INTERSOLAR: Solvay showcases specialty polymers
Solvay Specialty Polymers will highlight its comprehensive portfolio of high-performance polymers for the solar power industry at the Intersolar North America exhibition July 8-10 in San Francisco. The company's offering was recently expanded with the addition of two new film grades of Halar ethylene chlorotrifluoroethylene (ECTFE) resin, which features a unique patented UV blocking technology that was purpose-designed for PV front sheet applications capable of meeting the industry's 25-years' service life requirement.
An advanced PV front sheet film from Amcor Flexibles developed in collaboration with Solvay using new Halar ECTFE UV blocking technology, shows excellent long-term weatherability, dielectric strength and flame retardant characteristics (LOI >52), which makes it ideally suitable also for the growing segment of residential photovoltaic applications.
"The photovoltaic installation market is booming, particularly in the US," explains Philippe-Jacques Leng, Global Market Manager, Films, for Solvay Specialty Polymers. "We believe this is a highly sustainable market that requires specially designed materials to meet the PV industry's high-performance needs, and with our broad product portfolio we are firmly positioned as a strategic supplier to our customers in this important segment."
Solvay Specialty Polymers' comprehensive offering for the photovoltaic industry includes key products such as Hala ECTFE - a partially fluorinated, melt-processable polymer that combines excellent mechanical properties with exceptional heat, chemical and fire resistance, giving it a perfect fit in high-performance films for weight saving front and back sheets; Solef PVDF - a partially fluorinated polymer with outstanding chemical, UV and fatigue resistance along with exceptional barrier properties, scratch-resistance and ease of processing, whose typical applications include PV module back sheets; and Cogegum XLPO HFFR, a range of ambient-cure, cross-linkable, halogen-free fire retardant compounds that provide enhanced solutions for wire insulation and cable jacketing applications with comprehensive chemical resistance over a wide range of end-use temperatures.
Other products in the company's portfolio include Ixef PARA, a semi-aromatic polyarylamide resin that offers a unique combination of strength and rigidity, high melt flow and excellent surface aesthetics, making it a preferred material for thin-walled PV module frames, and Polidiemme XLPO - a range of elastomeric, ambient-cure, cross-linkable compounds with enhanced thermo-mechanical properties as well as high chemical and abrasion resistance over a wide temperature range, ideally suited for PV encapsulation.
