Optatech: New TPV Technologies
Two proprietary thermoplastic elastomer technologies with improved oil resistance and electrical conductivity have been developed by Optatech Corp., Finland. Optatech sells the products through its subsidiary Optaplast Ltd. and is also negotiating with several companies to license the technology. Pacrel is a new type of TPV consisting of a polyolefin matrix (PP, EVA, or ethylene acrylate) and a dispersed, crosslinked polyacrylate rubber phase. It boasts superior oil resistance, excellent uv and ozone resistance, excellent flex- fatigue resistance, soft-touch feel and good adhesion without primers to urethane-acrylate paints and to polyolefins. It reportedly blends well with SEBS to provide oil resistance even better than that of PP/EPDM TPVs. Optatech also offers permanently conductive TPEs based on blends of doped polyaniline and a TPV such as Pacrel, PP/EPDM or SEBS/PP. Volume resistivity of 1000 ohm-cm can be achieved with 20% addition of doped polyaniline. These patented elastomers are said to retain their elastic properties because the co-continuous phase of doped polyaniline is also flexible. (For more information, visit www.optatech.fi.)