Airplane interior panels thermoformed by Magee Plastics Co. from phenolic-honeycomb (beige) construction with a Tedlar® polyvinyl fluoride covering (white) are items that potentially could be converted to PPS materials, e.g., Ensinger/PennFibre's PPS sheet, made with thermoformable Fortron® PPS from Ticona. (Tedlar is a trademark of the DuPont Company.) Photo courtesy of Ticona-Celanese

August 21, 2004 -- Warrendale, Pennsylvania (USA) -- Jobwerx News -- Plastics Company Breaks New Ground in thermoforming for surface area components that require resistance to chemicals, heat and flame.

Magee Plastics Company, Warrendale, Pennsylvania, has broken new ground in the use of polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) by developing commercial procedures for pressure-forming and vacuum-forming PPS sheet. This work was based on the use of Ensinger/PennFibre's 1/8-inch PPS sheet.

Polyphenylene sulfide resin sheets used, involved Fortron® PPS unfilled, glass-filled, and impact-improved thermoformable grades. These grades have high strength-to-weight ratios and continuous service temperatures up to 450°F (232°C) depending upon composition. Polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) thermoformable Fortron® resins are from Ticona the technical polymers business of Celanese AG.

Magee Plastics is exploring a variety of ways to apply thermoformed PPS, especially for large-surface-area components that need high chemical and heat and flame resistance. Potential applications include interior panels in airplanes and trains and chemical tank liners. In the latter case, thermoformed PPS linings offer the same or better chemical resistance as fluoropolymers and 50 percent greater heat capacity at an equivalent cost.

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