SABIC Innovative Plastics features Green Technologies at NAIAS

Environmentally friendly plastics from SABIC provide weight reduction, luxury and style for the Lincoln MKT concept vehicle while reducing the carbon footprint.

Materials from SABIC Innovative Plastics, featured today at the North American International Auto Show, are helping Ford Motor Company’s Lincoln brand provide more eco-responsible style and luxury.

The new Lincoln MKT luxury concept vehicle, making its world premiere today at the show, features a number of SABIC Innovative Plastics’ portfolio of environmentally responsible technologies. These include smart, sustainable resins based on up-cycled plastic waste; lightweight glazing that reduces fuel consumption and emissions; and high-performance resins for ultra-thin wire coating that cut vehicle weight and provide flame retardance without the risks associated with halogenated additives. At the same time, these versatile materials enable innovative designs and provide beautiful surfaces to enhance the experience of beauty and style.

The 2008 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS), held at the Cobo Center in Detroit, MI. USA, is one of the premier international auto shows. Green in every shade will be a dominate theme of this year’s show. Automakers are displaying an array of environmentally friendly technologies, including extremely efficient gasoline motors, diesel engines, hybrids of all sorts and variations on those themes.

The Lincoln MKT concept reaches a new level of responsible luxury with the use of more environmentally friendly materials that offer a premium look and feel. Weight reductions for the Lincoln MKT is a key part of Ford Motor Company’s vehicle sustainability strategy. For one, as a sporty roadster, the Lincoln MKT offers new technologies and materials that make it as environmentally friendly as it is elegant.

Two upcycled plastics materials, Valox iQ and Xenoy iQ, were used in making the Lincoln MKT body panels, energy absorbers, wire bundles and glazing. The resins are made from discarded PET bottles and other polyester waste, keeping them out of landfills, reducing energy consumption and shrinking the vehicle’s overall carbon footprint.

Some applications of the plastics help the vehicle resist heat and chemicals and also improve overall noise and vibration.

“Until now, many people have considered a green luxury car to be an oxymoron,” said Amanda Roble, executive director, Automotive, SABIC Innovative Plastics. “But with our next-generation materials, the Lincoln MKT demonstrates that the two customer benefits are very compatible. By replacing traditional metal and glass with quality materials that are durable and sustainable, which help reduce fuel consumption and emissions, Lincoln has created a luxury vehicle that is gentle on the environment.”

By teaming up with SABIC Innovative Plastics, Lincoln was able to lighten the weight of the MKT by 104 lbs (47 kg) without compromising its style and safety. Weight savings such as those provided by SABIC Innovative Plastics’ technologies can represent important benefits if they are implemented over mass quantities of vehicles.

For example, if you were to achieve a similar weight savings of 104 lbs (47 kg) per vehicle on a fleet of 125,000 similar vehicles, this would result in savings of around 15 million U.S. gallons (56 million liters) of gasoline. This overall weight savings could represent important fuel reduction costs for these drivers at close to an estimated $44 million. The amount of gasoline involved would be the same amount as filling over 1,500 large tanker trucks which, lined up end to end, would stretch close to 17 miles (27.5 kilometers). At the same time CO2 emissions could then be reduced by about 128 thousand metric tons, or the amount absorbed by approximately 35,000 acres of Southeastern U.S. forest, according to Green Order, a New York environmental strategy firm.

SABIC Innovative Plastics’ smart iQ* resins, made from up-cycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles, replace metal in a number of new part applications in the MKT. Xenoy iQ* resin is targeted for front and rear bumper energy absorbers, the center console, and liftgate inner structure; while Valox iQ* resin is targeted for the engine cover, connectors, power distribution boards, and the composite hood. More than 2,000 bottles go into the MKT; this number equals the number of bottles used by a person who drinks one per day for over 5 ½ years. These energy-efficient iQ plastic resins offer excellent performance and can help reduce vehicle weight to cut fuel usage and reduce the overall carbon footprint.

In the roof, windshield, and rear lift gate of the Lincoln concept, deluxe glazing components –Lexan GLX polycarbonate resins with Exatec** coating, bonded with a CarboTech carbon composite structure – reduce weight by 28.4 lbs (12.9 kg) vs. glass. Equally important, this solution made it possible to design the unique lift gate glazing with its integrated aerodynamics, which would not have been feasible using glass.

Flexible Noryl* resin, an inherently flame-retardant, non-halogenated material from SABIC Innovative Plastics, helps reduce weight by 2.5 lbs (1.1 kg) by enabling ultra-thin wire coating. Further, these thinner coatings free up space for additional consumer electronics.

**Trademark of Exatec, LLC.

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