Rhenogran® XLA-60. Safe curing agent for polyacrylate rubber compounds containing no DOTG
Wednesday, 05. December 2007 With its new Rhenogran® XLA-60 product, Rhein Chemie Rheinau GmbH, based in Mannheim, Germany, has succeeded in developing a curing agent that serves as a substitute for DOTG accelerators in polyacrylate rubber compounds.
Mannheim – With its new Rhenogran® XLA-60 product, Rhein Chemie Rheinau GmbH, based in Mannheim, Germany, has succeeded in developing a curing agent that serves as a substitute for DOTG accelerators in polyacrylate rubber compounds.
When polyacrylate rubber products are cured with systems comprising HMDC (hexamethylenediamine carbamate) and DOTG (N,N’-di-ortho-toluylguanidine), the process generates o-toluidine emissions in volumes that constitute a health hazard. According to recent studies, o-toluidine can cause cancer. In 2006 it was classified as a Category 1 carcinogen in the German Research Foundation’s MAK and BAT Thresholds for Chemicals at the Workplace (DFG, Issue 2006). O-toluidine can also be released by vulcanizates manufactured with N,N’-di-ortho-toluylguanidine. For these reasons, the rubber processing industry increasingly recognizes it as a potential health risk. Rhein Chemie now is introducing a safer alternative to DOTG: Rhenogran XLA-60. In combination with HMDC, it takes over the function of DOTG and reliably eliminates the formation of o-toluidine.
This distinct advantage is paired with high-level performance. The use of Rhenogran XLA-60 in AEM and ACM compounds has been observed to have the following influences on vulcanization behavior and physical propertie
- Good processing characteristics
- Equivalent physical properties
- Comparable aging and oil resistance
- Low compression set
- Good storage stability at room temperature
- Low risk potential for humans and the environment
Polyacrylate rubber is a polymerizate made of ethyl acrylate or butyl acrylate with minimal addition of a monomer that enables curing. Polyacrylate rubber products are used successfully in a wide variety of dynamic applications in the automotive industry, including for example seals and hoses. The vulcanizates offer balanced properties in terms of media and high/low temperature resistance, as well as low-temperature flexibility.
Rhein Chemie also markets a number of special agents for curing polyacrylate rubber products, such as Rhenogran®HMDC-70/AEMD, Rhenogran® ZDDT-50 and Aflux® 18.
Rhein Chemie is a chemicals company which has had a successful track record in customized additives and service products stretching back over 100 years. The approximately 900-strong workforce produces and sells products for various sectors of the rubber, lubricant, plastics, and polyurethane industries worldwide. Around 550 staff are employed at headquarters in Mannheim-Rheinau, Germany. The company has subsidiaries and production facilities in Europe, Asia, and North and South America. Rhein Chemie is a wholly owned subsidiary of LANXESS Deutschland GmbH, Leverkusen, Germany.
Mannheim, 05. December 2007
bit (2007-12-815EN)
Forward-Looking Statements
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