Expanded polypropylene cuts vehicle weight

A JSP product story

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Jul 18, 2008

The report highlights specific areas that are increasing their usage of Arpro, including seating systems, where it can help reduce system mass by 25 to 35% (up to 10kg).

A supplier of expanded polypropylene (EPP) has predicted that usage of the material is will grow by 5% in 2008.

The Arpro Market Report forecasts future use and geographical spread of the product.

"Demand in 2008 is expected to grow 5%, driven by increased adoption in new vehicle introductions".

"The reasons for growth are two-fold; increasing penetration by model and increasing penetration by application" explains Paul Compton, JSP's Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer (Europe).

"It is estimated that a weight reduction of 100kg over the average lifetime of a car (150,000km) reduces consumption by 900 litres of fuel".

"If we consider the current fuel price to average Eur 1.50 per litre, this amounts to a Eur 1350 saving for the vehicle owner".

The report highlights specific areas that are increasing their usage of Arpro, including seating systems, where it can help reduce system mass by 25 to 35% (up to 10kg).

Its extremely high strength-to-weight ratio and ability to return to its original shape following dynamic stresses is particularly useful in safety applications, enabling replacement of much heavier components.

"A 10kg weight saving in a car that sells over 100,000 units annually and has a kerb weight of 1200kg is the equivalent of reducing the environmental impact of its production by over 800 cars a year".

"On an average car that's a reduction of over 20,000 tonnes of CO2 annually".

Dunnage, re-usable shipping containers that shuttle automotive components back and forth between parts suppliers and OEMs, is also forecast to grow by 8% from 2007 to 2008.

Investment in Arpro dunnage for components can provide rapid payback by eliminating consumable materials, scrap and process costs.

Dunnage use is also a much more sustainable solution for protecting parts in transit.

The report suggests that environmental pressures will drive further demand.

Manufacturing Arpro requires no VOCs (volatile organic compounds), which are damaging to the environment.

The product is 100% recyclable and as automotive manufacturers strive for mono-material parts that require less disassembly and sorting, the product has become a favoured material choice for an increased number of applications.

Once recovered at end-of-life, it can be recycled or incinerated, producing a high calorific value without harmful gas emissions.

On a like-for-like packaging performance basis Arpro performs between 30% and 60% better than EPS or other EPS/PPO/PPE blends.

Safety-critical parts made in Arpro offer greater longevity than PC, ABS or rigid PU, materials which require replacement after a single impact.

Performance demands can often be achieved with Arpro at lower densities than other materials, thereby contributing further to weight and fuel savings.