Mexican Media Brands
Automotive Lightweighting: The Case for Plastics
Understanding and choosing from all the different material options is one of the biggest challenges with automotive lightweighting. That’s why it’s important to consider alternatives to metals like magnesium and aluminum in favor of plastic components. (Sponsored Content)
#aluminum
Share
C
Magnesium and aluminum are excellent alternatives to steel for lightweighting, but thermoplastic and thermoset materials offer robust possibilities as well. An extensive selection ion of glass-, metal- or, ceramic-filled polymers as well as liquid silicone rubber (LSR) can be used to replace metal parts, thus reducing product cost and weight while improving durability.
Some of the best alternatives include polypropylene, polyethylene and polycarbonate, just to name a few. Liquid silicone rubber, or LSR, is a surprising but versatile material for many molding applications. Reducing weight by 50-percent in some cases, these polymers offer major weight saving potential in the automotive industry.
With several options to choose from, the best way to test the viability of these plastic materials is with rapid prototypes that you can get into testing quickly…READ MORE.
RELATED CONTENT
-
Things to Know About Cam Grinding
By James Gaffney, Product Engineer, Precision Grinding and Patrick D. Redington, Manager, Precision Grinding Business Unit, Norton Company (Worcester, MA)
-
Jeeps Modified for Moab
On Easter morning in Moab, Utah, when the population of that exceedingly-hard-to-get-to town in one of the most beautiful settings on Earth has more than doubled, some people won’t be hunting for Easter eggs, but will be trying to get a good look at one of the vehicles six that Jeep has prepared for real-life, fast-feedback from the assembled at the annual Easter Jeep Safari.
-
Multiple Choices for Light, High-Performance Chassis
How carbon fiber is utilized is as different as the vehicles on which it is used. From full carbon tubs to partial panels to welded steel tube sandwich structures, the only limitation is imagination.
