Graphene enhanced Polyethylene (PE) and Polycarbonate (PC)

05-Apr-16

Graphene-enhanced plastics has been introduced by Group NanoXplore Inc., a Montreal-based company. Compounded pellets for different grades of Polyethylene (PE) and Polycarbonate (PC) are available. NanoXplore is targeting graphene-enhanced thermoplastics in response to broad customer interest for engineering plastics with enhanced electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties. The company commissioned its 8,500 sq. foot manufacturing facility in December, 2015 and today has a capacity of 400 metric tons per year of compounded master batch pellets. NanoXplore has been taking orders and sampling pellets to customers in Europe and North America since January 2016. NanoXplore has been focusing recently on polyethylene (PE) thermoplastics and has obtained significant multi-functional improvements in performance compared to base resins. For HDPE at 0.5 weight% graphene loading, a 15% increase in tensile strength was achieved without degrading material toughness. For LLDPE at 15 weight% graphene loading, thermal conductivity was doubled, yield strength increased by more than 30%, and electrical conductivity was increased to the anti-static range. NanoXplore's ability to tailor the final properties of the plastics by adding graphene paves the way for engineering plastics in real world products such as electric motors, cellphone and tablet casings, and automotive and aerospace parts. "Customer reaction to NanoXplore's graphene enhanced polymers in pellet form has been very positive," says Dr. Soroush Nazarpour, President and CEO of Group NanoXplore Inc. "Compounders and plastic forming companies - injection and blow molders, extruders - are familiar with pellets and can easily incorporate them into their existing processes. We also offer master batches to minimise shipping, storage and handling costs. With NanoXplore's graphene enhanced master batches in pellet form, customers are telling us that graphene is finally ready for the plastic industry."