams to textiles, to laminate plastic films together, and to bond poly(vinyhdene chloride) films to wood for furniture. A commercial waterborne two-component adhesive is sold by Ashland under the trademark ISOSET. This system is used for exterior sandwich panels by recreational vehicle manufacturers and is composed of a water-emulsiliable isocyanate and a hydroxy-functionalized emulsion latex. 

In the automobile branch in particular, the design and finish of both interior and exterior components are subject to spiraling qualitative demands. The term premium class, coined by the automotive industry, is no longer the sole preserve of... 

Air pollution eind political reaction, first in the Los Angeles basin then in the Sein Freincisco Bay area, started a series of regulations not only on automobile and factory exhausts, but also on most kinds of solvent-based paints. Quickly the technologies of latex paint and occasional, water reducible alkyds from the 1940 s were tried for all meumer of paint applications, both trade sales and industrial. While both kinds were successful then, for interior flat wall paints, neither served well in exterior, high gloss paints and their success in these, more difficult uses only now is emerging in the 1970 s. 

Paint used for commercial and industrial buildings, automobiles, boats, and other exterior uses still contains lead. 

In addition, lead-based paint is still permitted for commercial and industrial uses. Because lead helps paint stand up to sun and harsh weather, it is often used for painting the exteriors of automobiles, boats, buildings, and bridges. Children s playground equipment may... 

---