(Plastics Today) -- DuPont will increase capacity for its DuPont Zytel HTN high-performance polyamide with a polymerization facility at its Sakra, Singapore facility and the addition of compounding equipment in Shenzhen, China. The Sakra facility will be able to produce 20 KT of the engineering polymer by 2013, while the compounding investment in Shenzhen has added 10 KT of Zytel HTN capacity.
Zytel HTN PPA targets metal replacement in the automotive industry focusing on underhood applications and in hybrid and electric vehicle electrical and electronic applications. Structural grades of Zytel HTN are used in hand-held devices, electrical and electronic applications, and consumer products.
DuPont markets four grades of the polyphthalamide (PPA) based material: Zytel HTN92 (long-term retention of mechanical properties), Zytel HTN51 (stiffness and strength retention under high temperatures and chemical exposure), Zytel HTN52 (molds in water-heated tools), and Zytel HTN54 (increased toughness and improved retention of mechanical properties with moisture).