LANXESS intensifies focus on electromobility

LANXESS sees great application potential for its technical plastics under the brands Durethan (polyamide) and Pocan (polybutylene terephthalate) in the New Mobility growth market.

The companys High Performance Materials business unit has founded the “e-Powertrain team”, which is geared to the needs of the global automotive industry.

The team will support external partners throughout the entire development chain for components of electric vehicles and the associated infrastructure.

This support includes materials that are tailor-made for specific customers and applications as well as processing development and engineering services for component design such as CAE simulations, mould flow calculations and finished product inspections.

The new group is the central point of contact for electromobility development projects and inquiries from all regions.

LANXESS has also identified a range of key applications for its thermoplastics in the field of electromobility. The company will focus on batteries, motors and inverters as well as charging systems and elements of the charging infrastructure.

“We see huge potential here for substituting these for our high-modulus compounds and continuous-fibre-reinforced composites, for example in carriers of electronics modules in the area of the battery. We support manufacturers looking to exploit the lightweight construction potential, the design flexibility and the high, cost-reducing integration potential of our materials by providing material recommendations and component designs specially developed for plastic,” explained Julian Haspel, who heads the team.

“We expect both increasing vehicle electrification and the trend toward autonomous driving to entail a sharply rising demand for polyamides, polyesters such as PBT and continuous-fibre-reinforced thermoplastic composites."