Self-reinforced PET has been recently introduced in the market by Aptiform. This is a novel innovation, as uptil now, most self-reinforced plastics were based on polyolefins. Aptiform's proprietary forming process has been developed over several years enabling successful moulding of complex shapes in these relatively new materials. This allows OEMs in these sectors to benefit from the light weight, recyclability, high impact performance and low cost offered by self-reinforced PET. Aptiform's capabilities also include finishing, joining, painting and recycling of self-reinforced plastics, allowing the complete supply of finished, assembled components. Self-reinforced PET is particularly applicable to large, low-volume parts and is easily painted and bonded, offering significant weight savings compared to GRP mouldings. Applications are anticipated in areas where GRP is currently used but where weight savings are beneficial, such as in mass transit, specialist and construction vehicles.
Because these materials are not contaminated with dissimilar reinforcing materials like glass fibres they can be more easily recycled, whist offering comparable strength and stiffness properties and the advantage of reduced weight. Self-reinforced plastics are a family of materials where the matrix is reinforced by a fibre of the same material, such as polypropylene reinforced with polypropylene. These materials bridge the gap between isotropic polymers and fibre-reinforced composites, with stiffness and strength values typically 5 times those of conventional unreinforced plastics.
03-Apr-07 
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